The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Killer Angels
Book Review: Very engaging account of the Battle of Gettysburg
Summary: 4 Stars
I enjoyed Michael Shaara's Pulitzer Prize-winning Civil War novel dealing with the three-day Battle of Gettysburg widely acknowledged as the turning point of the American Civil War. The book derives its title from Union Colonel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain memorizing a Shakespeare quote in his childhood regarding man in action and his father's subsequent remark: "Well, boy, if he's an angel, he's sure a murderin' angel." Chamberlain then coins the term, "Man, the Killer Angel." Shaara's enthralling novel affects the leaders of the Battle of Gettysburg as these Killer Angels: the difficult choices they make, their courage and heroism, and finally their grief and agony. Michael Shaara recreates the battle from old letters and correspondences and I found the resulting prose, characterizations, settings and pacing singularly bewitching. We know the plot, but it's Shaara's style and delivery which affects a worthwhile and enjoyable reading experience. Although the book demonstrates the brutality and inhumanity of war, it also balances that with a feeling of camaraderie, thrill and excitement that nothing except war could bring. Very unlike Jakes' unilateral depiction of a monstrous war in his NORTH AND SOUTH series. And that's a good thing.
THE KILLER ANGELS deftly contrasts the Battle of Gettysburg from the Southern and Northern points of view; for the south and its generals, missed opportunities plagued their loss while for the north, much-needed luck vaulted them to victory. We follow most of the brilliant generals from the South including Robert E. Lee, Pete Longstreet and Lewis Armistead while from the North, it's mostly Col. Joshua Chamberlain of the 20th Maine and his climactic stand on Little Round Top on Day 2 of the Battle of Gettysburg. The North's hodgepodge of religions and races worked against their superior numbers while the South possessed a more cohesive, more united group of soldiers. Unlike the North, the South also had the brilliant commander their soldiers believed in: General Robert E. Lee. As opposed to Lincoln's capricious line of army commanders (at least before he settled on Grant), General Robert E. Lee has never lost a battle prior to Gettysburg, thoroughly whipping Yankees left and right. Known for a making a tough decision and acting on it, Lee's men believed in him enough to execute his decisions with alacrity and success.
Then it's a wonder the South lost the Battle of Gettysburg when they had every opportunity to win there as well. From Gen. J.E.B. Stuart's joyriding depriving Lee of his eyes and ears into Northern army movements, to Heth's decision to engage Buford's Union line on Day 1 when Lee specifically ordered no attacks until the entire Southern army congregated around Gettysburg, to a diffident Gen. Ewell's failure to pursue the Union army at the end of Day 1, to Lee's rejection of Hood's sensible plan to outflank the Union line on Cemetery Ridge outside of Gettysburg on Day 2, the loss at the Battle of Gettysburg represented one missed opportunity after another for the Southern army.
THE KILLER ANGELS intersperses an interesting political and philosophical discussion over the each side's motivations to fight in the war. We know the South isn't fighting to keep slavery despite what the North (and the rest of the world) believe, they're fighting for the Cause: state rights. Like Lee's beloved state of Virginia, they view state laws superior to the nation's and therein lies the divide. Meanwhile, as Col. Chamberlain's brother remarks, no matter what the "Johnnies" (Southerners) say they're fighting for, at the end of the day if they win, slavery continues and if they lose, slavery begins to die. For Englishman Fremantle, the South symbolizes a transposed Europe, while for Chamberlain's Sergeant Kilrain, the South represents a time when the name of one's father means more than your name. Kilrain is adamantly against such traditions.
Book Review: Best History Book I Ever Read
Summary: 4 Stars
I accualy liked this history book because it didn't put me to sleep. I liked this book because it had a accual story line. the book wasn't just facts thier were accual charecters. This book also shows the conection between the generals and the bravery of the soilders. The relations between General Lee and Longstreet is shown the best in the book excpecily with their freindship. Also the soilders bravery is shown in when General Renalds falls and still the 1st and 53rd infentry still fights to the end without fault.Book Review: THE KILLER ANGELS by Michael Shaara
Summary: 3 Stars
The Killer Angels is Michael Shaara's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about the Battle of Gettysburg, which was the turning point in the Civil War.
