Excellent re-telling of the Civil War era
594879
What a great history of the Civil War and the politics that surrounded the era.  My understanding of the time period has increased immensely now that I have finished this book.

Typically we're taught in school that the North won the war over a belligerent South and not much more.  After all, the winners write the history books so this makes sense.  What we aren't taught is how close the South came to possibly winning this war had some events gone another way.  The South's loss of Stonewall Jackson at the height of the conflict and a failure to send competent generals to the Confederacy's west largely sealed the rebels' fate.

Lee certainly was a military genius and "Battle Cry for Freedom" tells us why.  At the beginning of the war the North was plagued with incompetent generals content with assuming a defensive position and Lee was able to exploit that in the east until the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863.

The war did abolish slavery upon its conclusion but much more came out of this darkest time in American history: federal power consolidated and touched the average citizen for the first time ever.  No longer are we a group of "United States" as we were before the war but a "United States" nation where the federal government trumps the fifty states.

I can't recommend this book highly enough as an excellent account of the events that led up to the Civil War, the war itself, and the implications of the war.
648597
Shelby Foote's "The Civil War: A Narrative" has been described  by critics and readers alike as "...a classic of its kind." It  took Foote 16 years and over 2,800 pages to tell the story of America's  bloodiest and most tragic war. "The Civil War: A Narrative" is a  long journey, but one I found well worth taking. Foote is a master at  weaving the personalities and events of the Civil War into a seamless and  often captivating narrative. One of the great beauties of this trilogy is  Foote's ability to hold the reader's interest (he held me spellbound  through all three volumes) for the long haul with his sparkling, almost  musical prose.

Of course, all the major battles - from Fort Sumter to  Appomattox, with stops at Bull Run, Fredericksburg, Gettysburg, Vicksburg,  Chancellorsville, The Wilderness, Cold Harbor, and others - fairly leap, in  all their horror, from these volumes' pages at the hands of this gifted  writer. But Foote goes one better. Less famous battles (i.e., Pea Ridge,  Perryville, The Seven Days), minor skirmishes, and other events, which  receive short shrift or a passing reference at best in most one-volume  accounts of the Civil War, receive much fuller treatment here. (Two prime  examples of this are General U.S. Grant's seven failures on the Mississippi  River as he attempted to get his army below Vicksburg, and Colonel Benjamin  Grierson's cavalry raid through Mississippi in 1863.)

Despite the claims  of some critics who accuse Foote of "Southern bias" in his  writing, I found the author's account of the Civil War to be both fair and  objective.  The three volumes also appear to be well founded on solid  historical research. However, I would have preferred to see footnote or  endnote citations of the author's sources, a more comprehensive  bibliography.

"The Civil War: A Narrative" is a wonderful  reading experience. Rich in detail, eloquently written, and imbued with  first-rate scholarship, it gives readers an accurate understanding of the  people and events which made up America's bloodiest conflict. For readers  (like me) who want to understand the Civil War, how it was fought, won, and  lost, "The Civil War: A Narrative" is indispensable. It is the  central work in my Civil War library.
2543474
This audiobook is one of the best accounts of the Civil War battles that took place in Tennessee, Georgia and across the south I've read. (and I'm a huge Civil War buff.) The author's detail is first rate and he really does a fantastic job of putting you in the saddle with Lieutenant General Forrest as this unlikely cavalry genius led his troopers into the thick of some of the battles that defined this worst of wars.  It's all wrapped up thanks to engrossing narration by Dan Bell that really brings the characters to life. Highly recommended.
4405437
I enjoyed this book as I have the others in the series.  Ginny Dye manages to bring to life the characters and the times of the Civil War.  I was not able to spare much reading time during the course of this book, and perhaps because I had to pick it up and put it down often, I had a bit of difficulty keeping up with the various characters and situations as they changed often.  I'm looking forward to Volume 6!
4337349
Kellie Doyle's "War Between the States" follows Georgia Stevens, a young lady from the landed gentry of Virginia who, through a series of circumstances, cloaks herself as George Stevens to fight for the Union. Doyle wrote an engaging story that skillfully synthesized a personal journey of the main character with the world she lived in. Doyle's attention to detail captured not only the harsh realities of civilian life during the Civil War, but also the strict codes to which both men and women were drawn into. I found Doyle's transitions from present to past to be particularly brilliant as she used subtle and unexpected props to bridge into a flashback. It's seamless and gives continuity to the overall journey Georgia makes from a Southern lady to a Union soldier. Doyle was able to also convey the Southern mindset, as atrociously wrong as they were, without demonizing the Confederacy yet she avoids any romanticizing either side of the conflict. In the end it is a human story, one that stuck with me for several days after I finished reading it. You can always tell a good story when a story does that.
1606923
Rarely do we get something truly new in Civil War literature.  Too often we get rehashed accounts of great battles such as Gettysburg or biographies of Lee, Jackson etc.  "Burning Rails as we Pleased" provides a great first hand account of the Civil War in the Western Theater.  It is rare to get these.  William Garrigues Bentley provides a great account of soldier life.  This book is based on about 140 letters he wrote home.  But Bentley also provides astute observations on the strategy and tactics of the North and the political situation at the time.  Like most Union men he was for Lincoln and when he was with Sherman's army there is no doubt that the men loved him.  They knew he would not waste their lives in vain.  This is perhaps one of the best accounts of soldier life since John D. Billings "Hardtack and Coffee."  That book was written well after the Civil War.  These accounts were written at the time.  The time and effort of Barbara Bentley Smith and Nina Bentley Baker have provided us a great insight into the life of a soldier in the Union army.

