Civil War Books 

It is wonderful to listen to someone who loves Civil War as much as I do....

The Battle of the Crater scene in Cold Mountain is one of my favorite battle scenes in all cinema.

Thanks Peggy interesting and informative video 😉👍

Ms Peg... I was looking for a good book on Shiloh and stumbled across your RU-vid commentary on Civil War Books. Sadly nothing on Shiloh but wonderful commentary on others. I an especially impressed with you academic achievements, and scholarship. Congratulations! You tell a good story. You should teach; you are a delight!! Wish I could buy you a cup of coffee. Best wishes..... Ax

Yes! Absolute respect!! These are amazing.

As the descendent of men who fought in Lee's Army of Northern Virginia let me just say that in my opinion your assessment of Grant and Lee is . . . . Exactly Right! One of the many injustices of the post Civil War years was the destruction of Grant's military reputation in service to the Lost Cause's propaganda elevating Lee. I will look for a copy of _The Myth of the Lost Cause_ . Those volumes by Rhea look amazing. If I have all the time in the world I would read those volumes. I also agree that Davis and Lee were traitors and monuments to men who commit treason are dumb.

Ha ha...I appreciate the passion you have for your subject. Great vid.

Two great things both generals did: Lee told his men to go home and not continue the fight (guerilla warfare) and Grant honoring Lee at Appomattox.

Hi, I can see your passion in the Civil War. I'm gonna be getting the McPherson book soon. I'm covering American history century by century right now. I recently spent about couple years focused on WWI. I like studying about the Origins of the war and of course the war itself. I am a fellow Air Force Vet. And I received my Bachelors degree in History in 2015. We have some things in common. Great vid.

Speaking of Grant, I am at the moment reading "Grant And Sherman: The Friendship That Won The Civil War." By. Charles Bracelen Flood.......I have both Rhea books, need to be read......the American Civil War is an endlessly interesting subject.

Have to laugh. I grew up in Charleston, SC as a Navy Brat with parents from John Brown country in northern NY. So the Civil War was always in my wheel house! Sold tickets for the boat ride to Fort Sumter. Was a docent at a couple of houses where I learned "THE WAR" was the Civil War not any recent conflicts. And one of my favorite fellow docents was this older Southern born & bred gentile lady who only referred to the Civil War as "the War of Northern Aggression"...haha .. now I live in western MD where I pass Monocacy every day and I'm a 15 minute ride to Antietam and 30 minutes to Gettysburg. I just can't escape it!!!!

Great video well done

Hi Peg, I did enjoy this video, thank you. I live here in the UK, where it's hard to get decent book on Civil War history, we can get overall histories and a bit about battles and so on but that's about it. Can you recommend any decent publishers on the Civil War, that will send internationally? I will basically read anything related.

This video could have lasted hours! Loved it, thanks!

I just wrapped up my course on the U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. Would be interested to see what you have read about that particular war. Out of them all, it’s the one that fascinates me the most.

Many thanks for your interesting interpretations of Grant and Lee in this video. I believe it was von Clausewitz who said that war is politics by other means - or words to that effect. As it relates to General Lee's offensive/defensive strategy in the Eastern theater, I think it is very clear that Lee can be categorized as a modern political general in his awareness of the politics in the Union. You touch on this point in the video. A war of attrition can be defined as a willingness of one side to sustain higher losses in the battles in order to wear down the enemy. I agree that Grant has been mistakenly labeled a butcher. Was it not the case that Lee sustained higher losses by per cent than Grant? In every battle Lee fought during the entire war did he suffer greater casualties by per cent? I think the statistics indicate that fact. If you continuously lose a higher percentage of soldiers than your opponent, you will lose the war. The size of your opponent's forces won't matter. Can we then conclude that it was Lee who fought the war of attrition and was more than willing to take the losses to pursue his political waiting game? Advocates of the Lost Cause don't grasp the math here.

Great video! I was stationed at Ft. Lee, VA (when I was in the Army many years ago) which sits between Petersburg and Hopewell (City Point). I spent a lot of time visiting the battlefield while I was there. Let me know when you’re ready to start our buddy read!

620,000 men lost their lives. 360,000 Union 258,000 Confederates

I hate list cause conspiracy theorists! They drive me bonkers! Sometimes I want to scream at them to open a history book! Also, don't feel bad about being a woman/girl who loves the civil war. I am one too! I am not as into the military strategy as you are but the civil war and the events leading up to it are so interesting

I enjoyed your video, but I disagree with your portrayal of Lee. He was not just good but great. Lee had to take more risks than Grant because he had far less soldiers and materials. The North could produce war material in a short period of time in comparison to the south who were farmers. This is not the Lost Cause concept but the truth!

Not all myths were untrue. Grant was called The Butcher due to the battle of Cold Harbor that is fact. You have your own cause to erase history and that is sad. I see your bias and that would not make you a good historian. You have to include all players in the Civil War not just the ones you favor...just as bad as the Lost Cause.