Synopses & Reviews
From the author of the prize-winning andlt;iandgt;New York Times andlt;/iandgt;bestseller andlt;iandgt;Empire of the Summer Moon andlt;/iandgt;comes a thrilling accountandlt;iandgt; andlt;/iandgt;of how Civil War general Thomas and#8220;Stonewalland#8221; Jacksonandlt;iandgt; andlt;/iandgt;became a great and tragic American hero.andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Stonewall Jackson has long been a figure of legend and romance. As much as any person in the Confederate pantheon, even Robert E. Lee, he embodies the romantic Southern notion of the virtuous lost cause. Jackson is also considered, without argument, one of our countryand#8217;s greatest military figures. His brilliance at the art of war tied Abraham Lincoln and the Union high command in knots and threatened the ultimate success of the Union armies. Jacksonand#8217;s strategic innovations shattered the conventional wisdom of how war was waged; he was so far ahead of his time that his techniques would be studied generations into the future.andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;In April 1862 Jackson was merely another Confederate general in an army fighting what seemed to be a losing cause. By June he had engineered perhaps the greatest military campaign in American history and was one of the most famous men in the Western world. He had, moreover, given the Confederate cause what it had recently lackedand#8212;hopeand#8212;and struck fear into the hearts of the Union.andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;Rebel Yell andlt;/Iandgt;is written with the swiftly vivid narrative that is Gwynneand#8217;s hallmark and is rich with battle lore, biographical detail, and intense conflict between historical figures. Gwynne delves deep into Jacksonand#8217;s private life, including the loss of his young beloved first wife and his regimented personal habits. It traces Jacksonand#8217;s brilliant twenty-four-month career in the Civil War, the period that encompasses his rise from obscurity to fame and legend; his stunning effect on the course of the war itself; and his tragic death, which caused both North and South to grieve the loss of a remarkable American hero.
Review
and#8220;With the reporter's eye for the revealing vignette and the story-tellerand#8217;s ear for the rhythm of human striving, S. C. Gwynne gives us a beautifully penetrating account of the meteoric rise and tragic death of the most legendary of Civil War soldiers.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;andlt;iandgt;Rebel Yellandlt;/iandgt; is the best biography of Stonewall Jackson I have ever read. The scholarship is exemplary, the narrative riveting and richly textured. With a rare combination of unflinching objectivity and genuine compassion, andlt;iandgt;Rebel Yellandlt;/iandgt; unraveled for me the enigma of Stonewall Jackson. A magnificent achievement, andlt;iandgt;Rebel Yellandlt;/iandgt; represents a milestone in Civil War literature.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;The great tragedy of modern historiography is that more historians donand#8217;t write like S.C. Gwynne. In this book on Stonewall Jacksonand#8217;s Civil War career, Gwynne has fashioned a fast-paced narrative of a man complex and enigmatic, awkward and exceptional. Gwynne has taken on a giant figure of quirks and brilliance who demands both restraint and a facile pen, and he delivers in vivid form.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;andlt;iandgt;Rebel Yellandlt;/iandgt; breathes contemporary insight and fresh energy into the life of an authentic American legend. In this crackling narrative, S.C. Gwynne gives us the bold tactics, the eccentric thinking, and the wicked genius of one of history's most brilliantand#8212;and unconventionaland#8212;military minds.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;Powerfully told, richly detailed, but also deeply human in timeless ways, andlt;iandgt;Rebel Yellandlt;/iandgt; unmasks Gen. Stonewall Jackson, one of American history's most enduring legends (and yet most private of men). This is history at its best.and#8221;
Review
"A stimulating study of Confederate Gen. Stonewall Jackson... Gwynne reveals him to have been an early master of modern mobile warfare and a clear-eyed interpreter of what modern 'pitiless war was all about'... Readers are likely to agree that, without Jackson, Lee 'would never again be quite so brilliant,' while even in the North Jackson was considered, rather than a rebel, a 'gentleman and... fundamentally an andlt;iandgt;Americanandlt;/iandgt;.'"
Review
"Spry prose and cogent insight....Showing Jacksonand#8217;s exploitation of speed and deception, Gwynneand#8217;s vivid account of his Civil War run, which ended with his death in the 1863 Battle of Chancellorsville, is a riveting, cover-to-cover read for history buffs."andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;andnbsp;
Review
"VERDICT: This popular history is recommended for all readers interested in the Civil War."
