Rating: 
Summary: Should be required reading
Review: An excellent overview of the War of Independence. Leckie manages to capture both the people and events of the time with great color and striking prose. The book goes down easy, unlike most history books, and is frankly hard to put down. One of the better texts on history I have read (and I majored in History, so I've read a few). Decidedly worth the read, and definitely recommended for anyone interested or even curious about how our nation came to be. ALL history books should be like this.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Overview of the American Revolution!
Review: Leckie has written an excellent account of the much overlooked American War of Independence. His writing style is interesting: full of anecdoctal notes on several historical figures, reads like a novel, and is simple without insulting your intelligence.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the character of King George, the Howe brothers, Charles Lee, Benedict Arnold, Nathaniel Greene, Daniel Morgan, Charles Cornwallis, and especially George Washington.
The major complaints I had: the maps (too few and lacked detail), lack of footnotes, and no pictures. The maps' lack of detail made it difficult sometimes to follow troop movements and more should have been developed to cover more of the battles covered in the book. Listing footnotes would have helped immensely to validate what the author said about certain people and events and to help separate his opinion from actual recorded history. Having more pictures would have also helped by adding more of a human element to the book. For example, Leckie on mentioned that Lord Rawdon and Charles Lee were two of the ugliest men in the Revolution while John Laurens and John Andre were impressive looking men who drove the ladies wild. It would have been interesting to at least see some potraits of them and form your own opinion! It also would have been nice to see some drawings of the various battles that Leckie so vividly portrayed.
I still highly recommend the book as an excellent introductory and comprehensive study of the Revolution and look forward to reading more of Leckie's titles.
Read and enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Introduction to the American Revolution!
Review: Let me start off by saying that I have been, in the past, strictly a Civil War buff. The American Revolution has always been an alien war to me, and I have only occasionally purchased a book on that war. But I recently decided that studying the American Revolution would greatly help me expand my horizons to wars other than the War for Southern Independence. On a trip to one of my local bookstores, I picked up this book, as it looked like a very interesting narrative of the American Revolution.
First off, Mr Leckie's writing was spectacular; I found myself gliding through the pages. Leckie's descriptions of the major participants were great also. But I wish he had included some illustrations in the book of major participants, battles, etc. The book is also of perfect length for the beginning student of the war.
With the good said, the one and only fault of this book was the maps. They are very few, and those provided were lacking. The lack of maps caused me some irritation as I sought to follow the movements of the armies. But in the end, this is not a major problem, but does lower my rating of the book to four stars instead of five.
This is book is great for the beginner as well as the experienced student of the American Revolution. I highly recommend it!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Introduction to the American Revolution!
Review: Let me start off by saying that I have been, in the past, strictly a Civil War buff. The American Revolution ha always been an alien war to me, and I have only occasionally purchased a book on that war. But I recently decided that studying the American Revolution would greatly help me expand my horizons to wars other than the War for Southern Independence. On a trip to one of my local bookstores, I picked up this book, as it looked like a very interesting narrative of the American Revolution. First off, Mr Leckie's writing was spectacular; I found myself gliding through the pages. Leckie's descriptions of the major participants were great also. But I wish he had included some illustrations in the book of major participants, battles, etc. The book is also of perfect length for the beginning student of the war. With the good said, the one and only fault of this book was the maps. They are very few, and those provided were lacking. The lack of maps caused me some irritation as I sought to follow the movements of the armies. But in the end, this is not a major problem, but does lower my rating of the book to four stars instead of five. This is book is great for the beginner as well as the experienced student of the American Revolution. I highly recommend it!
Rating:
Summary: Leckie's book is "biography as history".
Review: Robert Lecke's book vividly retells the story of the American Revolution, periodically expanding on the biographies of the major and minor participants. Here are the men that were the characters in this great event. Not just Washington, Cornwallis and George III, but engaging characters like Henry Knox (the Boston bookseller who became Washington's chief artillerist). And, Nathaniel Greene the ironworker. Almost absent are Jefferson, Franklin, etc. since they played very small roles in the war itself. It helps to have a grounding in military history, since Leckie is not inclined to stop his narrative for long to teach 18th century warfare. My only objection is the inadequate number of maps. I actually had to refer to an atlas to follow what was going on. I would read any of his books.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic account
Review: Robert Leckie does an exceptional job breaking the American Revolution -- from the buildup to the actual chronology of battles -- down into a book that reads like a novel without sacrificing any vital information. It is obvious that the author has done remarkable work when the reader is anxious to pick up where he left off the day before on a heavy historical text such as this.
