Save the Last Bullet

Memoir of a Boy Soldier in Hitler's Army

By: Heidi Langbein-Allen, Wilhelm Langbein

Narrated by: Paul Cheall

Willi Langbein was just thirteen when the Nazis took him away from his parents under the pretense of protecting him. Their real reason was to turn him into cannon-fodder for use against Hitler’s enemies. Deployed to the collapsing Eastern Front in the last days of the war, Willi, now aged fourteen, and his schoolmates were ordered to stave off the relentless Russian advance. None were expected to return alive from the final battles of the Third Reich.

Yet, against all odds, Willi does survive but his ordeal is far from over. He returns home to find everything he knows destroyed. Numb and confused, he is mandated to serve one year of forced farm labor. After his release, he gradually realizes that all he was taught to believe in was a lie and he sinks into depression. Eventually, thanks to his friendship with a kind British soldier, he begins to heal. It begins to dawn on him that he can play a part to ensure that the evil he witnessed is never repeated. Ultimately, he succeeds by earning the Medal of European Merit in 1979 for his contribution to the advancement of European democracy.

Willi’s graphic and moving story, told from a Nazi child soldier’s perspective, is an inspiring memoir of lost innocence and despair, but also of determination and hope restored.

©2023 Heidi Langbein-Allen,Wilhelm Langbein (P)2023 Pen and Sword

Great story about a stolen youth

Great story but man the narrator who is an elderly British chap talking in a young child’s voice at the beginning is a little laughable. The story is otherwise great though, and adds some depth to the early Post-War experience.

amazing what those kids must have went through.

hard to imagine how they dealt with this after the war and having all those experiences and images still fresh in their minds. PTSD would be very traumatic at a younger age.

Captivating, Perfection

I knew this book was going to be good, but it greatly exceeded my expectations. I did not want it to end. The narrator, Bill Cheall, has a voice made for narration. Just like his podcast, Fighting Through, I was glued to this book. The way Heidi told her dad’s story was nothing short of perfection. All of her hard work created a masterpiece. Well done, Heidi. Well done.

Authentic perspective of a Hitler Youth

This is a great autobiography of a victim/survivor/14-year-old soldier and his experiences before during and after World War 2. Told with humble honesty and candor, we hear how a young boy got conscripted and very nearly died doing what his country expected of him. Anyone interested in one German’s perspective of the war will enjoy this well told story.

Very little on actual combat

The first half of the book is about the young man’s childhood. There is only a short period of him actually in combat ( this part was good). The remainder of the book was the postwar experiences—parts were interesting. I was not impressed with the narrator— his script induced laughter was quite annoying. Bottom line, if you are looking for a story that examines a youth’s experience in combat, this is not the book for you.