Review
and#8220;Itand#8217;s hard to imagine an author breaking newground with another Jackson biography. But S.C. Gwynne does just thatin andlt;Iandgt;Rebel Yell...andlt;/Iandgt; Readers will come away from andlt;Iandgt;Rebelandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;Iandgt; andlt;/Iandgt;andlt;Iandgt;Yell andlt;/Iandgt;withan understanding of the man that goes beyond his military exploits.andlt;Iandgt; andlt;/Iandgt;Gwynneand#8217;s masterful storytellingandlt;Iandgt; andlt;/Iandgt;makes andlt;Iandgt;Rebel Yellandlt;/Iandgt; anabsorbingandlt;Iandgt; andlt;/Iandgt;choice for general readersand Civilandlt;Iandgt; andlt;/Iandgt;War buffs alike.and#8221;
Review
"[Gwynne's contribution] lies in capturing Jacksonand#8217;s character, personality and historical significance. He interprets Jackson as a discipline- and God-obsessed social bore, yet one of the fiercest fighters and most brilliant minds in American military history... a 'living myth'...Jackson ascended rapidly from nerdy artillery and physics professor at Virginia Military Institute to Leeand#8217;s audacious and seemingly invincible lieutenant."
Review
"In andlt;Iandgt;Rebel Yellandlt;/Iandgt;, Mr. Gwynne's easy, loping style wraps itself effortlessly around the particulars of Stonewall Jackson's life, from his back-of-the-mountain upbringing to the outburst of military genius in the Civil War. The result is a narrative vivid with detail and insight."
Review
"In the magnificentandlt;Iandgt; Rebel Yellandlt;/Iandgt;,andlt;Iandgt; andlt;/Iandgt;one of the year's best biographies, writer S.C. Gwynne brings Jackson ferociously to life... His battle scenes are marvels of description and kinetic action. [He] brings a deep humanity to his portrayals of Jackson, his fellow Confederate generals and their Union adversaries... Gwynne's pages fly by, brimming with excitement and terror."
Review
"Gwynneand#8217;s portrait of Jackson is comprehensive, stirring, compelling....This well-researched portrait of a well-studied figure of the Civil War defies the odds and measurably adds to the scholarship surrounding Jackson and the conflict that defined him... The book is hard to put down."
Review
"Profoundly enlightening...The difference in andlt;Iandgt;Rebel Yellandlt;/Iandgt; is...the historical sweep, the small touches, and the quality and clarity of the writing... Those sorts of little touches, page after page after page, set this book apart....Gwynne's andlt;Iandgt;Rebel Yellandlt;/Iandgt; delivers what readers want and deserve and#8212; a brave, headlong charge into American history."
Review
"S.C. Gwynne provides a comprehensive portrait of a complex man who triumphed on the battlefield--but remained an enigma... a joy to read."
Review
"Septemberand#8217;s most scintillating read may be a 640-page biography of Thomas and#8220;Stonewalland#8221; Jackson... S.C. Gwynneand#8217;s riveting retelling of the canny Confederate whose strategies shaped the early years of the Civil War is just that good."
Review
and#8220;Gwynne stirringly recreates the bloody, error-plagued battles of the early war and argues that Jacksonand#8217;s legend galvanized the South, outmanned and outgunned, to keep fighting.and#8221;
Review
"An engaging narrative with a pace that never flags... Gwynne accomplishes a great deal in his clear and highly readable bookandlt;Iandgt;... andlt;/Iandgt;If you read everything about the Civil War -- or if you have read very little about the Civil War -- andlt;Iandgt;Rebel Yell andlt;/Iandgt;is an excellent addition to your reading list."
Review
"I've reviewed many books on the Civil War, and this is far and away the best biography of a Civil War general that I've read... If you're a Civil War buff -- as I am -- or if you're just interested in wonderful biographies -- as I am -- andlt;Iandgt;Rebelandlt;/Iandgt; andlt;Iandgt;Yellandlt;/Iandgt; is a must-read book. It reads like a novel, but it's based on extensive beyond belief research."
Review
"A worthy book that does much to present the general in a realistic, critical and evenhanded manner.... Gwynne writes with style... he creates vivid word pictures and descriptions that keep the reader engaged.andlt;Iandgt; Rebel Yellandlt;/Iandgt; is a worthy addition to the shelves of those who study and read about the American Civil War."
