Rating: 
Summary: A great introduction to the Civil War
Review: This book has been reviewed by over 250 people, and the 5-star rating is well-deserved. I would add only that it's an excellent choice for 1) preparing for a trip to the area 2)getting young people or (forgive my stereotyping) women like myself who might otherwise claim to be uninterested in "war stuff" involved in the great storys of Gettysburg. A friend had his new British bride read it before a trip out, and she said it contributed immensely to her enjoyment. I'd been to Gettysburg myself, and was bored silly. I went back after viewing Ken Burns' "The Civil War" and reading "Killer Angels", and it was a far richer experience. Had to hike Little Round Top, envisioning scenes from the book the whole time.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant!
Review: Truly the best Civil War series that I have ever read is the one by the Shaaras. These guys did an awsome job. These books are well-written and well-reaserched. I have never read a more heart-felt novel about this war. The Killer Angels brings you up close and personal with these heroes. It is written in such a way that you can laugh with them, cry with them and feel the fire of the war. I am an aspiring author myself so I can recognise hard work when I see it. I have never met a Civil War fan that didn't like these books. I would recomend this book to teachers. I believe that this is a story that needs to be told. It is very good for Americans to hear what these people sacrificed for us. Michael gave us a great gift.
Rating:
Summary: Best Book I Have Ever Read
Review: "The Killer Angels" is the best book i have ever read. I am only 13 years old and i found it very moving. I showes you how bad the soldiers of both armys had it. If u love the Civil War then this is the book for you. I am looking fowerd to reading "Gods and Genreals" and "The Last Full Measure"
Rating: 
Summary: For readers who like wars
Review: This book talks about four days of hell that many soldiers had. These were the four most bloody and courageous days of their lives. James Longstreet is severely wounded in the wilderness, but he quickly returns to be Lee's most dependable soldier, his right hand until Appomattox. Robert Edward Lee has poor health, and he serves until the end of the war and dies of a heart disease. Richard Ewell serves with courage until the end, but as a corps commander he is fated never to achieved distinction. Ambrose Powell Hill never took part in the Richmond society he so dearly loved and so richly deserved, Five days before Appomattox at the battle of five forks, he is killed bya sniper's bullet. John Bell Hood loses not the arm but the use of it, it remains withered within his pinned sleeve for the rest of his life. Dorsey Pender is wound grows and grows steadily worse, his leg is amputated and dies
Rating:
Summary: Thrilling and Amazing
Review: Words don't quite describe just how good this book is. Jeff Shaara's tale of the three day struggle at Gettysburg is absolutely amazing. Although I'm a history buff and have a BA in the subject, this novel is not one that will bore the average reader. It was written in a tone and manner which will make it interesting to the common person as well as the historian. The gripping detail of Shaara's pulitzer prize winning novel is unmatched by any other novel of the war I've ever read. From the headquarters of General Lee to the action at Little Roundtop, the reader will feel as if he/she was actually there. I particularly enjoyed the description of the heroics of Col Chamberlain and his unit. Chamberlain would eventually be awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroics that day, and by the end of the conflict he was Promoted to Brigadier General by Lt. Gen U.S. Grant. For the true history buff the maps are a godsend. They allow the reader to see the action and have a true understanding of the movement of the troops. As far as the entire trilogy of books this one is, by far, the best. This book is certainly 5 stars.
Rating: 
Summary: Fabulous fiction
Review: Let me begin by saying that I am not a fan of historical fiction. Michael Shaara's Pulitzer-Prize winning Killer Angels is so good that I make an exception in its case. The book works on a variety of levels, which in my opinion separates it from the rest of the genre. On one level is the story of the battle of Gettysberg itself, which Shaara does an exemlpary job of describing. On another level is the complex interaciton of personalities - characters based on real people, many of whom had been educated together at West Point, served together in peace and war and who were close friends before the Civil War began. A third level uses the battle itself as a microcosm for the Civil War, exploring the various motivations behind participants from both north and south. The book is truly a masterpiece of fiction. The drama created by Shaara's dialogue is enhanced by real events, but the real genius of the story is its many facets. I recommend this book to anyone -serious civil war buff or those simply looking for a good book to engross themselves in. You won;t be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: The Best Civil War Book Ever
Review: I had never been a fan of the Civil War, and picked up Mr. Shaara's book only after it was repeatedly suggested as an excellent piece of literature. This book has completely changed my view of the Civil War and my interest in historical fiction. I couldn't put it down, and finished it in two days. The book is a fast-paced account of the 4 days of battle at Gettysburg. Mr. Shaara wrote the book based as accurately as he could from the accounts of those who were there, doing so in the first person primarily through 4 of the commanding generals. It is Mr. Shaara's understanding of Confederate General Robert E. Lee that is the most impressive, he seems to do an excellent job in letting us glimpse how this now highly revered General looked at the war. Another lead character is Union Col. Joshua Chamberlain, a fascinating introduction as Chamberlain had been a professor at Bowdoin University with no military experience. His perspective on the war is vastly different from Lee's, allowing him to function as a well-written foil to Lee's perspective as a career military man. Chamberlain's unit was key to holding the Union flank and their ultimate success in this most devastating of battles. This book was so good that I have gone on to read/listen to multiple other books on the Civil War, including all of the books by Jeff Shaara, the author's son. This however, has been the clear best of the bunch. I cannot recommend the book enough, it is absolutely riveting.
