As World War II tore apart families across the world, most civilians were passive pawns in the conflict and were left to the mercy of their fates. When the husband of a small Soviet family of two, however, was lost in battle, the widowed wife chose not to mourn quietly. Mariya Vasileyevna would instead direct her loss towards furious revenge. Following a special petition to the USSR, she was allowed to use her life savings to purchase a T-34 tank. It would be named the “Fighting Girlfriend”...