Synopsis
From the author of the prize-winning New York Times bestseller Empire of the Summer Moon comes a thrilling account of how Civil War general Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson became a great and tragic American hero.
Stonewall Jackson has long been a figure of legend and romance. As much as any person in the Confederate pantheon, even Robert E. Lee, he embodies the romantic Southern notion of the virtuous lost cause. Jackson is also considered, without argument, one of our country's greatest military figures. His brilliance at the art of war tied Abraham Lincoln and the Union high command in knots and threatened the ultimate success of the Union armies. Jackson's strategic innovations shattered the conventional wisdom of how war was waged; he was so far ahead of his time that his techniques would be studied generations into the future.
In April 1862 Jackson was merely another Confederate general in an army fighting what seemed to be a losing cause. By June he had engineered perhaps the greatest military campaign in American history and was one of the most famous men in the Western world. He had, moreover, given the Confederate cause what it had recently lacked--hope--and struck fear into the hearts of the Union.
Rebel Yell is written with the swiftly vivid narrative that is Gwynne's hallmark and is rich with battle lore, biographical detail, and intense conflict between historical figures. Gwynne delves deep into Jackson's private life, including the loss of his young beloved first wife and his regimented personal habits. It traces Jackson's brilliant twenty-four-month career in the Civil War, the period that encompasses his rise from obscurity to fame and legend; his stunning effect on the course of the war itself; and his tragic death, which caused both North and South to grieve the loss of a remarkable American hero.
Synopsis
From the author of the mega-bestselling, prize-winning andlt;Iandgt;New York Timesandlt;/Iandgt; bestseller andlt;Iandgt;Empire of the Summer Moonandlt;/Iandgt; comes a groundbreaking account of how Civil War general Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson became a great and tragic American hero.andlt;brandgt;andlt;brandgt;General Stonewall Jackson was like no one anyone had ever seen. In April of 1862 he was a Confederate general with only a single battle credential, fighting in what seemed to be a losing cause. By June he had engineered perhaps the greatest military campaign in American history and was one of the most famous men in the Western World. He had given the Confederate cause what it had recently lacked: hope. In four full-scale battles and six major skirmishes in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley, Jackson had taken an army that never numbered more than 17,000 men and often had far less, against more than 70,000 Union troops whose generals had been ordered to destroy him. He had humiliated them and sent the armies reeling backward in retreat. He had done it with the full knowledge that he and his army were alone in a Union-dominated wilderness and surrounded at all times. He had even beaten a trap designed by Lincoln himself to catch him.andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;How did he do this? Jackson marched his men at a pace unknown to soldiers of the era. He made flashing strikes in unexpected places, and assaults of hard and relentless fury. He struck from behind mountain ranges and out of steep passes. His use of terrain reminded observers of Hannibal and Napoleon. His exploits in the valley rank among the most spectacular military achievements of the 19th century. Considered one of our country's greatest military figures, a difficult genius cited as inspiration by George Patton and Erwin Rommel, and a man whose brilliance at the art of war transcends the Civil War itself, Stonewall Jackson's legacy is both great and tragic in this compelling account, which demonstrates how, as much as any Confederate figure, Jackson embodies the romantic Southern notion of the virtuous lost cause.
Synopsis
The epic story of an Irish rebel turned American hero who shaped history on a global scale, including as a fighter for slavesand#39; freedom in all the iconic battles of the American Civil War
About the Author
TIMOTHY EGANandnbsp;is a Pulitzer Prizeandndash;winning reporter and the author ofandnbsp;seven books, most recentlyandnbsp;Short Nights of the Shawdow Catcher: The Epic Life and Immortal Photographs of Edward Curtis.andnbsp;His previous books include Theandnbsp;Worst Hard Time, which won a National Book Award and was named a New York Times Editorsandrsquo; Choice, andandnbsp;The Big Burn:andnbsp;Teddyandnbsp;Roosevelt and theandnbsp;Fire Thatandnbsp;Saved America, aandnbsp;New York Timesandnbsp;bestseller and winner of the Pacific Northwest Booksellersandnbsp;Award and the Washington State Book Award.andnbsp;Heandnbsp;is an online op-ed columnist for the New York Times, writing his andquot;Opinionatorandquot; feature once a week. He isandnbsp;a third-generation Westerner andandnbsp;lives in Seattle.