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Summary: READ the book in its proper context... and you'll LOVE it.
Review: ...I had no interest in the Civil War until I read "The Killer Angels." Now I can't get enough source material about this pivotal chapter in our nation's history. It's not that Shaara is 100% accurate in his descriptions or characterizations -- it is the humanity and personality that he infuses into the Battle of Gettysburg that makes the book Pulitzer material. Each reader will find his or her own treasure in this surprisingly straightforward and human story -- mine in particular isn't Pickett's charge (although Armistead's tragic end moves me deeply), nor is it the stirring bayonet charge of the 20th Maine (which is the singular moment in the film adaptation, "Gettysburg," because of Jeff Daniels' exceptional turn as Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain)... it is, rather, the stirringly simple description of Confederate General Barksdale charging alone to his death in the face of overwhelming Union firepower, with General Longstreet, painfully aware of the futility of the act, desperately shouting his support: "Go! Go you Mississippi! GO!" Accept this work in the storytelling tradition, not as a history book. And for heaven's sake, read it because you WANT to -- not because you're forced to.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely brilliant!
Review: Having been born and raised in the American South, the Civil War has always been in my consciousness. I sat through all the obligatory units on the War Between the States in high school, gazed at the ubiquitous Confederate monuments, visited the battlefields, and heard my grandmother talk of her grandfather who served in the Army of Tennessee. But regardless of the closeness of the Civil War it never struck a personal chord with me, remaining only a list of names, battles, and dates. Then I read Shaara's book. I can't remember the last time I was so thoroughly capitvated by a book. What I expected to be a typical war novel became in short time to be one of the best books I have read. The author who undertakes to write historical fiction must be confronted with problems from which the general novelist is exempt. The balancing of historical fact and fiction is the primary concern, but when the novelist enters the minds of long dead historical characters things become even more problematic. To his credit, Shaara balances the facts beautifully and brings his characters to life. The reader is made party to the thought processes of Lee, Longstreet, Chamberlain, Armistead and others, and those thoughts attain a reality that is remarkable. The reader is left with the impression that he is in the entourage of the various generals, and is an eyewitness to the action of those days of 1863. The intimacy that the author creates between the reader and the events of almost 150 years ago is a palpable as it is judicious. He knows that he is treading on fragile ground and avoids the pitfalls of bias and pedantry and makes every effort to present a balanced account of the events at Gettysburg. Shaara writes beautifully. His style is reminiscent of the conciseness of Hemingway and the descriptive powers of Thomas Wolfe and he is a joy to read. His description of the sunset on the battlefield of that last day is so moving and elegantly written that it brought tears to my eyes.
Rating:
Summary: A brilliant work, the best civil war novel I have ever read.
Review: Even if you are not a Civil War buff, forget about it! This book will touch your heart and sometimes amaze you. Friends and collegues fighting against one another, killing one another as they stand behind their strongest convinctions. The author reveals this story primarily from the point of view of the officers on both sides as they ponder the circumstances and consider what they must sacrifice in order to win. The story is the battle of Gettysburg, three bloody days in July 1863 told through the eyes and hearts of the men who stood across the battlefield from one another and witnessed the bloodiest battle in American History. (More American's died on the fields of Gettysburg in three days than during the entire Vietnam war) For me, it's a difficult thing to consider Americans killing Americans for what they believe in. Of course, in the modern era Americans are still shooting at each other, but usually it's of a criminal nature. Back then, it was to defend values and character. This book opens up a world that has been long forgotten. It is a brilliant work that has given me a fine appreciation of what it means to die for what you believe in. Even if you hate the civil war, you should give this book a try. It is enjoyable on many levels.
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