The Last Full Measure by Jeff Shaara Summary and Reviews
|
List Price: Our Price: $3.79 You Save: $4.20 (53%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $0.01 (click here) Category: Book See more book details and other editions |
|---|
Book Reviews of The Last Full Measure
Book Review: Great finish in an outstanding trilogy
Summary: 5 Stars
I think this book, and the two preceding it should be required reading in school. I had no idea how horrific this war was, particularly more so as the brutalities committed on both sides were against our own. There were so many moments when I wanted to stop and cry for the loss of life, and especially at the end when the one man who was capable of healing the country and bringing us all back together as one nation, Abraham Lincoln, was assassinated.
The research was impeccable and telling the story from the viewpoints of the various generals absolutely fascinating. The honorable Robert E. Lee, Chamberlain (loved his gracious salute to the surrendering army), and the ever fascinating U.S. Grant.
One quote from so many in the book that just brought tears to my eyes: "Yes, it was horrible, horrible indeed. But he had to tell himself that, remind himself to see it that way. There was no sickening revulsion, no outrage, no indignation at the barbarism. It was just one more scene from this war, one more horror, one more mass of death, blending together with all the rest."
Highly highly recommended, and will definitely open your eyes to the horror of war.
Book Review: Great story, great telling
Summary: 4 Stars
If you liked Killer Angels, you'll enjoy this book, too. While I found the book's 570 pages a bit long, I also found myself dreading that the book would soon be over as I neared the end.
I found the book to get better as it went along. It actually turns into a real page turner as the Feds are racing to cut off the Conferderates as they try to escape from Virginia at the end of the war. I found the author's account of Chamberlain to be especially interesting. Of course, we all know the end of the story, but it is enjoyable to read the accounts again.
Book Review: How the hell did it get this far?
Summary: 5 Stars
The whole thing could have been avoided if both sides had shown a little more restraint. But, it came to this. Jeff Sharra has written a superb sequal to his Dad's "The Killer Angels", and brought a fitting end to a sad story. I consider it to be a four book series, not three, as "Gone For Soldiers" is the prequel to the whole sorry mess. This wonderful book gives us the horrors of the last 21 months of our Civil War, told mainly thru the eyes of Robert E. Lee, US Grant, and Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain. This is a novel, but Mr. Shaara has done his research; no errors that I could find [aside from a really bad typo that I'll get to]. Douglas Freeman would have been proud of this, and that's very high praise.
Mr. Sharra gives us accurate battle descriptions, as well as a backstage look at the major characters. Lee was frustrated that Jeff Davis couldn't understand that [a] Richmond wasn't all that important, and [b] the jig was pretty well up, anyway. Still, he fought. There is a reason that the losing General is pretty much the most respected man in American History. The greatness of Lee defies description. Dr. Freeman came close, but it took him 2,400 pages. US Grant was also a great general, as well as a noble man [hell of a thing for a Southerner to say], and he had more resourses. And, he was plain determined. The respect he showed General Lee is plenty of evidence of his nobility. And the glimpses of his family depict a decent man. Noble is a good word for Chamberlain, too. And brave. He hated war, but loved his country. The grace and courtesy rendered to General Gorden, alone, make him a gentleman. Ironic the parallel lives Chamberlain and Gordon went on to live...Governors of Maine and Georgia, and leaders of veterans organizations. Sad about Chamberlain's marriage, but Fanny really made him miserable.
The side players get their space...the great Longstreet, the tragic Anderson, and Pickett. Billy Mahone, still fighting to the end. Probably not an accident that the Generals who went on to wealth and power kept their drive. Phil Sheridan gets his due. Yes, he had skill, and courage. But he was a war criminal, pure and simple. He wanted to slaughter our men for target practice after they surrendered, and Grant had to pull rank to stop him; and he still argued with Grant [in front of our Officers] about feeding them.
The surrender scene, alone, is worth the price. Lee kept his dignity. And Grant was great enough to recognize the indescribable "something" that made Lee Lee. You really need to read this book, but only after reading the others. Yes, Dr. Freeman's seven volumes of Confederate History are definitive, but few will have the time, or desire. The only problem I saw was the typo I mentioned...in a list of failed Yankee Generals, "Pope" is rendered "Polk". Please. If this were non-fiction, that would be a fatal error. John Pope was theirs, a war criminal whose saving grace was his stupidity. Leonidas Polk was ours, had nothing to do with Virginia, and was a man whose personal greatness equalled that of General Lee.
Bottom line: highest possible recommendation.
Book Review: I really wanted to love this book
Summary: 3 Stars
Although Jeff seems to have inherited his father's ability to accurately portray the agonies that the generals of the Civil War endured, his grammatical abilities interrupt the story. He is able to convey some of the emotion and momentum from The Killer Angels, but does not do nearly as good a job in describing battle.Further, his overwhelming use of ellipses to describe pauses in conversation may work in screenwriting, but they are tiresome in fiction. He also insists on stringing long clauses after single subjects in a way that begins as efficient, but later makes for labored reading.
Book Review: If You Think History is Dry...Buy This Book!
Summary: 5 Stars
I was never interested in reading about the Civil War until I read Killer Angels. That book changed everything. All three books of this Shaara father-son Civil War trilogy are tremendous, and Last Full Measure is the best of the three. (I suggest reading them in order...in fact, read Gone for Soldiers first to experience how these future foes fought together as young officers in Mexico.) Perhaps it was Shaara's maturing as a writer, or just the nature of the latter half of the war, but this book is simply awesome. Shaara puts you right in the room with Grant and Lincoln as they discuss the progress of the war. You feel Lee's troubled thoughts as Grant's juggernaut bears down on his valiant but doomed army, and share his angst at losing many of his best generals. I'm looking forward to reading Shaara's Revolutionary War books next (another topic I never had much interest in, but I know Shaara will change that, too).