Rating: 
Summary: A well written,thoroughly absorbing histroy of the Civil War
Review: McPherson did an excellent job discussing the Civil War Era. Reading his book was not only a worthwhile educational experience, but also his writing moved along smoothly making the reading enjoyable and entertaining.The first part of the book examines the factors that led this country into the most devastating war in history. What sticks in my mind as the crucial point was the admittance of new states into the Union. The critical issue was, were they to be admitted as free or slave states. It became clear there were irreconcilable differences between the North and Sourth and war was inevitable. With Lincoln's election as our sixteenth president in 1860, the South began its secession from the Union, with Jefferson Davis at the helm. Lincoln's primary goal was to keep the Union together. The issue of slavery was secondary. With respect to the South's motives for secession, I interpret McPherson to say that, more than slavery, it was their traditional way of life they wanted to be able to control. McPherson then takes us through the battlefields of the war. For the first two years it was relatively close, but from the summer of 1863 with the Battles of Gettysburg and Vicksburg the tide shifted to the North. McPherson examines why the North won. It was not due to a difference in quality between the Northern and Southern soldiers and generals; both sides had their heroes. One factor was the North's stronger economy, and another, at least in my interpretation of the book, was Abraham Lincoln. After completing this engrossing book I have also gained a better understanding of the origins of Afro-Americans in this country. In 1860 the population of the United States was approximately thirty million people, four million of whom were slaves. That is a lot of slaves. McPherson has stimulated me to read more about the post civil war period, in order to gain a better understanding of our country today.
Rating: 
Summary: Required Reading
Review: Of the half-dozen books of nonfiction on the Civil War I've read, this one is easily the best. McPherson is a fine writer who clearly knows his subject, but his balance of thought, his consistent consideration of competing scholarship, and his refusal to simplify matters are perhaps his rarest virtues. He shows (rightly) that Southern politicians and slaveholders of the day were morally blind, but he doesn't glorify the North as the sacred depository of (what Robert Penn Warren called) "the Treasury of Virtue." McPherson's descriptions of the warfare is concise and exciting, and his writing on Lincoln is especially admirable; one comes to see why he is our greatest president. I also appreciate his inclusion of women and blacks in his narrative. The Epilogue may be a bit too much of a "cat out of the bag" summing up, and the maps are not as helpful as they could have been, but there is little room for criticism in this great book. The Pulitzer committee got it right in 1989.
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding work!
Review: McPherson does an exceptional job of creating a work that is interesting and educational for both the avid reader of history, as well as the person with a passing interest. If there are any educators out there looking for a good book to use in the classroom, this is it.
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Summary: Engrossing, lucid, moving, entertaining...and informative
Review: A really great read. McPherson proves that history books don't have to be dry or boring. He imparts an amazing amount of information in this single volume, but his wonderful narrative abilities keep the reader from being overwhelmed. McPherson's ability to weave the social, economic, and political factors of the era with its military events is masterful. Recommended even if you don't typically read history books.
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Summary: Rally 'round the book, boys!
Review: Renowned author and historian James M. McPherson surely took upon himself no easy task when writing this comprehensive one-volume history of the Civil War, but his effort richly paid off. The bestselling "Battle Cry of Freedom" earned Mr. McPherson a Pulitzer Prize for good reason; it is an outstanding contribution to the ambitious "Oxford History of the United States" series and to Civil War historiography as a whole. In subtitling this volume "The Civil War Era", the author makes it clear that his treatment of the War Between the States goes beyond the military conflict which began at Fort Sumter and ended at Appomattox. The first 30% of the book discusses in detail the various economic, social, and political conflicts which were already dividing our nation long before the secession crisis of 1860-1861; these conflicts reappear later in the book as they affected the conduct of the war on both sides. In addition to thorough descriptions of military operations, the reader is treated to poignant, yet balanced, character studies of the war's major players plus contemporary accounts from both the battle and home fronts. For the prospective Civil War enthusiast, I consider "Battle Cry of Freedom" a most appropriate book for starters.
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Summary: Simply the Best for new Civil War readers or long time buffs
Review: Great book. McPherson shows why the narrative approach to writing history is far superior to the analysis of minutia that academic historians are putting out currently. This is the best single volume of the Civil War. If you read this first and then Shelby Foote's three volume treatment you will have read the very best in civil war writing.
Rating:
Summary: None Better!
Review: In 1990, I read "Battle Cry of Freedom." I was so captivated by McPherson's book that I have been reading about the war and it's leaders, it's heroes and it's goats, it's tragedy and it's glory, ever since. In this seven years, however, I have yet to find "BCF"'s equal! If you're developing an interest in the War Between The States, this is a must read!
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Summary: The best single book on the Civil War
Review: If you are going to read only one book on the Civil War, read this. McPherson deals with the battles, as one must, but the real strength of the book is how well it deals with the various interrelated aspects of the War: the politics, the people, the homefront, the technology, the diplomacy. As McPherson explains in his introduction, one cannot really understand the Civil War if one ignores any of these factors. For example, one cannot understand what was happening in Lincoln's consideration of the emancipation, without looking at what was happening at the same time on the battlefield, in the political arena, and in the overseas diplomatic discussions. A final beauty of this book: its bibliography. McPherson not only lists his key sources, he comments on them, so that this book can serve as an excellent introduction for a full reading course on the Civil War.
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Summary: My thoughts on Battle Cry of Freedom
Review: This is the most boring book.. It will only be read by those younger than 40 through assignment or forced torture. *AHS* v If I could give it a negative 500 stars... which would be inverted stars like something squashed, I'd give it to this book!
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Summary: Civil War history at its finest
Review: There are tons of Civil War titles out there, and I have read only a handful of them, but I can't imagine them getting much better than this. McPherson does a great job of putting it all into one volume (albeit it a long volume). There are a few chapters on the build-up to the Civil War covering numerous presidencies and conflicts. Once the war kicks off, McPherson will spend one or two chapters on military battles and then a chapter on other aspects of the war (e.g. the South trying to outrun the embargo or the North's recruiting problems, etc.). It took me a while to read it, but I was very satisfied. I feel like I know the basics of the Civil War and that this book is a great starting point for anyone's journey into the war that defined America.
Also, if you're not up for a long book, see Ken Burns' "Civil War" series on video or DVD. It's amazing.
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