Rereading "The Killer Angels" by Michael Shaara - a novelization of Battle of Gettysburg. This is the perfect book for people who love American history, character-driven novels, and old maps (every dozen pages or so he includes maps that mark the progress of the Union and Rebel forces as they gain or lose ground in the Battle, which are, simply put, just awesome). Very interesting portrayal of Robert E. Lee - the Old Man - who was essentially revered as a god by both sides, but made some critical tactical errors here. Had also never heard of Joshua Chamberlain - the college professor from Maine - who became famous for his brave defense of the hill called Little Round Top. The Battle of Gettysburg is another example of those historical events that everybody thinks they know about, but really don't or have entirely forgotten- and Shaara brings it back to life.
In case you (or others) don't know, the movie Gettysburg is based on The Killer Angels, with the same focus on Lee and Chamberlain. It's very long, but good -- much was filmed on site, and Pickett's Charge is done in real-time. Harrowing stuff.
Also, let me plug the battlefield itself -- I just visited a couple of weekends ago for the first time as an adult. If you've read about it or seen the movie, it's a fantastic place to see. Unlike some Civil War battlefields, standing there really makes it clear -- you can look down from the top of Little Round Top, and you can look across the field of Pickett's Charge from both directions.
Definitely want to see the battlefield after reading this book, so it's good to hear another positive review.
Did you see a re-enactment? If so, worth it? I've never seen one before. I'm torn between wanting to wander around by myself with the book in hand and actually seeing Pickett's Charge recreated by a bunch of nuts like myself.
Great book! I used to love story format non-fiction books, and "The Killer Angels" was one of my favorites. Also, check out "The Longest Day" by Cornelius Ryan (D-Day) and my favorite one of his, "A Bridge Too Far" (about largest airborne operation in WWII). Just don't watch the movies!
