"Civil War buffs must have this book"
In 1989 Professor McPherson released his epic BATTLE CRY
OF FREEDOM: THE CIVIL WAR ERA to tremendous reception from
critics and casual readers alike. The work has since
become recognized as the single source for anything
involving the American Civil War. The tome provided
insight into the causes (incredible introduction) and war
with an extra emphasis on the slavery issue. Thirteen years later, the classic Civil War history book
returns with a new illustrated printing that adds further
depth to this classic. History buffs, not necessarily
just students will appreciate the revised edition as the
pictures and other illustrations add depth to an already
deep reference book. Though this reviewer has not
finished reading this edition (one chapter a week), the
ILLUSTRATED BATTLE CRY OF FREEDOM: THE CIVIL WAR ERA is a
great historical volume even better than the first. Harriet Klausner
Reviewed by PNR Group Member
Posted September 26, 2003
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Winner of the 1988 Pulitzer Prize for History and a New
York Times Bestseller, Battle Cry of Freedom is universally
recognized as the definitive account of the Civil War. It
was hailed in The New York Times as "historical writing of
the highest order." The Washington Post called it "the
finest single volume on the war and its background." And
The Los Angeles Times wrote that "of the 50,000 books
written on the Civil War, it is the finest compression of
that national paroxysm ever fitted between two covers." Now
available in a splendid new edition is The Illustrated
Battle Cry of Freedom. Boasting some seven hundred
pictures, including a hundred and fifty color images and
twenty-four full-color maps, here is the ultimate gift book
for everyone interested in American history. McPherson has
selected all the illustrations, including rare contemporary
photographs, period cartoons, etchings, woodcuts, and
paintings, carefully choosing those that best illuminate
the narrative. More important, he has written extensive
captions (some 35,000 words in all, virtually a book in
themselves), many of which offer genuinely new information
and interpretations that significantly enhance the text.
The text itself, streamlined by McPherson, remains a fast-
paced narrative that brilliantly captures two decades of
contentious American history, from the Mexican War to Lee's
surrender at Appomattox. The reader will find a truly
masterful chronicle of the war itself--the battles, the
strategic maneuvering on both sides, the politics, and the
personalities--as well as McPherson's thoughtful commentary
on such matters as the slavery expansion issue in the
1850s, the origins of the Republican Party, the causes of
secession, internal dissent and anti-war opposition in the
North and the South, and the reasons for the Union's
victory. A must-have purchase for the legions of Civil War
buffs, The Illustrated Battle Cry of Freedom is both a
spectacularly beautiful volume and the definitive account
of the most important conflict in our nation's history.
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