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Summary: ANTIETAM WITH NO ANTIETAM
Review: Because I have immense respect for McPherson, I am thoroughly perplexed by this brief account with its ill-chosen title. If you have already read his magnificent BATTLE CRY OF FREEDOM, there is no point in reading CROSSROADS. It is the same coverage of the political dynamics with little discussion of Antietam itself. In fact, it gets exasperating, waiting for him to get to the battle, which he finally does, in cursory form, as almost an afterthought. There is no real insight here, new or otherwise. This might be a nice introduction for someone totally unfamiliar with the build-up to the carnage of Antietam. For anyone with even a nominal command of Civil War content, I suggest avoiding it.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent recap of a strategically pivotal battle
Review: Great short book to give you a solid appreciation for the strategic importance of the Battle at Antietam. While perhaps a tactical draw, it's likely this, more than any other battle in the Civil War, determined the outcome of the war and the fate of the Union. Focus is more on strategic and political aspects, not so much on the principles of war or application of operational art.
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Summary: People seem to be missing the point...
Review: People seem to be missing the point of Dr. McPherson's Crossroads of Freedom. I read it as soon as it came out, and shortly thereafter I had the pleasure of meeting Dr. McPherson in person, and talking with him about the book.This book is NOT MEANT TO BE a blow-by-blow account of the battle, with commentary on tactics, generals, etc. That stuff has been done. This book is about the broader picture-- the overall importance of the Battle of Antietam, and what it meant not only for the war, but for American History in general. McPherson argues that Antietam is the single most important turning point of the war-- more so than Gettysburg, Vicksburg, Jackson's death, etc. It's a hefty claim, and to support it he has to devote much of the book to before and after the battle, in order to set his argument up properly. The book isn't so much about the battle itself as it is about the broader significance of the battle. McPherson's thesis is compelling, and he supports it with strong, lucid evidence. This book isn't meant to give you a tactical account of the battle. It's meant to show you a new way of looking at the Civil War, with Antietam as the central 'crossroads'.
Rating: 
Summary: For Someone Else's Library
Review: James McPherson is a great historian and writer. And that's what makes this book so disappointing -- the propect of what could have been... Looking forward to the story of Antietam, the bloodiest day in American history, as told by the premier Civil War historian of our time? I was, but what I got was warmer over chapters of his epic BATTLE CRY OF FREEDOM, repackaged in a new wrapper. Well over half of the book is a review of the first 15 months of the war. Interesting, well-written, but not really all that relevant -- why so much about Fort Donelson and New Orleans in a book about what is supposed to be a pivotal moment of American history? The battle of Antietam itself barely makes a ripple in the book -- Septermber 17th dawns on page 117, and the sun sets on page 129. The pivotal moment of American history, done in 12 pages, with no feel for the action at all. Totally disappointing -- a big name author recycling material, lending his name to a series of works he's promoting. Stick with LANDSCAPE TURNED RED.
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding Overview of the Pivotal Battle of the Civil War
Review: If you asked most Americans what was the turning point of the Civil War (assuming, of course, that the ones you asked knew there was a war between the states) they would probably say "Gettysburg". James M. MacPherson, professor of history at Princeton, develops the case that the one-day battle in September 1862 near Sharpsburg, MD was the pivotal event of the Civil War. This is the bloodiest day of war experienced by American troops. The union commander, "Little Mac", let the opportunity to shatter the Army of Northern Virginia slip away for the second time, the first being when he was just five miles from Richmond during the earlier Pennisular Campaign. It caused Lincoln to issue the Emancipation Proclamation freeing the slaves (although only in the Confederate States). Probably kept the Republicans in control of both houses of Congress after the 1862 election. And, perhaps most importantly, decided the issue of recognition of the Confederacy for the British and French. This book is an overview of the events leading up to the battle at Antietam Creek and it focuses on the socio-political background at the time. Military history buffs who prefer to read minute details of battles and campaigns will find this book lacking. However, one cannot analyze warfare without understanding what lead up to the use of armed force. This is a concise, must read for those interested in the second most important war our nation has ever fought.
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Summary: A Well-Done Novel
Review: James M. McPherson created a great description of the Battle of Antietam, and compares the Union and Confederate points of view with powerful quotes. I really enjoyed reading each of the quotes, and they made things a lot clearer about the Battles. Although it was supposed to be about Antietam, it did not describe the battle in much detail, but instead, it gave people's different perspectives and thoughts from before the battle, during the battle, after the battle, and during other small battles. I liked the fact that the book had a lot of interesting information and meaningful quotes that helped me to better understand the many generals' feelings about things going on, plans for the battle, and their emotions toward the results of the battles. McPherson did a great job of putting together a great historical event into a fantastic interesting novel about a battle that not many people know about. This book was a great experience for me to try and read something new, and it was neat to learn about a battle that is not as common of a topic as others. I really enjoyed McPherson's novel.
