Book Suggestions

[Oscoda]

I haven't posted in at least a year but am getting back into Civil War scholarship. That being said, I would love either a link to an appropriate list or the suggestions of posters about good starter books to read. I haven't gotten into any specific battles, regiments, etc. as of yet but plan to in the future. If this is not the appropriate place to post this threat I apologize.

Regards,

Dave

 

[Oscoda]

above should read "thread" not "threat"

 

[njwilliams]

What books have you read? Just so we have a reference starting point and in what depth do you want to go, are you looking at a specific theater of the war or a certain battle/regiment/brigades? If you can give us more particulars it would help make better recommendations for books.

 

[Oscoda]

Battle Cry of Freedom
The Shelby Foote Narrative of the Civil War Books
These Men have Seen Hard times
Currently reading - The Life of Johnny Reb

...not very impressive. No I haven't focused in on one specific theater

 

[atuttle32]

I'm staring my journey in Civil War literature as well. Have read a few things by Gary Gallagher - he's very technical and very "what if" .... I am currently GREATLY enjoying Fighting for the Confederacy by Porter Alexander. Next up is This Hallowed Ground by Bruce Catton - I have ready tid bits of it and can't wait to get to that one.

 

[njwilliams]

A good book to read is the autobiography of E. Porter Alexander, Gary Gallagher found it and edited it a little, but it's the best one if you want to see what it was like fighting in the ANV. Some other good author that I like are for eastern theater is Stephen Sears, Gordon Rhea (overland campaign) there are a lot more that are good but those to stick out are good overviews of some important battles. For western theater Wiley Sword has great books on the battle of Shiloh and the battle of Franklin, Peter Cozzens has books on stones river, chickamauga and chattanooga. Those as just some of the good starts from my point of view. I have a lot of books dealing with Gettysburg as well so if you want a suggestion there let me know and I'd be glad to point you in a good direction.

 

[jpeter]

The political atmosphere?

"The Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery."
"The Year of Meteors"
"The Impending Crisis, 1848-1861" (won the Pulitzer in 1977 and is still a classic)

 

[Oscoda]

I'm staring my journey in Civil War literature as well. Have read a few things by Gary Gallagher - he's very technical and very "what if" .... I am currently GREATLY enjoying Fighting for the Confederacy by Porter Alexander. Next up is This Hallowed Ground by Bruce Catton - I have ready tid bits of it and can't wait to get to that one.

Gary Gallagher has a lecture series I believe. Ole, a former and I'm assuming current moderator on here, was kind enough to loan me the entire set. I would love to read Catton's books but they seem to be out of print. Guess I'll have to look for some used originals.

 

[ole]

Look into abebooks.com. A brazillion used books. By all means, read Catton -- all of them.

 

[atuttle32]

Also visit www.thriftbooks.com - I got a hardback copy of Alexander's Fighting for the Confederacy for under $4 from there and received it in less than a week. Do a search by author for Catton - they have a lot of his books right now.

 

[Robtweb1]

I prefer the books written by those who served in the war, rather than modern authors. My favorites are:

"Two Wars", by Major General Samuel Gibbs French
Company Aytch, by Pvt Sam Watkins (This one is the war from the private's perspective)

If you can't find a web site to read them online, they are available at Amazon.com.

 

[MizzPaxson]

For often over looked aspects I recommend "This Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War" and "Sex in the Civil War: The Story Soldiers Wouldn't Tell". The biographies written by Jeffery Wert are pretty good; though not always the most comprehensive works. They are great for in-depth overviews on people like Longstreet, Stuart, and Mosby. First hand accounts like Co. Aytch, and Hard Tack and Coffee are by far the best resources, so are the various letter collections available online.

 

[Nathanb1]

Really sounds like you might benefit by picking up something on a battle you enjoy or a person....even a particular theatre. I'll second the suggestions for looking at first-person accounts. If there's a unit you've heard about, see if there are any by its members. Some of us got into this by reading accounts about our ancestor's unit....that might be a possibility. And Abebooks is my resource way out here in the boonies. There's not a decent book store within 100 miles, so ordering used books online is a must. (And no good library, either!)

 

[Nathanb1]

I just tried something you might benefit from--scroll down through the threads listed on the Book and Movie Review forum--see what catches your eye and go from there. There are some really great books listed there, along with pretty informative reviews, etc.

 

[The Iron Duke]

The abridgment of Lee's Lieutenants would be a good starter book. You may also want to consider Stanley Horn's The Army of Tennessee; some of the information is outdated but it's a good place to start.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/0684859793/?tag=civilwartalkc-20

http://www.amazon.com/dp/0806125659/?tag=civilwartalkc-20