Darl L. Stephenson, author, Headquarters in the Brush:  Blazer's Independent Union Scouts, 2001, Ohio University Press
2468892
I have read the entire Civil War series by this author and his father, and each time they make history come alive. In "Rise To Rebellion" the events leading up to the American revolution are presented in a fashion that humanizes history rather than as usually found in a dry textbook. The people portrayed are seen as real persons with all their virtues and shortcomings. This is history as it should be written, suitable for all ages from high school through adulthood. It was a pleasure to read, and I could not put it down.
1484394
The Civil War is a passion for some, a hobby for many and an interest for everyone. This book serves the second two groups better than anything before it, because it familiarizes the reader with an overview - a sort of walk through the tools of that bloody battle - without getting into gory, sensationalist retellings and - always necessary - without boring the pants off the casual reader with the weight of detail meant to fill pages when the authors do not know how to tell the tale of war. Adler does, he's been here before and does not let me down. Bravo!
4946078
These are stories of the war as it  happened and as seen by those living it.  Highly recommended if you want to see the Civil War through the eyes of those who were there.
4844538
A great post Civil War story that captures the reader with the passions of those who left this war weary country to expand to the new horizons and opportunities in the Northwest. It gives great insight into the trials of living in a new world with very little comforts and great dangers. This is the second time I have read this book and I enjoyed/discovered it just as much as the first time.
534688
Most of the popular books about the Civil War which I have read give short shrift to the "March of Sherman" through the South. Utilizing historical fiction, Shaara provides an interesting and entertaining perspective on Sherman's "March." It also includes the story of a "freed" slave who follows the army after it passes through his Georgia plantation, an interesting perspective. An excellent read, as are all of Shaara's books.
3237736
This story is hard to put down. The account of the Civil War through the eyes of a constripted teenage boy is riveting. As someone who lives in Arkansas I found it well worth reading to learn more about how this state was effected by the war between the states. The author's descriptions of actual events is well written and the characters alive as she gives us more insight into life during that time period.
4976335
Mr. Peters makes the leaders in our Civil War come to life.  There is much about their character as well as their leadership capabilities.  The stories come to life in the historic battles.  Often the maneuvers become confusing but overall, it is understandable and fascinating.  I highly recommend it if you have any interest in this historic period.
78898
As a history buff, this novel gave me a new look at the Civil War; I can hardly wait to read the next book in the series.
1957963
I recommend this book to anyone interested in the Civil War. It is a novel and yet it includes many historical facts.  Though most characters are fictional, there are many facts that depict the true circumstances of the time.  I truly enjoyed reading this book.
4115267
I first read this book several years ago and it prompted my own interest in researching family history in the civil war. After doing so and reading many soldiers' accounts and their personal correspondence and diaries at the Emory University Manuscripts and Rare Books Library, I recently re-read Col Johnson's book. Under the Southern Cross stands up extremely well. Col. Johnson has done an amazing job of editing the various Bradwell papers into a very readable chronological narrative. The book makes no pretense of being a broadly researched history; it is a narrative of the war as seen through the eyes, experiences and opinions of Bradwell. The book rings with accuracy when read in juxtaposition with other sources.  The details of an ordinary soldier's camp life in the early chapters and the matter of fact narrative of this soldier's experiences with the cold, heat, wet, hunger, sickness and battlefield experiences, from The Seven Days to Appomattox, are intensely interesting. There are many high altitude, all encompassing histories of the major civil war engagements but few books written from the perspective of a soldier on the front line. That this one was actually written by a soldier and delivered to us in a laboriously edited form by Co. Johnson is a real treat for anyone interested in civil war history, especially regarding the Army of Northern Virginia.
548696
This book is one of my favorites. I loved the way it was told from two points of view, slave and liberator. The author did an excellent job of portraying the southern culture of pre-civil war.