The Killer Angels: The Classic Novel of the Civil War by Michael Shaara Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Killer Angels: The Classic Novel of the Civil War
Book Review: A dazzling, sobering novel of the American Civil War.
Summary: 5 Stars
This is perhaps one of the most moving and insightful books about war I have ever read. Taking an unbiased view on the rights and wrongs of the characters' motivations, Shaara explains the lives and actions the historical protagonists with simple dignity and humanity. For the tacticians amongst you there is a feast of military fact which alone makes the book worth buying, the battle scenes are panoramic, you can almost smell the black powder, but Shaara never loses sight of the butchery of war and handles the various encounters with skill and empathy. If you buy any book on the American civil war, and in particular Gettysburg, buy this one.Book Review: A fine basic view.........
Summary: 5 Stars
The great Douglas Southall Freeman stated in 1936 that Gettysburg was the most studied battle in the history of the world. Despite all that has happened in the past 70 years, that is probably still true. I first encountered this fine book a number of years ago, when I was Medical Officer for The Basic School at Quantico. It was, and probably still is, required reading for the Second Lieutenants. Whole volumes of "nonfiction" have been written about each day of Gettysburg, but this novel contains more truth than most of them.
This volume looks at Gettysburg from both Union and Confederate viewpoints. The courage and determination of both sides is well shown. The high placed mistakes on the Condederate side are well known; those on the Union side are less evident, but still real. The South should have won; The South should have been completely destroyed. Both statements are true, but neither event happened, and the war went on. The issue of who was "right", and who was "wrong" will never be settled. I suppose it's obvious that I vote with Longstreet and Hood. And yet, I still maintain that Robert E. Lee was the greatest soldier who ever lived.
We can play "what if" unto eternity...if Jackson isn't shot at Chancellorsville, he is on the left the first day...but, if Dick Ewell does his job, it doesn't matter. And, if JEB Stuart isn't joyriding, maybe the whole battle never happens. Maybe Lee ordered the wrong attacks, but if they're made earlier...And, we forget that Pickett's Charge almost worked....Here's one my fellow Confederates won't like [I have support for it in a footnote in vol. 2 of "Lee's Lieutenants"]....at the time of Chancellorsville, President Davis was thinking of giving Jackson his "fourth star", and Braxton Bragg's job....Jackson was a great fighting General, but mainly because Lee was his boss...as an Army Commander...Jackson was just as difficult and unpleasant as Bragg, without Bragg's strategic and logistical ability...Jackson has gone down as a martyr; if he had lived, he may well have destroyed The Army of Tennessee, and gone down as "Tom Fool", which was his nickname at VMI.
This is an "essential" book. I have said quite the opposite of other very fine Civil War books, that are written for the professional. Only one significant error of fact: from Pickett's words, we are left with the impression that General James Kemper was killed in The Charge; Kemper recovered, later served as Governor of Virginia, and lived out his days. If you have the slightest interest in the Civil War, don't fail to read this.
Book Review: A flawed, but ambitiously entertaining book
Summary: 4 Stars
The Killer Angels, by Michael Shaara, is an interesting book in that it tells a tale through the eyes of the participants, voices often unheard through the dreary history books in which the Battle of Gettysburg is taught. The battle comes alive in Shaara's mind, the characters pop out of the pages and live, they breathe the air of humanity, they are real. The great Robert E. Lee, the valiant John Reynolds, the cautious James Longstreet, the unforgettable George Pickett, all of these men come to life in this great novel. The book is very ambitious, for it attempts to supplant all history books and establish itself as a credible source on the happenings at Gettysburg. Shaara's writing is so good that a reader can easily forget this is historical fiction, not the truth. Shaara's writing is a little dry, he can be very choppy, and the book slowly gets stale with each reading. However, with all of its flaws, with the lack of character development, save for a few men, the book still stands out as a towering acheivement. An extremely readable book, Shaara exhibits talent and precision, as well as a passion for details. His only flaw is his writing style, something which cannot be learned. Even though Shaara's writing is not as eloquent as an F. Scott Fitzgerald, he is still very talented, and often goes into moments of passion. His love for this topic can be clearly seen, and it is during the internal pains of those great mortal men that Shaara comes out as a powerful, gifted writer. This book is a tour-de-force, a must read for a fan of American history.Book Review: A flawless re-creation of Civil War history
Summary: 5 Stars
Many times as I read The Killer Angels, I stopped and wondered, 'How does Shaara know?'. I asked that question because what he wrote seems impossible to question. He must have known. He knows what they thought, what they said. The account of words, thoughts and actions is just too real to have been made up. If The Killer Angels doesn't make you hear the rumble of the cannon and smell the sulfur in the air, nothing will. If The Killer Angels doesn't put a lump in your throat or a tear on your cheek, maybe your blood isn't American.Book Review: A great account of the battle
Summary: 4 Stars
This book is a great retelling of the Battle of Gettysburg. There is a lot of time spent introducing the main characters of the battle and some of the events leading up to the battle.
The book somewhat focuses on the character of Joshua Chamberlain who leads a regiment from Maine into the battle. Shaara breaths life into all of the characters and handles details of the battle so well, that I did have trouble staying with the story. Some historical novels can get bogged down by details that a reader can loose interest. Shaara's treatment is wonderful and his characterizations allow you to enter the minds of Lee, Longstreet, Pickett, and Hancock.
I recommend this book to anyone with an interest in the Civil War and/or Gettysburg.