re: What is the best Civil War book.

Confederates in the Attic is an unconventional book on the topic that Is very interesting.

A reference book, as I have visited many Civil war sites. Petersburg, Antitum, Fredricksburg, Gettysburg, Shiloh, Vicksburg, Chattanooga/Chickamaugua, Franklin...



This tome has a lot of maps and when you stand in the actual areas, you realize the reasons, you can comprehend the decisions that were made from a tactical standpoint.

Currently half way through Shelby Foote vol. 1

Great book

Lost Cause

quote:

---

I'm not sure what Shelby Foote's is called but its pretty much the basis for the Ken Burns doc. God Dammit I wish Shelby Foote could read me a bedtime story before I go to sleep and I'm 24 years old . That is the voice of an angel right there.

---

I met him back in '87 in Memphis. He lived on 2nd Street downtown and knew my Uncle very well.

His book "From Fort Sumter to Perryville" is the standard. He autographed my copy for me ... that was right about the time the Ken Burns series came out on PBS but just before he became famous for that series.

He was exactly the same in person as he appeared on the series. Drove a copper colored Buick, humble guy. Knew everything there was to know about the Civil War. Put a buddy of mine and I on one of Nathan Bedford Forest's camps just off of a Mississippi River finger where we spent three days metal detecting ... found a crap ton of mini balls, one CSA plate and a sword hilt.

I was big into detecting and privvy digging back in the day and that was a major find for us thanks to Mr. Foote. We gave him some of the mini balls.


We were hoping to find NBF's 4" brass cannons - never did. To the best of my knowledge they have still never been found.

Shelby Foote




K

quote:

---

Guns of the South

---

Nice

For a little more grounded alternative history of the Civil War, I recommend Dixie Victorious by Peter Tsouras

quote:

---

Respectively, The Beleaguered City and Stars in Their Courses .
The Beleaguered City
Stars in Their Courses

---

I know this is an old thread but reading Beleaguered City now. I’ve had the book since 97, note written from my uncle in it to me and never read it. I was a young HS kid then and loved history but didn’t get involved in 350 page books with no pictures back then geez this is a great book. Mr Foote’s words are much better than any picture you can see, amazingly written, I’m a little over halfway through.