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I come to this book somewhat late and totally by accident. Yes, my first knowledge of this book and its subject was the outstanding HBO mini-series. I did want to read it then but I was still working and, well you know how that goes. I just didn't get around to it and then forgot about it completely. Lately my TBR shelf has been almost entirely drained and I was looking for something to read. I was scrounging around all of our bookshelves and found this paperback copy that belonged to my wife. My wife rarely ever reads anything of a historical nature so I was surprised to find this. She told me that yes she did read it and enjoyed it as much as she enjoyed the mini-series that we watched together. I now had a new book to read and I learned something new about my wife, a double win.

I guess I should start by mentioning that as an author and writer Ambrose doesn't get a lot of high marks. After reading this book I can understand the criticisms and can't disagree with a lot of them while some are a bit more like nitpicking. I enjoyed the book a great deal but not so much for the writing but for what the book contains. In large part the book reads like and actually is a collection of diary entries in the words of the men depicted in the book. After reflection I believe my 4 star rating is more for the effort Ambrose made to preserve these words and the stories of these men that actually fought the fight that made the history that we all enjoy reading and learning about. The book could have been written better and provided more of an entertainment for the reader but this is a history. Is history supposed to be entertaining? Should history conform to the tastes of the reading public or should it simply place the facts before the public to be regarded according to intellectual abilities of the individual? An interesting topic for a discussion that will not be had here. To me this book provided a glimpse of history that is made at the frontline by the unknown participants that do the fighting and dying. I read this book and couldn't help but wonder what these men would have thought of those people that stormed the Capital on January 6? What would they have thought of our 45th president? What would they have thought of us? This is definitely a book worth reading even if you think the author could have done better. I think what he did was enough. Enjoy.