Customer Reviews

WEST POINT BLUE AND GRAY

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

West Point: Blue and Gray is an enjoyable, faced-paced read. More hagiography than biography, it highlights the personalities and deeds of some of the Civil War's greatest and most famous soldiers. Lee's grace and genius, Grant's sternness and single-mindedness, Stuart's flamboyance, Custer's daring, all these and more are illustrated in this little book. The one thing all these men have in common is that they attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.

Fleming's style is anecdotal, and he flits from one story to the next. He doesn't capture the horrors of the war, but that isn't his goal. He is writing about heroes and legends and he is telling a story that is not about the war but that is ultimately about the reconciliation. Fleming's argument is that the bonds grown at West Point were ultimately stronger than the battles the men fought over four years in the Civil War. This book may simplify the truth, but it does justice to the myth of the Civil war.

The description of personal relationships between civil war generals built from their west point years adds to my understanding of the American Civil War, a subject matter I got interested in only one year ago. This book provides an interesting perspective that weaves a web of connections between familiar names.

Unfortunately, I was able to spot a few editing mistakes and factual errors even though I am relative new in civil war reading and reading this book casually. This, in addition to author's anecdotal style of story telling, made me wonder how much reliance I should give the stories told. Certainly I don't doubt the hard work by the author, it's just these defects is a little unsettling.

In any case, it's a short read and the knowledge gained is efficient comparing to time spent.