The Killer Angels

Rating:
Summary: An intimate, personal story of the Civil War
Review: The Killer Angels, as championed in the Author's Note, tears down the barriers that sterile non-fiction accounts of the Civil War tend to create. The reader is hurled into the raw, gritty world of the Civil War, where death and agony mingle with camaraderie and courage in the smoky air of battle. Gone are the glossed-over descriptions of battles. Gone are the disaffected, removed accounts of battle. What remains, the psychological struggle of the fighting men, is presented in a pure, heart-wrenching manner. We vividly feel the despair of Longstreet, the incredible weariness of Lee, the idealistic questioning of Chamberlain and Armistead as they fight and die in the greatest battle in American history. We smell the gunpowder, see the glint of rifles in the sun, hear the shrieks of the wounded, and empathize with the moral plight of the combatants. And, as the book closes, we no longer cheer blindly for the Union or curse the Confederacy; we simply lower our heads in respect and awe for the individual soldier who, regardless of allegiance, braved enemy fire and his own personal demons to do what he felt was right.

Rating:
Summary: One Of The Best Books I've Ever Read.
Review: I can't say many positive things about this book that have not already been posted. But from my personal view, "Killer Angels" is one of the best novels I have ever read.
Most of what I knew of Gettysburg was from high school history and a few documentaries here and there. This book brings history to life by drawing the reader into the personalities of the participants. The most profound thing I came away with upon completion of the novel is how one man's decision or indecision at a specific moment in time can influence history. I strongly recommend this book to everyone, even readers not interested in war novels per se. This is novel about people & humanity, the battle of Gettysburg serves as a back drop. 10 stars if I could.

Rating:
Summary: PLODDING ACADEMIC ACCOUNT OF THE BATTLE
Review: The Killer Angels is one of those rare books that seems to avoid all criticism - so many critics, readers and Civil War enthusiasts have placed this book as the untouchable vanguard of the genre. As an avid fan of historical fiction & Civil War reenactor myself (PA23rd, Birney's Zouaves), I had much higher hopes. Having just completed the absolutely amazing Civil War era "Starbuck" series from Bernard Cornwell, I was really expecting more. The Killer Angels succeeds as a blow by blow account of the battle of Gettysburg. Where it fails, and fails miserably in my opinion, is that it never develops any characters - they're all rather two-dimensional, it seems that they all have a predestined agenda and Michael Shaara is going to get them there without looking left or right. The sense of individual discovery is lacking, as well as the sense of battle, the smells, the horror, & the whistle of the minie ball.
For an academic account of the battle and a review of the major players, this book succeeds. However, I don't think it's the best book out there on life in the Civil War.


Rating:
Summary: An engaging narrative into Gettysburg
Review: I've never been much of a Civil War buff, so The Killer Angels was a new genre for me. I'm glad I stumbled upon this fictionalized history of the Battle of Gettysburg, somewhat like the Union and Rebel Armies stumbled upon each other in that hot Pennsylvania town , 75-some miles due north of Washington D.C. It's hard for me to sympathize with the treasonous, slave-owning Confederates, and Michael Shaara manages to paint a picture of a class-based Southern society closer to England's than our own. That insight alone was worth the price of the book. The Union Army's rabid egalitarianism, personified by Maine's Josua Lawrence Chamberlain, one of the heroes of the Battle and of the war, was similarly insightful. There's a real poignancy from the older generals conflicted at fighting against one another, especially those that fought together in Mexico a few decades earlier. And the vivid descriptions of the great battles are stamped upon my memory. This book is worth a read to understand how so many perished to sustain a nation conceived in liberty and rededicate ourselves -- the living -- to ensure that government of the people, by the people and for the people shall not perish from the earth.

Rating:
Summary: A little too realistic
Review: I don't think that I really agree with all of the reviews about this story.

1) I agree it is very factual. All of the events and descriptions takes the reader to the battlefield. It reads more like a play-by-play of Gettysburg than a fictional novel.

2) The military leaders come to life during the read. Lee, Chamberlain, and Longstreet are all heroes; each with their own failings.

I did enjoy the story, however the plot was the battle of Gettysburg itself, rather than a fictional story set during the Battle of Gettysburg.

I would recommend this story for fans of authentic historical battle descriptions. I would not recommend this book for somebody who is looking for "Historical Fiction".