Synopses & Reviews
Before he became “the Father of our Country,” George Washington was the Father of the American Army. He took an army that had no experience, no tradition, and no training, and fought a protracted war against the best, most disciplined force in the world—the British Army. Deftly handling the political realm, Washington convinced Congress to keep his army supplied—a difficult task when the country was really just a loose confederation of states with no power to tax.
Washington influenced every phase of the Revolutionary war, from beginning to end. He left his mark with strategies and a vision of the Revolution as a war of attrition. His offenses were as brilliant as they were unpredictable, such as his legendary Christmas Day strike at Trenton, and a bold foray through the fog to nearly drive the British from the field at Germantown. It was an aggressive attack that helped convince the French that the American Army was worth supporting. In Washington, award-winning author Gerald M. Carbone argues that it is this sort of fearless but not reckless, spontaneous but calculated, offensive that Washington should be remembered for--as a leader not of infallibility but of greatness.
Review
"Good generalship is about tactics, but
great generalship requires vision, grit, character, charisma, daring, and drive. Despite losing more battles than he won, Washington enjoyed these virtues in spades, and Carbone persuasively makes the case for greatness in his vigorous, stirring account of this essential Founding Father's military career." --Alexander Rose, author of
Washington's Spies: The Story of America's First Spy Ring"Ged Carbone's military biography of George Washington is both concise and action-packed, chronicling the most dramatic moments of his career and exposing the essence of his greatness. It will satisfy readers at all levels, from armchair generals to scholars." -- Edward G. Lengel, author of General George Washington: A Military Life
“With this book, Carbone reminds us that greatness is not simply a matter of victories on the battlefield. Greatness is about leadership, determination, and character.”--Terry Golway, author of Washington's General
Praise for Nathanael Greene:
"The personality of George Washington has so dominated the story of the American revolution that many of his able lieutenants have been relegated to historys sidelines. One of these, Nathanael Greene, is now the subject of…a engaging new biography by Rhode Island journalist Gerald M. Carbone…[who] has made extensive use of the Greene papers, and these afford a rounded portrait of his subject." - The Washington Times
"Carbone gives a little-known Revolutionary War leader his due in this admiring biography... [A] lucid account of the Revolutionary War from the point of view of its most successful general." -- Kirkus“A brisk march through Greenes short life (44 years) but action-packed military career…Arranging events in a chronological illustration of Greenes canniness in the duel of Cornwallis, Carbones informative portrait should connect with the American Revolution readership.” -- Booklist "Although Nathanael Greene's miliary accomplishments generally receive less attention than Benedict Arnold's or Lafayette's, historians consider him the better general. Journalist Carbone's lively chronicle corrects this neglect...He should be known better, and this well-researched chronicle...is a good first step." -- Publisher's Weekly "To this much-needed new biography of America's most unjustly neglected Revolutionary War hero, Gerald Carbone brings a journalist's concision, a storyteller's eye for illuminating detail, a wry New England sensibility, and a historian's diligence. The result is a compelling account of how Nathanael Greene, the self-taught former Quaker ironmaster from Rhode Island, made himself over into the Continental Army's finest strategist and one of the best minds of Enlightenment America. Carbone carries us deftly through the triumphs and tragedies of this remarkable life, offering us a Founder of flesh, blood, acumen and ambition who, had he lived longer and his luck been kinder, might even have become president." --Charles F. Price, award-winning author of Freedom's Altar and of Nor the Battle to the Strong "Ged Carbone has written a lively, accessible biography of one of the truly great strategists in American history, Major General Nathanael Greene, second only to Washington in the pantheon of heroes of the War of the Revolution." --John Buchanan, author of The Road to Guilford Courthouse
"Nathanael Greene remains one of the American Revolution's most compelling yet unsung heroes. In Nathanael Greene Gerald Carbone provides a complex and absorbing portrait of a resourceful general, a devoted husband, an unfortunate businessman and an ardent American patriot. Carbone cleary admires his subject but also portrays his all-too-human human sides. Well-researched, the general's story is told against a backdrop of dramatic battle scenes, wonderful characters and revolution that seems on the verge of collapse if not for the extraordinary sacrifices of figures such as Greene, to whom all Americans will be forever indebted."--Mark Puls, award-winning author of Samuel Adams and of Henry Knox
“With a journalists eye for telling anecdote and pithy, but illuminating, quotation, Ged Carbone makes Nathanael Greene come alive in this lively, readable biography that is also very good history.” --Dennis Conrad, Editor, Papers of General Nathanael Greene
Review
Praise for Washington:"Good generalship is about tactics, but great generalship requires vision, grit, character, charisma, daring, and drive. Despite losing more battles than he won, Washington enjoyed these virtues in spades, and Carbone persuasively makes the case for greatness in his vigorous, stirring account of this essential Founding Father's military career." --Alexander Rose, author of Washington's Spies: The Story of America's First Spy Ring
"Ged Carbone's military biography of George Washington is both concise and action-packed, chronicling the most dramatic moments of his career and exposing the essence of his greatness. It will satisfy readers at all levels, from armchair generals to scholars." -- Edward G. Lengel, author of General George Washington: A Military Life
"With this book, Ged Carbone reminds us that greatness is not simply a matter of victories on the battlefield. Greatness is about leadership, determination, and character."--Terry Golway, author of Washington's General
Synopsis
Before he became “the Father of our Country,” George Washington was the Father of the American Army. He took an army that had no experience, no tradition, and no training, and fought a protracted war against the best, most disciplined force in the worldthe British Army. Deftly handling the political realm, Washington convinced Congress to keep his army supplieda difficult task when the country was really just a loose confederation of states with no power to tax.
Washington influenced every phase of the Revolutionary war, from beginning to end. He left his mark with strategies and a vision of the Revolution as a war of attrition. His offenses were as brilliant as they were unpredictable, such as his legendary Christmas Day strike at Trenton, and a bold foray through the fog to nearly drive the British from the field at Germantown. It was an aggressive attack that helped convince the French that the American Army was worth supporting. In Washington, award-winning author Gerald M. Carbone argues that it is this sort of fearless but not reckless, spontaneous but calculated, offensive that Washington should be remembered for--as a leader not of infallibility but of greatness.
Synopsis
Before he became “the Father of our Country,” George Washington was the Father of the American Army. He took troops that had no experience, no tradition, and no training, and fought a protracted war against the best, most disciplined force in the world—the British Army. Deftly handling the political realm, he left his mark with a vision of the Revolution as a war of attrition and his offensives which were as brilliant as they were unpredictable. In Washington, award-winning author Gerald M. Carbone argues that it is this sort of fearless but not reckless, spontaneous but calculated offensive that Washington should be remembered for—as a leader not of infallibility but of greatness.
About the Author
Gerald M. Carbone is the author of Nathanael Greene, and was a journalist for twenty-five years, mostly for the Providence Journal. He has won two of American journalism's most prestigious prizes--the American Society of Newspaper Editors Distinguished Writing Award and a John S. Knight Fellowship at Stanford University. He lives in Warwick, Rhode Island. General Wesley K. Clark (Ret.) was NATO's Supreme Allied Commander, Europe, and the recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He is author of A Time to Lead, as well as the bestselling books Waging Modern War and Winning Modern Wars. He lives in Little Rock, Arkansas.