This book is about the impact of war on the Soviet system of economic
planning and management between 1938 and 1945. What was the dynamic of
change in the prewar Soviet economic system? How well was the Soviet
economy prepared for war? What kind of war followed the German invasion
of 1941, and what costs did it inflict on the Soviet Union? How did the
Soviet economy measure up to wartime requirements, and what changes in
economic organisation resulted? What lessons were laid down for the
postwar Soviet approach to both peaceful and warlike tasks?