And a couple simply reconfirm and refine his evaluation of the splendid Abraham Lincoln as man, as commander in chief, as President. Some essays are relegated to updating his previous works - it is wonderful that he takes his arguments into the 21st century. Sometimes he's answering critics or those with whose conclusions he disagrees. The appeal of this collection of essays is not particularly in its new or exhaustive material - it's in the organization of the presentation. After plowing through (I am not a buff!) a couple of his (admittedly worthwhile) longer works, I frankly wondered what he still had to say. I don't think anyone doubts the credentials James McPherson brings to any study of the American Civil War. You will not be bored in the least.Ī Different Kind of History from McPherson This is a pretty darn good book and well worth your time. And Grover Gardner does and excellent job too! His voiced inflection is perfect and his delivery is effortless which has me gravitating towards most of his narrations. But the way the information is provided is refreshing in comparison to several other works I've read. Though I have heard a few of the anecdotes, I was pleasantly surprised with how it was presented and how each chapter, though not building on previous chapters, melds together nicely, and makes for an excellent read! James McPherson is no stranger to the subject which makes me wonder how many quotes I've read in other books came from these works? We all know how the war ends, who the villains are, who the poor generalship originates from and how the Great Emancipator succumbs to a radical. Under this title, i didn't have that sense. That is to say, we're only talking about 4 years here so there is always a fear of regurgitation to some extent. Thoughtful, provocative, and authoritative, The War That Forged a Nation looks anew at the reasons America's Civil War has remained a subject of intense interest for the past century and a half and affirms the enduring relevance of the conflict for America today.Īs an amateur historian and Civil War buff, I'v read enough books on the subject that material can become repetitive. From racial inequality and conflict between the North and South to questions of state sovereignty or the role of government in social change - these issues, McPherson shows, are as salient and controversial today as they were in the 1860s. McPherson ultimately proves the impossibility of understanding the issues of our own time unless we first understand their roots in the era of the Civil War. But the legacy of the war extends far beyond historical interest or scholarly attention. Lee, Stonewall Jackson - help explain why the Civil War remains a topic of interest. The drama and tragedy of the war, from its scope and size - an estimated death toll of 750,000, far more than the rest of the country's wars combined - to the nearly mythical individuals involved - Abraham Lincoln, Robert E. McPherson considers why the Civil War remains so deeply embedded in our national psyche and identity. In The War that Forged a Nation, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian James M. In fact five generations have passed, and Americans are still trying to measure the influence of the immense fratricidal conflict that nearly tore the nation apart. More than 140 years ago, Mark Twain observed that the Civil War had "uprooted institutions that were centuries old, changed the politics of a people, transformed the social life of half the country, and wrought so profoundly upon the entire national character that the influence cannot be measured short of two or three generations".
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