What American Civil War Books Are You Planning On Buying/Reading Next?

R. Evans

Sergeant
Joined
Jan 19, 2013
Location
Salem, Ohio
Forgive me if there is a thread like this around. I did a search and couldn't find anything.:smile:

So here goes. These 3 should be here tomorrow or Saturday. Can't wait to dive in.​
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I am planning on reading "Landscape Turned Red" and "Chancellorsville" by Stephen W. Sears. Would like to hear opinions!
I have read his other book, "Gettysburg". Great read! I would recommend it!
I have all three as audiobooks. Sears is a wonderful writer. "Landscape Turned Red" is a modern-day classic on the subject, and is written beautifully and engagingly, and has been in print since it was published. However, it reflects the then-dominant what I would call "excessive McClellan criticism" that has undergone a lot of revision the past 20-30 years. It doesn't detract from the overall enjoyment of the book, but be aware that the historiography around Special Order 191 and McClellan's speed of countering Lee, the post-battle follow-up, etc., has undergone quite a bit of revision in McClellan's favor the past few years.

That said, buy and enjoy with confidence.
 
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I'm guessing Traveller was not a neighsayer when it came to General Lee.

Well played, sir, well played.
I tend to jump around different time periods when reading non-fiction. When I finish "The Second War Wars" by Victor Davis Hanson, I'll move backward in time to Adrian Goldsworthy's "Pax Romana". After that, I plan on returning to the ACW with "To the North Anna River" by Gordon C. Rhea.

Those are three excellent books. Goldsworthy is among the foremost classicists writing for a popular audience. Love his work. Ditto for Rhea. I wish more of his works were available on Audible
 
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I have all three as audiobooks. Sears is a wonderful writer. "Landscape Turned Red" is a modern-day classic on the subject, and is written beautifully and engagingly, and has been in print since it was published. However, it reflects the then-dominant what I would call "excessive McClellan criticism" that has undergone a lot of revision the past 20-30 years. It doesn't detract from the overall enjoyment of the book, but be aware that the historiography around Special Order 191 and McClellan's speed of countering Lee, the post-battle follow-up, etc., has undergone quite a bit of revision in McClellan's favor the past few years.

That said, buy and enjoy with confidence.
I most definitely will! Thanks!
thebattle29
 
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What I would love to read is Jefferson Davis' A Short History of the Confederate States of America, in which he details the arguments toward the legality of secession. But Jefferson Davis wrote very, very long books. In truth my next ACW book will probably be Jack Hinson's One Man War or one of the biographies of Gen. Sterling Price or Gov. Claiborne F. Jackson.

Currently reading Calhoun's Theory of Republicanism by John Grove.
 
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Just started reading this little gem loaned to me and have to say, what an interesting read! As a VMI man, I presumed I knew all about Little Sorrel, yet a i was mistaken. Far from a book just about the Chestnut, it traces Jackson’s travels throughout the Shenandoah and discusses the use of warhorses throughout the ACW in an enjoyable, fascinating way.

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When finished with One Continuous Fight, recommend Retreat From Gettysburg, by Kent Masterson Brown. The 2 books compliment each other in that they cover the retreat differently. Brown goes with a logistical view, while Wittenberg covers the fighting during the retreat.
Will start Cozzen's "This Terrible Sound" with the Sunday night discussion group on Feb 10. At least the group will start it, I will join in, unless I have the same issues with the right eye as I did with the left eye, after Cataract surgery on the 24th.
Sunday should find me starting Point Lookout Prison Camp for Confederates, after I finish The Liberators, by Hirsh.
With the tues book group, finding Lance Herdegen's comments with our discussion of "The Iron Brigade in Civil War and Memory" interesting and helpful in the reading of his book.
Don’t know how many folks caught it, but Retreat from Gettysburg was featured on the Newsmax cable tv channel on a Saturday morning a little over a year ago. It was superbly documented. Wish I had recorded it
 
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I have veered off to reading full biographies of prominent civil war figures. My current read is John Marszalek’s 1993 biography of Sherman. Queued up on the bed stand are Marszalek’s biography of Halleck, William Lamers bio of Rosecrans and Brian Steel Wills’ biography of George Thomas. There is a sub-theme to these books. I gained new insight and appreciation for the brilliance and long term strategic impact of the Tullahoma Campaign from Dave Powell’s and Eric Wittenberg’s new book and Michael Bradley’s Decisions of the Tullahoma Campaign. These books gave me new appreciation and respect for Rosecrans. And the epic battles he had to fight with Halleck to conduct the Tullahoma Campaign to his planning. So I am beginning to dig deeper into why Rosecrans and Tullahoma were denied their due historically and remain obscure. Which leads to examining whether there was a narrative in play in lieu of true history. which led me logically enough to Frank Varney’s Grant and the Rewriting of History: How the Destruction of General William S. Rosecrans Influenced Our Understanding of the Civil War. It is next on my plate. Maybe I will make it through all these books by the time Varney’s Volume 2 is released in June.
 
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Can anyone give an opinion on David Welker's The Cornfield: Antietam's Bloody Turning Point?
I have this book and have leafed through it but haven't had the chance to set down and read the whole thing but it looks to be a great, detailed read. One of these days I'll buckle down
 
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