American Civil War Books.

Try Shelby Foote's Civil War trilogy. Thick, informative and they read like novels, which they should as Foote was a novelist. Still they are great starter books.

Stephen Sears' Gettysburg is very well-written one volume account of the war's most famous battle.

Steven E. Woodworth's Nothing But Victory is an excellent account of the Union Army Of The Tennesse from it's inception to the end of the war.

Jeffrey D. Wert's Longstreet biography gives a very good portrait of the South's most controversial general.

Just a few to get started. There's so many out there. Good luck!

 

The Bernard Cornwell books Rebel, Copperhead, Battle flag, The Bloody Ground.
Are a very good Read, fiction but very accurate in its info. and the battle discriptions are very good.
If you want non fiction the "Time - Life" The civil War are excellent if you can get them
Good luck Mate

 

Apple valley, R Evans thanks for the recommendations.Nosey I have read the Bernard Cornwell, books and really enjoyed them and as you say while fiction there still, as are most of Cornwells historical novels are very well written.

 

It really depends on what you are looking for concerning the Civil War. The contributing events leading up to the war is one big segment of US history, and is vast and very complex which takes a lot of independent study. At LSU where I got my history degree, there was a separate course of study (one complete semester) covering just the events leading up to the war. The war itself lasted four years, and is quite riveting in progression to read about. Heck, the pre-WW2 German General Staff studied the exploits of General Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson's Shenandoah Valley Campaign of 1862, along with other events in military history to develop their "blitzkreig" tactics. And then the failure of the post-war Reconstruction is a course of study all to itself as well. No one book will cover it all for you, but much of what's been recommended so far will give you a good selection to start with. Just don't take the short cut and watch "Gone With the Wind."

 

One name I heard when I was down south was "The Second American revolution."

Two amazing historical fiction books regarding the war are "The Killer Angels" by Michael Shaara and "Soldier's Heart" by Gary Paulsen. Shaara's book is a great study of the Battle of Gettysburg with some fictional characters but overall it's a fantastic read. Gary Paulsen's book is a great read if you're looking to read about what combat was like: graphic, sickening, brutal. Both are fantastic reads, highly reccomended.

PS: "Soldier's Heart" is not a love story, as the title might have suggested; the title of the book was the Civil War term for combat fatigue.

 

Actually it was 4 hours and 41 minutes long, including the 10 minute intermission. Yeah, I read about that "Bobby Lee" scene in imdb. It was kind of an impromptu situation. A lot of re-enactors that participated in the Pickett's Charge scene were at "thank you" celebration organized by promoters and supporting cast members for Sheen. The troops were chanting "Sheen, Sheen, Sheen," and of course Martin Sheen was taken back with the response. The situation was being filmed, and when the director saw it, he had "Lee, Lee, Lee" dubbed over the Sheens and put it in the movie, just after the Pickett's Charge scene.

 

That was a very powerful scene. I never knew that it wasn't even planned! Thanks for the info!

 

I've seriously read dozens and dozens of books about the Civil War. There are so many of them covering so many different aspects that I would need more specifics about what you're looking for to give you an intelligent response...BUT...if you're looking for a FANTASTIC 1st hand account, written by a soldier, there are none better than "Company Aytch, A Side Show to the Big Show" by Samuel Watkins. To me, it's head and shoulders above anything else out there....the common soldier's point of view. Hope this helps Sir.​

 

Yes, it did to me too....

It was much better and longer than "Gods and Generals" though.

 

Yes, that is true. There is so much ficiton is Gods and Generals its not even funny...

But Gettysburg is an excellent movie and I love it. Some minor details are off, but I still love it. It's the one film that really sparked my interest in the American Civil War as a 4th grader.

 

There's Shelby Foote's multi-volume collection The Civil War--A Narrative. Foote's work is probably the most complete and readable history in print.

Then there are the historical novels by Michael Shaara (The Killer Angels) and Jeff Shaara (God's and Generals and To Last Full Measure).

 

And don't forget Ken Burns' PBS video series The Civil War. This is an excellent overview of the war. A "must see" for every enthusiast. Your public library probably carries it.

 

I know it's not a book, but National Geographic's July 2002 issue featured a great article on the salvage of the H.L. Hunley.

I also enjoyed Antony Shaw's "The Civil War Catalog."

 

There was a third movie in the works, tentatively titled "The Last Full Measure" that covered the last campaigns of the war leading up to Appomattox. "Gods and Generals" fared so poorly at the box office, so they shelved the project indefinitely.

Jackson was very "eccentric" to put nicely, and extremely religious even for that day and time. Had strange ideas about things too. For one, he felt that blood circulation would be improved if he held one arm up over his head. He would sit on his horse with his arm extended for long periods of time, and go on behind the lines patrols at night with his staff in order to get a better layout of the situation. He also referred to the Yankees as "the Philistines", and in some of conversations he stated that he and his people went out and "slew the Philistines instead of his forces inflicting casualties upon the enemy.

Never underestimate the stimulation of eccentricity.