Rating: 
Summary: cut and paste
Review: Agreed with the previous writer. Ambrose, one of my favorite historians, has merely assembled some passages from his past novels. Even if you had not read the full texts from which these anecdotes were taken, you'll be left empty as each section ends. Its just not compelling. JH
Rating: 
Summary: A collection of anecdotal stories of men as friends
Review: Although it is not a great sweeping history of men in action and conflict, it is a sentimental and worthwhile read of men who have become freinds by family or by choice. He saves the best for last when he writes about his father.
Rating: 
Summary: Chicken Soup for the He-Man's Soul
Review: Ambrose is the best popular historian around. He makes history fun, readable and accessible to a wide audience. He is also a highly respected academic. I looked forward to Comrades,and it was a nice quick read. But there's not much to it; lots of male bonding, but rarely gets past the surface. His assessment of Dick Nixon was a little too simplistic, I think. I would, however, like to see Ambrose write in a more autobiographical vein. He usually tackles larger than life figures,dealing with the people he'd like to be. I'd like to learn more about this guy, but I think this book only touches the surface. Keep writing, Steve!
Rating:
Summary: Change of pace for Ambrose
Review: An interesting investigation into the relationships between men, and what bonds them together, especially in situations of threat such as conflict. Like his greatest books, THE VICTORS, CITIZEN SOLDIERS, BAND OF BROTHERS, or like great war novels, THE TRIUMPH AND THE GLORY, THE RED BADGE OF COURAGE, OR ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT, Ambrose seeks to understand and clarify the mystic connection that bonds men closer than brothers. He doesn't always hit the mark in this book but it is still a very worthwhile read.
Rating: 
Summary: Touching, but expected more from Ambrose...
Review: As a HUGE fan of Ambrose, I feel a little guilty of criticizingthe work. But I paid for it, so here goes. It was a wonderfulbook in concept, but like the Kirkus review said, a tad "shallow", and in my estimation, priced more than it was worth -- this is a seven dollar book, not a seventeen dollar book (my price). I kind of felt cheated, as Ambrose recycled a tad too much information from previous efforts, without seemingly doing enough new, groundbreaking, or original exposition on the complexities of male friendships. It feels like our favorite historian "mailed this one in", leaving the hard writing for some other work. I also felt that Ambrose was a little condescending at times about his own experiences. Can't recall specific details now, but I remember feeling oddly disconnected from some of the male bonding experiences he touts from his own youth, not the least of which was this business about joining this frat over that. (Big deal.) But I suppose judging our own nostalgic memories with superlatives is a right we all reserve for ourselves, and I'm no different. Nevertheless, devoted fans of Ambrose will enjoy the book...or maybe not. Perhaps the parts Ambrose writes about his friends, his brothers, and his father are a bit too confessional -- more than we're interested in knowing. If you're a first time Ambrose reader, start with a different book, say Citizen Soldiers, and then check this one out from the library before you head out of town for a weekend of easy reading.
Rating:
Summary: Short, touching account of unheralded male friendships
Review: Author Stephen E. Ambrose has made quite a career out of his historical writings. Viewed to be one of the most, if the most, pre-eminent World War II historians, Ambrose has written many captivating accounts of the brave men who have taken up arms in defense of this country and freedom. He has also chronicled some of lesser-detailed, though quite famous, events in U.S. history, such as the building of the transcontinental railroad, the journey of Lewis and Clark, and the parallel lives of General Custer and Crazy Horse until their fateful meeting at Little Big Horn. What is common in Ambrose' writing, and what makes the stories so compelling and accessible to average reader, is that he understands the importance of the human emotions and common bonds produced by the strong friendships of the men whose lives are immortalized in history. His seminal work, "Band of Brothers" is THE classic example of this.
Ambrose has chronicled these male friendships in many of his books, but has felt the need to extract some of these stories and have them stand alone in a separate volume on the strength and importance of male friendships. The result is "Comrades", a sometimes slow, but mostly compelling anthology of the power of male friendships that took place in form of fathers, sons, brothers, and colleagues for famous historical figures. "Comrades" is a relatively short book, with each chapter dedicating just a brief synopsis of these friendships. However, they serve as a primer that makes the reader want to dive deeper in the stories behind these men. One can read the short about the relationship between General Dwight Eisenhower and his brother Milton, an academic man who was his closest confidante, advisor, champion, and friend and be compelled to flesh out the relationship further by reading the Eisenhower biography. The stories about the Custer Brothers and of Crazy Horse and He Dog merely whet the appetite for the stories that permeate "Crazy Horse and Custer". The same can be said for Meriweather Clark and William Clark and "Undaunted Courage".
