Civil War recommendations?

[LovesMacs]

Hello, I've been on an American Civil War kick and I'm currently reading Battle Cry of Freedom by James McPherson. I've also read a Lincoln biography that I think was called A. Lincoln. I don't remember the author's name.

Does anyone have any recommendations for further reading about the war, the general era, or some of the important people of that time? I think I'd prefer nonfiction over fiction.

Thank you.

[xg4bx]

i really liked Gettysburg by Stephen Sears. it was written in a very clear, readable style that almost flowed like fiction.

[pwalker8]

Agreed, Sears is very good. I really like his other Civil War books ("The Landscape Turned Red, the Battle of Antietam" and "Chancellorsville" are excellent), but they aren't available in ebook yet. For Civil War books in ebook format, there is the abridged version of Lee's Lieutenants, the classic by Freeman is very good. I prefer the unabridged version, but it's not out in ebook. Foote's "The Civil War" is also excellent, a classic is available in the unabridged 3 volume set.

There is a ton of literature on the Civil War, unfortunately most isn't available in ebook format. One can hope. Interestingly, a lot of the original source material is now in public domain and thus is available.

A few more that may be of interest:

Gettysburg as the Generals Remembered It by Robert P. Broadwater

The Slaves' War: The Civil War in the Words of Former Slaves by Andrew Ward

Mary Chesnut's Civil War by Mary Boykin Chesnut, C. Vann Woodward (editor)

The last will be familiar to you if you have ever seen the excellent videos series, The Civil War by Ken Burns

[issybird]

Two that I read and enjoyed in the past year, both available in ebook:

This Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War
by Drew Gilpin Faust, about the impact of the enormous death toll on society.

1861: The Civil War Awakening by Adam Goodheart, about the events of the first year of the war and how they shaped the course of the war and the nation.

[Shopaholic]

I found Bloody Crimes by James L. Swanson an interesting read. It parallels the hunt for Jefferson Davis with the assassination of and funeral train of Abraham Lincoln. It's not on the actual war per se but an interesting sidenote/accompaniment.

[Belfaborac]

I would think the standard work on the Civil War, and easily the best I've read, is Shelby Foote's The Civil War: A Narrative (ebooks, full set). It deals with the entire war and its causes in great detail over three hefty volumes, without ever becoming dry or boring.

Vol 1: Fort Sumter to Perryville (ebook)
Vol 2: Fredericksburg to Meridian (ebook)
Vol 3: Red River to Appomattox (hardcover)

[jgaiser]

Getting ready to post about Shelby Foote's books, but saw Belfaborac beat me to it.

I'd consider them to be the definitive books on the complete Civil War. A lot of pages in the three volumes, but totally engrossing.

[Belfaborac]

Engrossing is spot on. It was the first work of history I read that didn't have a bit of dusty academia about it, but was thoroughly engrossing from the first page to the last. It must be well over twenty years since I first read The Civil War and in that time I've never found a similar work that has bettered it in the readability department, and only a handful to equal it. Add to that its all-encompassing nature and I can't think of any work that more deserves the term definitive, at least among books written for general readers, rather than those aimed only at academics.

[RDaneel54]

One more recommendation for Shelby Foote's trilogy. Well written and well researched.

[Catlady]

April 1865 by Jay Winik.

[Xanthe]

Another vote for Shelby Foote's work.

Also, read the memoirs of U.S. Grant and W.T. Sherman.

[tch65721]

Another recommendation for Shelby Foote books and Ken Burns mini-series.

I also really enjoyed The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara.

[Mike L]

This isn't a book recommendatoin, but if you really want to get an in-depth understanding of the war, you might consider Professor Blight's Open Yale course.

Essientially, this is a set of 27 lectures (each lasts 40 - 50 mins), with the title The Civil War and Reconstruction Era, 1845-1877. Prof. Blight delivered the lectures at Yale in 2008. There is an accompanying reading list.

I took the course last year, when I was stuck at home after a cycling accident. It's quite daunting, but you can do it at your own pace, and repeat anything that you didn't catch the first time. I only read a few of the items from the reading list, but, after each lecture, I reviewed the relevant material on Wikipedia to help re-inforce it.

The course is entirely free, and you don't need to register. You can access it at http://oyc.yale.edu/history/hist-119.

I also read McPherson's Battle Cry of Freedom , as well as the books by James Swanson mentioned above.

I wish I could get a copy of the Burns TV series, but it doesn't seem to be available over here.

Mike

[Xanthe]

Thanks for that info about the Open Yale courses!