Rating: 
Summary: Crossroads of Boredom
Review: The book Crossroads of Freedom would definitely be considered historical. This book was really an example of why kids do not like to read books of historical content. I will admit that the book, at some times, was interesting. I got a little bit more into it when it focused on the slave issue because I knew a little bit of background information on that, but overall the book was too complex for me. The reading was very dry, but had a lot of information. So if you wanted straight up information, this book is good for that. The book mainly consisted of quotations from newspaper articles from the time of the war, which in my mind was a good effect because it made you feel as if you were a person in that time period. All in all, Crossroads of Freedom was very dry but very informational.
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Summary: Tanya's Review
Review: Crossroads of Freedom by James M. McPherson was one of the most interesting books that I have read. The descriptive quotes by the soldiers and politicians gave you a distinct view of what was going on. McPherson covers the little battles that occurred between the Union and the Confederates even though they did not have as big an impact as Antietam. McPherson clearly explains what was going on in Lincoln's head when the Union troops were advancing toward where the Confederate's were. Most of the book talks about McClellan's cautious war strategies. I found it rather funny as McClellan always overestimates the power of the enemy and never advances when he could totally wipe out the Confederates. I liked how the author clearly explained the different views of the Confederates and the Union. This book was very informative as I learned a lot of information about the Battle of Antietam. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes to read history novels or needs information on the Battle of Antietam.
Rating:
Summary: Crossroads of Freedom
Review: Crossroads of Freedom by James M. McPherson is a very interesting novel about a pivotal battle in american history. The battle talked about in this book was the battle of Antietam, the bloodiest day in american history. This day, September 17, 1862, suffered more than 6,000 casualties. That is four times the amount killed at D-day and twice as many as the September 11 terrorist attacks. This date will be remembered forever by Americans all over the U.S.
James M. McPherson's book was not very long, but when you reda it seemed like it was longer. If you only reda for about ten minutes, it would seem like you have been reading for hours! There are a lot of facts in this novel, but almost no action at all! I would not recommend this book to any of my classmates, but I would to a teacher or any Civil War Fans.
Crossroads of Freedom would be better if it had more action and less description of the situation at hand. There is so much development that it makes the reader want to fall asleep. If there was more action I would think it would be on of the better books I have read. James M. McPherson is a great author but not a very exciting one.
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Summary: Crossroads of Freedom
Review: James McPherson gives an exciting overview of the battle that changed the course of history. The day that the Union finally gained control of the war and turned it around for them. The victory at the Battle of Antietam led Lincoln's party to stay in office and thus letting him have the chance to deliver the Emancipation Proclamation which then changed the character of the war. He explains how the generals Lee and McClellan came to their positions and which strategies they used to try to defeat one another. It tells of the hardships each side went through and how the morale of the soldiers changed with every victory and lose. Even though the Confederates got away, it was still a victory for the Union that changed their outlook on the Civil War.
McPherson takes you back to 1862 when the country is at war and it's not looking good for the Union. They have suffered many defeats and their soldiers, along with the civilians, are completely demoralized. Lincoln has put a hold on delivering the Emancipation Proclamation and is waiting for another Union victory that seems will never. The Union has been switching around their generals to see if any of them will succeed in a victory for the North. None of them have. The Union is left with no hope and no end in site. They had to turn to General McClellan, recently promoted, to see if he won't be able to pull the Union through during this horrible time. They have put McClellan in this position before and found that he was sometimes not able to go into battle before making sure that everything was prepared leaving the enemy able to get away. The South's general was the exact opposite. General Robert E. Lee was brave and wasn't afraid that he would lose. He took on any enemy troops that came in his path. He was an excellent general that had the perfect strategies and the best troops to take on anyone. The only thing that stopped him was a fatal and stupid mistake that cost them the war. As McClellan's army was marching down a path the general spotted a peice of paper wrapped around some cigars. This piece of paper had on it the South's strategy to end the war once and for all and defeat McClellan's army. With this valuable piece of paper McClellan was able to head the South off at the Antietam Creek and the Potomac River. There was shooting everywhere and everwhere you looked a body was sure to be there. It was one of the most bloddiest battles that had ever been fought. No other battle can even compare to what happened on that horrible day. Lee's army was driven back and since McClellan pulled away waiting for reinforcements, Lee's army escaped and lived to see another day. Because of that, the North's moral was boosted up by a tremendous amount. President Lincoln was able to keep his position and he then delivered the Emancipation Proclamation. The South's hopes of British intervention were dashed and they never recovered from their downfall. Because of the victory at the now called Bloody Lane, the North took control of the war and made it one of the most pivotal moments in American history.
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