Guest Blog Post: The Killer Angels

"This was the land where no man had to bow" Michael Shaara, The Killer Angels

Hello 1000 Bookies!!!! 

We have a great blog post on The Killer Angels.  The Killer Angels is on the list of 1000 Books to Read Before You Die.  When we were young kids, our guest blogger, Mr. Jonathan Hanson and I went on a trip to Gettysburg with his wonderful parents.  We had been watching the miniseries, North and South Book 2 and it was a real treat.  We saw the cyclorama and the battlefield. Jon was a Civil War reenactor who fought at Gettysburg. Who better to review this masterpiece--I am so proud to have Jon's blog post on The Killer Angels.  Without further ado...

A Review of the Killer Angels
By Jonathan Hanson 

The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara makes my Top 10 List of Books I’d Want on a Deserted Island. Every time I read it, I find something new within: a connection between characters or a historic reference that I’d missed before. As a history teacher, this book fills two of my reading categories: history and fiction.

The setting is the turning point Battle of Gettysburg during the Civil War. As the Union and Confederate armies are moving towards their historic clash in this small town, the books follows the story of various leaders on both sides.

 For the North, the story centers on Colonel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain as he leads the 20^th Maine Infantry regiment towards the hills of Gettysburg. Chamberlain, a minor cog in the Union war machine, will have a pivotal role in the battle to come, and will arguably, save the Union Army from complete destruction. Additionally, the Union story looks at the impact that General John Buford, a cavalry general, played in securing the high ground for the Union Army before the heavy fighting began.

For the South, the book focuses mostly on the two primary leaders of the Confederate Army: General Robert E. Lee and General James Longstreet. Lee, who had already achieved national fame for his bold maneuvering in the face of superior numbers, was growing tired and weary. He believed one more battle somewhere in the North could destroy the Union Army and force them to surrender. His second in command, Longstreet, had long opposed and invasion of the North, but was determined to make one last good fight in the hope of ending the war.

Each chapter shifts the story from the perspective of one leader to another. As each day of the battle passes, Shaara delves into the psyche of the leaders as they deal with heavy losses, the quirky personalities of their men, and the physical and mental toll that fatigue takes.

An interesting aspect of the book is the relationship between two officers on opposite sides of the war. Union General Winfield Scott Hancock and Confederate General Lewis Armistead were best friends before the war and haven’t seen each other since the war began but their forces will collide on a small hill called Cemetery Hill. The book focuses on Armistead’s concern for his old friend and worries he may run into him during the coming battle. Shaara paints Armistead as a man torn between his loyalty to his best friend and his duty to his country, which seems to be tearing him apart, emotionally. This story helps to bring a more human side to the war that might otherwise have been ignored and helps to remind the reader that this war often saw “brother vs. brother” which made it the deadliest war in American history.

Keep reading!