George Washington's War begins at the end of the French and Indian War, but picks up steam in the years leading up to the Revolution -- when the colonies began to repel the efforts of the British to tax the colonies. Leckie, with great detail, introduces the reader to the lives and culture of both the British and the Americans during that time, and succeeds in portraying the opinions and mindset present on both sides of the Atlantic. I didn't detect much bias in Leckie's writing -- just as many negatives were showcased for the Americans as were for the British. Most notably in my opinion was Leckie's description of the New England leveling principle, the idea that the democratic mentality that everyone is equal actually hindered the colonies and war effort as much as it helped.
Once the war begins, the battles of the Northeast, followed by the Southern battles, are all described in great detail and in chronological order. All the connections from one to another are outlined, and by the middle of the war, the reader has a strong grasp of the major players, their effectiveness and mentality, as well as the key themes and convictions of both the armies and their leaders.
The only drawback, as has been stated frequently, is the lack of good maps. There are about 10 maps in the entire book, and none are all that helpful. I've been able to find more effective maps on the internet -- but they should be present in the book to help the reader visualize these great battles.
All in all, it's a great read for someone looking for an in-depth account of the war, the nations involved, the generals and officers, and the soldiers. If you haven't done much reading of the Revolution since your school days, you'll be amazed to see how much more there is to this time period than what's commonly taught -- the Tea Party, Paul Revere, Washington's Delaware Crossing, etc. Set aside some time (it's close to 700 pages) and read a great account of a world-changing war.
Rating:
Summary: Leckie Delivers!
Review: Robert Leckie is an excellent narrative historian, whose passion appears to be military conflict and the human condition, most likely springing from his time of service in WWII (see A Helmet For My Pillow, also by Robert Leckie).
As always, Leckie starts out by laying the groundwork, well before the actual conflict, detailing the socio-political and economic factors that contribute to the situation, and then bores full-speed into the matter at hand. While giving you the scoop on every skirmish and event of note, he still finds time to flesh out the people involved, putting a human face on history's DWMs.
Leckie shows a great deal of respect for George Washington, as well as a great deal of disdain for the meddling of the infant Congress in the affairs of war. He also gives you a glimpse into the true character of the valiant Benadict Arnold, whose greed and vanity, combined with the unwise and ungrateful treatment of him by Congress, led to his dishonor.
But a greater theme permeates this book, and others by Robert Leckie. That theme is human nature. The good, the bad, and the truly awesome feats of great people in times of great adversity. There are those who should be remembered, and honored, who are often forgotten. Read, and remember.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent, very readable chronicle of the Revolution
Review: Some historians, such as Shelby Foote, have a natural ability to assimilate tremendous amounts of historical and biographical data, and weave it all into a very approachable story that reads almost like a novel. Leckie has accomplished a similar feat with this book, which is the best book I have read on the American Revolution. Short on maps and without footnotes, the book nevertheless tells as complete a story as can be hoped for in a one volume account of the war, with excellent biograophical sketches of many of the major and minor players such as Benedict Arnold, John Andre,John Burgoyne, Banastre Tarleton, Horatio Gates, Samuel Adams, and Nathaniel Greene, and countless others. He keeps the action in context, filling in readers with important contemporary details from the internal squabbling of the Continental Congress as well as British Parliament, without getting too bogged down in irrelevant detail. The passages about the treason of Arnold, and Arnold's tremendous military accomplishments and mistreatment by Congress leading up to his betrayal, were particularly riveting. There have been many books written about the Civil War, and most general readers with a passing interest in history (like myself) are familiar with most major Civil War battles and generals. However there is a dearth of knowledge and material about the battle for American independence. While we all know what happened at Yorktown, this book is suspenseful and will fill in the considerable gaps in our knowledge of this important time in the nation's history. I recommend this book with enthusiasm.
Rating:
Summary: George Washington's War
Review: The detail in this account of the American Revolution is nothing short of amazing. Mr. Leckie has written an extremely readable narrative that reads like a novel, but the research he has put into it is solid. His focus is on the leaders on both sides of the conflict, rather than on the ordinary soldier, but he does make frequent reference to Joseph Plumb Martin, who, as a foot soldier, not only survived the war, but left a very detailed journal. The events are presented in chronological order and Leckie often offers his analysis of what went right and what went wrong on both sides. His depiction of the harsh enmity that existed between the Tories and the Patriots is not often portrayed elsewhere and puts a truer perspective on conditions as they really existed. His account of Benedict Arnold gives the reasons for his treason, which are also not found in general historical accounts. Anyone interested in history, and especially American history will gain from this book, and I strongly reccommend it.
Rating:
Summary: A military history
Review: This account of the Revolutionary War does not bog you down with long drawn out battle plans but instead gives you insight into all the main players and their backgrounds. A great read. I can't wait to read some of Leckie's other books.
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