Customer Reviews

May I Quote You, General Forrest?: Observations and Utterances of the South's Great Generals

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A tiny book of 80 pages that has quotes from Forrest and others speaking of Forrest. Also bits and pieces taken from Forrest's farewell address to his men. With one to three quotes per page, this book could have easily been condensed into an even smaller version. There is also mistakes. An example of this is on page 71 when the author writes that Forrest's rebels were fording "a creek to escape pursuing Yankees", when in fact Forrest was pursuing the Yankees, who surrendered their 1466 men to Forrest's 600.

A book that is ok to read. I think a little more attention should have been paid to the quotes. The quote on page 5 happened at Parkers crossroads. I spent a few hours looking at all my books and online to make sure. I guess that error early on might have made me look at the book in a unfavorable light. I do like other books in the series though.

A slight work, but fun! This is a set of sayings from and about General Nathan Bedford Forrest, the wizard leader. The Introduction provides a brief biography of Forrest.

One of his more famous apothegms (Page 5): "Get there first with the most men." That is a simple way of saying (as per P. G. T Beauregard, "Be careful always to move by interior lines and strike the fragments of the enemy's force with the masses of your own").

A handful of other examples from Forrest: "I did not come here for the purpose of surrendering my command" (Fort Donelson); "'I've got enough to whip you out of your boots"; "I cannot speak in too high terms of the conduct of my whole command."David Kelley (staff officer to Forrest): "The truth may as well be told--he was unfit to serve under a superior; he was like a caged lion on the field of battle where he was not himself commanding."

This slender volume is not, by itself, a particularly good work. What it does provide is a brief sense of the man, from his sayings to those of people who knew him. Amusing and entertaining, albeit a trifle.

Published in 1997 by Cumberland House Publishing, Inc., "May I Quote You, General Forrest?" is a superb book. 80 pages long and edited by Randall Bedwell, it contains an introduction and seven additional chapters. It has passages of text as well as quotes not just from Forrest, but his comrades in gray and his enemies in blue. Forrest was not the refined man that many generals on both sides were- he never went to any service academy or any college, and his lack for formal education showed. That does not make him any less of a general, however- he was with little exception respected and loved by the men he commanded, yet often the commanders of the US Army had greater liking and respect for General Forrest than did his fellow generals in gray. General Nathan Bedford Forrest was a warrior, plain and simple, with little time for excuses or subtlety in his way of doing things. Had he gone to a military college or service academy, one wonders if his capability as a commander would have been even greater. But regardless, General Forrest ranks highly among the notable commanders of the Civil War on either side, and someone interested in researching him, what he said, and what was said about him should definitely buy a copy of this book.

This volume is part of a series listing quotations from various
Civil War generals (as well as quotations about them), and this is the very best of the bunch! Forrest's quotations are the most
colorful and pungent, most readily-quoted and remembered. This is the best value in the series.

This is a short book of quotes. Many Civil War Buff may be familar with some, and not familar with others.

The Creek Forest was crossing, one reviewer mentioned, is on page 71 of this book. It is taken from Wyeth's book, "that Devil Forrest", and is correctly stated. ( Wyeth rode with General Forrest)

If you like Forrest of Confederate Generals, you'll really enjoy this book.

Just about of Quotes taken from Forrest himself, and his allies and enemies alike. A lot of quotes from Sherman.