It could be argued that a book like "Comrades" is nothing more than a marketing gimmick to get people to buy other Stephen Ambrose books. That is a shortsighted and cynical interpretation. "Comrades" is a wonderful primer that makes these stories accessible to the common reader and if it spurs them to seek out other books about these same subjects, then that is just a testament to the power of these stories and skill of Ambrose' writing.
Rating:
Summary: Short, touching account of unheralded male friendships
Review: Author Stephen E. Ambrose has made quite a career out of his historical writings. Viewed to be one of the most, if the most, pre-eminent World War II historians, Ambrose has written many captivating accounts of the brave men who have taken up arms in defense of this country and freedom. He has also chronicled some of lesser-detailed, though quite famous, events in U.S. history, such as the building of the transcontinental railroad, the journey of Lewis and Clark, and the parallel lives of General Custer and Crazy Horse until their fateful meeting at Little Big Horn. What is common in Ambrose' writing, and what makes the stories so compelling and accessible to average reader, is that he understands the importance of the human emotions and common bonds produced by the strong friendships of the men whose lives are immortalized in history. His seminal work, "Band of Brothers" is THE classic example of this.
Ambrose has chronicled these male friendships in many of his books, but has felt the need to extract some of these stories and have them stand alone in a separate volume on the strength and importance of male friendships. The result is "Comrades", a sometimes slow, but mostly compelling anthology of the power of male friendships that took place in form of fathers, sons, brothers, and colleagues for famous historical figures. "Comrades" is a relatively short book, with each chapter dedicating just a brief synopsis of these friendships. However, they serve as a primer that makes the reader want to dive deeper in the stories behind these men. One can read the short about the relationship between General Dwight Eisenhower and his brother Milton, an academic man who was his closest confidante, advisor, champion, and friend and be compelled to flesh out the relationship further by reading the Eisenhower biography. The stories about the Custer Brothers and of Crazy Horse and He Dog merely whet the appetite for the stories that permeate "Crazy Horse and Custer". The same can be said for Meriweather Clark and William Clark and "Undaunted Courage".
It could be argued that a book like "Comrades" is nothing more than a marketing gimmick to get people to buy other Stephen Ambrose books. That is a shortsighted and cynical interpretation. "Comrades" is a wonderful primer that makes these stories accessible to the common reader and if it spurs them to seek out other books about these same subjects, then that is just a testament to the power of these stories and skill of Ambrose' writing.
Rating:
Summary: Ambrose's therapy gets documented
Review: Dr. Ambrose crossed a line with this particular book. I think that he wrote with good intentions and does cover some interesting data (which is in his other books) about Lewis and Clark, Nixon, Eisenhower and others, however, the therapy sessions about his childhood and his brothers/father leaves much to be desired and should be included in a self-help section and not to be mixed up with Dr. Ambrose's more serious work.
This book is part autobiography, part psycho-sociological theory and part therapy session. Dr. Ambrose, while certainly an interesting character, should have let someone else write this book after he is gone or should have saved the text about himself for his children. I listened to this on CD and found it laborious to get through. Hats off to the reviewers that actually read this monolog. The fact that he sold this under the title "Comrades" so as to put a facade of value and a hint that it might be a scholarly work into relationships formed under fire is completely misleading. Although I appreciated his comments about friendship, a better title for this book might be "me and my Dad and what I did on summer vacation".
Rating:
Summary: I Expected More
Review: Having read and enjoyed "Undaunted Courage" and after having heard Stephen Ambrose speak about the building of the transcontinental railroad, I really expected more than this book had to give. I thought it was a very lame attempt and that it was hastily thrown together. I doubt that it would have been published had it been written by anyone other than Mr. Ambrose. This book is not a good example of his talent.
Rating: 
Summary: Tender book about friendships
Review: Head the taped version of COMRADES: BROTHERS,
FATHERS, HEROES, SONS, PALS, a tender book by
the late historian Stephen E. Ambrose that examines the bond
formed between men as a result of both family and
circumstances . . . he looks at the lasting friendships of
various men, from Sioux Indians to his own brothers, and
analyzes the special relationship between Meriwether Lewis
and William Clark . . . in addition, he pays special tribute
to brothers, including such famous pairs as Dwight and
Milton Eisenhower, and George and Tom Customer . . . Richard
Nixon rates a special chapter and in listening to it, you begin
to understand why he was impeached (in large part because
he had very few friends). I was particularly moved by the author's last chapter,
describing his own friendship with his father--with whom he
only got close toward the end of the latter's life . . . "He was my first and always most important friend," Ambrose writes. "I didn't learn that until the end, when he taught me the most important thing,that the love of father-son-father-son is a continuum, just as love and friendship are expansive."
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