A Little Short Of Boats: The Fights At Ball's Bluff And Edward's Ferry, October 21-22, 1861 (Discovering Civil War America #2)

Rating:
Summary: Senator Baker's Last Stand
Review: This is a fascinating book, particularly for those of us who are interested in America's Civil War and in small unit military tactics. It deals with a discrete battle that can be isolated from the surrounding conflicts so that the actions of the participants can be dissected to expose the mistakes that brought about a tragic toll in human life.

The narrative is chock-full of facts that give the book a ring of authority. It is written in the conversational style of a tour guide who is at home on the battlefield terrain. On occasion, Jim Morgan refers to himself as "the author" and states his own views in a way that clearly distinguishes them from the comments of other historians. Comments of survivors of the battle, excerpted from letters and other first-hand accounts, are masterfully woven into the fabric of the story. Summary descriptions of the participants help the reader to place the combatants in historical perspective without unduly extending the length of the work.

As the reader progresses through the book, an interesting dichotomy between the text and the illustrations becomes apparent. The text describes a competitive conflict between the Union and Confederate forces. One has the sense of an evenly matched conflict. Meanwhile, the sketches of the troop movements throughout the day show the Confederate forces inevitably pushing the Union troops back toward the bluff and the Potomac River.

Contemporaneous accounts of the Battle of Ball's Bluff echoed The Charge of the Light Brigade, "someone had blundered." Who? Or is it whom? Don't expect this short book to provide all of the answers. But it does prompt the questions: Why didn't General McClellan communicate to the Ball's Bluff force the movement of other Union troops along the Potomac? Why did Colonel Baker move his troops across the Potomac River and up a steep bluff without ascertaining the size of the enemy force in front of him? Why did Colonel Baker not have anti-personnel (grape and canister) ammunition for his artillery? Was there a withdrawal plan? Were the subordinate unit commanders aware of the objectives?

It is good history and a good read.


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Summary: Great book, and with a tour too!
Review: Ball's Bluff was one of those little Civil War battles that had a big impact. It was a disaster for the North. Heads rolled. Politicians fumed.

Jim Morgan has written a terrific book about this battle, full of maps and photos. He has reconstructed the battle convincingly and beautifully. He writes in a clear and graceful prose and weaves the tales of the survivors into the narrative. He tells us what happened and why. He's researched this subject down to the ground. I'm a student of the war, and there's nothing out there about Ball's Bluff to compare with this.

Almost best of all, he includes a guided tour of the battlefield, complete with photographs so that you are always oriented. Read the book, then check out the battlefield. It's in great shape, almost completely unspoiled.

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Summary: A first rate book
Review: Clearly the best treatment of the Battle at Ball's Bluff available. An excellent telling of the little known fight drawn from good research and a thorough bibliography. The included tour guide alone is worth the price of the book.

Rating:
Summary: Terrific Book!
Review: James Morgan is known far and wide as THE expert on the Battle at Ball's Bluff. There have been other works and articles published on the battle, but Jim's far outranks them all and is now the standard for the fight and battlefield. He also dispels disproven myths about the battle and for the first time presents an extremely well documented telling. The special bonus is that, as with all volumes of Ironclad's "Discovering Civil War America" series, there is an expertly-crafted guided tour in the back of the book.

For anyone interested in a little-known early clash of the Civil War, or even if you think you know what happened there, you must get this book. Read it through, and then take it to the battlefield with you for the tour, especially the little National Cemetery there. If you're lucky, Morgan himself will be available to tour with you. - he's a battlefield guide there.

Fantastic writing, impressive bibliography and sources.

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Summary: The definitive Ball's Bluff account
Review: There is little to add that already hasn't been said in the other reviews. I just wish it was available in hardback! If the future titles in this series are as good as this then Ironclad is assured of repeated patronage. I only have one very very minor criticism. Though the maps are generally quite good, I wish elevation lines were included as the topography of the Union left flank had a critical effect on the fight and the text covering it was a little confusing at times. None of this detracts much from this wonderful work, which is easily the best battle history of 2004.

Rating:
Summary: Difficult but rewarding
Review: This is the second book in "The Civil War America Series" which "features soft-cover works that focus on less publicized Civil War battles and sites." This is the series strength and also its' weakness. Little known can make a difficult read as you lack reference points and faces for names. The reward is learning something new not covered in multiple books. This is both a rewarding and difficult book. I did have problems keeping the names on the right side of the field but I came away with a much better understanding of this important little battle. This well told story shows James Morgan's knowledge of the battle and the aftermath. He can quickly give us a personal experience or detail and return to the battle with out missing a step. His very detailed narration gives us the full story from both sides of the line while keeping the "Fog of War" for the commanders.

A big plus is the full battlefield tour included at the end of the book. Action is often tied to the current battlefield giving us a reference and a guidebook if we ever get a chance to visit the park. A good selection of photos and maps keep the reader in the picture. This is a battle book. The focus is on General Stone and the men on the field not back at Army HQ. A logical interpretation of HQ's messages helps us understand the assumptions made that day.

Another plus is the price of the book. Ironclad lists this book at $18.95 but packs more and better information, maps and photos into this small package than many books selling for $29.95.