The narrative shifts among numerous commanding officers on both sides, with Longstreet and Chamberlain receiving the bulk of the attention. Shaara does a fantastic job of taking the reader inside the heads of these officers (and clearly differentiating among them personality-wise), and of showing the reader the emotions, the tactics and the chaos involved in war. He also does a solid job of incorporating background facts into the text (although some information is glaringly repetitious) without long and boring expository paragraphs, which occur only rarely.
Particularly early on, Shaara gets bogged down in his officers' rambling internal monologues. He also has the annoying sentence to put "he thought" in the middle of a passage that is already clearly monologue. For example: "Lee signed orders. I do too much myself. He was thinking: retreat is not even an option."
The biggest problem with The Killer Angels is Shaara's writing style, which is incredibly distracting. He piles on the sentence fragments with no regard for human life. Most egregious is the manner in which he puts periods in the middle of sentences. For example: "That hill will be a very strong position. Once it is fortified." Writers are taught that "he said" is preferable to "he shouted", "he whined", etc. But they're all better than Shaara's frequently-used "he gloomed".
Shaara's word choice in his imagery is often questionable, perhaps striving and failing to reach literary heights. He also overuses the word "handsome", particularly when describing characters. Never have there been so many "handsome" and "beautiful" men running around a battlefield.
All told, this The Killer Angels a well-researched, interesting read about one of the pivotal moments in U.S. history. It's not just for war buffs, although they will get more out of it than the average reader. It is unfortunate, though, that Shaara's writing idiosyncrasies are so off-putting.
TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT
Book Review: Great book but definitely fiction
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a very engrossing read. I read it in three long sessions and couldn't put it down. The interesting aspect to me is that there is very little in the way of action until the book is two thirds over. The author keeps the pace moving with great descriptive narrative. This is combined with fictional but historically based dialogue and characterizations of historical figures. The overall presentation of the divergent points of view of several of the important officers in charge of the conflict is enlightening at some points. There aren't heroes or protaganists, only real men who are driven by their cause and their belief in divine providence, but still plagued with self-doubt.
I felt that, to a minor extent, the author glossed over and under-emphasized the hideous cost of the Battle of Gettysburg. I had read in the past that this was the biggest and bloodiest battle ever fought in the western hemisphere and throughout the three days and nights there were so many wounded men lying on the hills and fields that the air was permeated with grotesque sounds of human suffering and the creeks ran in blood. The author certainly does portray the confusion and horror of two of the major engagements but, at the same time, the main character's seem detached from the hideous nature of war.
I'm not sure whether the author was glorifying the battle, I think rather the author was trying to delve into the individual psyches of the men who were the real heroes and goats, the leaders who ordered men to their deaths. A certain amount of detachment must be necessary, one would assume, in order to send men to their deaths. Perhaps the biggest detached "goat" was General Lee who believed his army was invincible. The author does a good job protraying Lee's human side in the aftermath of the disasterous assault on the Union position during the third day of battle, Pickett's Charge. In a fleeting moment of weakness he's ready to hand over his sword to Longstreet, who doesn't want it. Longstreet secretly holds Lee accountable for losing the battle, the turning point of the war, an opinion for which he is later shunned in the south. The novel ends with the retreat of the Rebel Army, mortally wounded, limping back to Virginia towards inevitable defeat. Its leaders now resigned to their fates.
By all means, if you like historical fiction, pick this up. The characterizations of the major players including Lee, Longstreet, and Chamberlain are skillfully crafted. The author sets the events in motion from the first day of the battle with very little background and the story is very believable, coherent, and well researched. I can't say I am going to turn into a Civil War nut but if you were to read only one book to get a feeling for what the US Civil War was all about, read this one.
Book Review: Gettysburg reading at its finest
Summary: 5 Stars
Excellent book, very well written. Shaara brings you right into the hearts and minds of the major players of the book. You get a great understanding of the Battle of Gettysburg, the leaders, and what affected their decisions. For Civil War enthusiasts, or even those with a casual interest, this is a MUST read.