Customer Reviews

Through Blood and Fire at Gettysburg: General Joshua L. Chamberlain and the 20th Maine

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This book is based on the actual report written by Joshua Chamberlain after Gettysburg. It is full of photos and maps which helps to clarify positions and movements on the battlefield. Chamberlain's account are full of excellent insight and illustrations.

Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain did history a great favor by recording the events that happened on Little Round Top during the second day of the battle of Gettysburg. Thanks to him we have an eyewitness account of the 20th Maine's valiant defense of the left flank of the Union army. Rich with rhetoric, this account is packed with emotion and feeling.

The narrative is very short, only 29 pages, but there are many pictures and an appendix that make it well worth the money. Many well-known histories have drawn on Chamberlain's account of this part of the battle, and Michael Shaara's novel even quotes some of Chamberlain's lines. This primary source is highly recommended for anyone interested in the civil war, not just the die-hard historian.

Though at times difficult to read due to the flowery style of Chamberlain's rhetoric, this book is an exciting insight into the thoughts, feelings and experiences of someone who lived through the Battle of Gettysburg. This is more than an account of the battle, this is a window into the emotions and motives of why these men were willing to risk their lives for an ideal.

THIS BOOK IS A GOOD READ FOR ALL AGES. TAKES YOU THROUGH ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT CONFLICTS IN THE MOST IMPORTANT BATTLE IN U.S. HISTORY. EASY TO READ.

Quick read from Joshua Chamberlain. I enjoyed it and it was amazing how much closely the modern movies follow the actual events.

I found this book very fascinating. It brought the battle to life and seemed well documenred. Gettysburgh held a special place in my heart about the Civil War and I visited the battlefoeld several times long ago. I wish I had read this book before my last visit there.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1879664178/ref=cm_cr_rev_prod_title
I read the Michael and Jeff Sharra books which were absolutely fantastic then had to have this because Joshua Chamberlaind was a fascinating man - a true hero

This book is a reprint of an article Chamberlain wrote for Harpers in 1913 for the 50th anniversary of Gettysburg.

Do not expect detailed information, charts of the battle, etc. When you read this, you will see it's mainly a man reminiscing about the past and talking about things that stayed with him through time. The men who had refused to fight before; took up arms for this battle(all but two). The wounded man he sent back to die in peace appeared again to fight due to the urgency of the situation....

Chamberlain expresses admiration for the men he had known and who died that day.

What makes this interesting is the style it is written. You get to "listen" to the man vs someone else writing about him.

There are photos and a map that were added. Some could argue filler but I think they are ok as it gives you faces for some of the names he mentions.

Overall, it's a decent article and I am glad I picked it up.

General Joshua Chamberlain was a Mainer, university president, and governor but he made his mark defending a hill in Pennsylvania in July 1863. This short book is his report of the defense of the Little Round Top. As we all know from Ted Turner's movies, Chamberlain was the left flank and there were no other armed Federals between him and the White House.

Chamberlain took to the offensive, ordering a fixed bayonet charge when the lines were crumbling. Fortunately for him, Pennsylvanian John Reynolds had secured the high ground at Gettysburg before his untimely demise so the Rebels surrendered at the sight of crazed Mainers with fixed bayonets. Chamberlain added some passages and reflections to the book many years later so we learn of the Alabaman who had a good shot at Chamberlain but decided not to take it and felt years later that he had made the right decision. Chamberlain's two brothers were on the line with him so we get a sense of his concern for the bearer of bad news to his mother.

This short book is well embellished with maps, drawings, and photos. I hope all the readers take an active interest in Gettysburg battlefield preservation and fight the forces of development and Texas Hold Em poker games with the same intensity as our protagonists. Another interesting fact to show how things has changed is that a commercial building was constructed here in Leesburg VA in 2005 named the Joshua Chamberlain Buidling. Maybe the Lees and the Federals have finally come to an understanding.

Amazing account of the struggles of 20th Maine at Gettysburg, and specifically Little Round Top. Also in "Bayonet, Forward!"