Wars Books

This is a heartfelt, heartwarming family saga of an immigrant Japanese American family and their struggle to survive despite war, racism, poverty, farming misfortunes, and many obstacles that would have defeated the toughest among us. It is a story of hope, devotion, love, faith, endurance and steadfastness against staggering circumstances that the World War II era had to offer new Japanese immigrants as well as native born Nisei Japanese Americans. While the protagonists are a Japanese family, their story has many commonalities that will resonate with any family that came with little and struggled to achieve the American dream. Everyone alive could only hope to have as remarkable a family as the Sato clan. Congratulations Kiyo on telling your story so well.

It was a great read. Both poignant and humorous at times. Personally knowing the family made it even more enjoyable. My reading group is now involved in reading it and more are asking to read. One of the group has purchased a copy for herself to keep. There were several issues of which I was not aware. Knowing the area, I could picture all that happened.

I am a caucasian American of German descent who grew up on the east coast in the 60's. I had heard, vaguely, about the internment of Japanese citizens during WWII, and I was always a bit curious about it, but it's not as if my own history brought me to this book predisposed to hang on its every word. Yet hang on every word I did; I was desperately short of sleep three nights in a row because I read until my eyes closed. I would love to make this required reading for all citizens, especially in our current time of mistrust against Middle Eastern immigrants. Not only did I love the family Ms. Sato described, I loved their farm, their trees, their dogs. I felt very strongly her family's hopes and bewilderment, and I rooted hard for their triumphs. She writes in a very poetic voice, and it creates out of her family's story a sort of literary flower, individual, delicate and beautiful. Don't miss this book.

I've finished "Dandelion through the Crack." It is a book that should be ready by everyone. I especially became personally inthralled because I lived in the area she spoke of 25 years ago. This book really should be required reading for history. I wasn't born and didn't live in CA during the interment but as an older adult I had become aware of our country's paranoia and the shameful thing they did. In her straightforward yet eloquent style she so clearly describes her family and their circumstances. And yet she does not dwell on the negative. In its reading I was able to appreciate the hard work, love of family, and quiet dignity with which they are noted.

Readers might expect a book about being banished to an internment camp to be depressing, but Dandelion is not the story you would expect. First and foremost, it's a heartwarming story about an American immigrant family's daily life on the family farm in Sacramento.

Here you have the young man, Shinji Sato, coming to America with nothing, working as a farm laborer to make a living and save for the future. After a few years, he returns home to marry, and realizes America is his new home. Together, he and his new bride, Tomomi, return to California to farm and raise a family. Against great challenges and prejudice, they manage to lease and then buy a farm, build a home, and raise award-winning strawberries and grapes, as well as other crops.

Kiyo is the eldest child of this struggling young family, and her portrait of their family life is intimate and touching. She describes the hard work in the fields, playing on the farm, the family baths in an enormous hot tub, daily meals and holiday dinners prepared together, school days in a one-room schoolhouse, church life and neighbors, and her dad's wonderful stories and haiku poetry which the children could not get enough of.

Into the middle of this sweet, idyllic family life and a now thriving farm, World War II intrudes. The family is forced to give up everything for the duration of the war and live in an arid, dusty concentration camp in Arizona. Yet even in this, these Japanese-Americans survived and transformed the desert into a garden and their prison camp into a town and the semblance of a home.

The return to their homes and farms after the war brought many heartbreaks and struggles as families like Kiyo's had to start over again. Many had lost everything, yet in true American fashion, they were indomitable in spirit and managed to struggle back and rebuild their homes and their places in the community.

Kiyo Sato's book is destined to become a classic. As the cliche goes, I laughed and I cried when I read it because in presenting such an intimate portrait, Kiyo makes the reader feel like a member of the family. Their struggles, their losses, their joys, and their successes seem almost as though they are our own. Their story is unique to their situation, yet it is also the timeless story of a typical American family, the story of modern-day American pioneers.

Don't miss this book. It's a book you will remember for a lifetime.

This book sweeps you back in time and holds you there till the very end. The elements of suspence, romance and history are perfectly intertwined to make the book one I didn't want to put down. The author's attention to detail in the individual scenes brought to life the Revolutionary War. This is the perfect mix of entertainment and enlightening. I loved it and will read the next in the series.

I'm incredibly impressed with the quality of this book and this author. Picture something between John Jakes and Diana Gabaldon, and you have Daughter of Liberty - a sweeping story of the beginning of the American Revolution AND the satisfying growth of a relationship that is fraught with impossibilities...and danger.

Rushing ahead to act without thought to God's will has consequences. Most often, negative, painful, and life-scarring. Yet we've all done it.

This is what connects a reader's heart to Elizabeth Howard, the main character in Daughter of Liberty, the first in The American Patriot Series, masterfully written by J. M. Hochstetler.

Elizabeth portrays the essence of innocent and faithful daughter to an established Boston family stalwartly supporting the Whig party. All the while, she is passionate for the patriot cause and dons the role of Oriole-elusive rebel spy.

Life takes an unexpected turn with the arrival of Captain Jonathan Carleton. He's magnetic, handsome, and a Redcoat. Elizabeth's traitorous heart is completely captured... a complication she hadn't counted on, especially when the first shots ring out in Lexington and Concord.

More than just her heart is at stake during the first skirmish of the Revolutionary War. The lives of many depend on Elizabeth. But has she truly learned to wait on God's will, or rush ahead in her own power to save the day?

J. M. Hochstetler's story delivers to the reader not only a page turner, but a wealth of education about the beginnings of the War for Independence.

For someone like me who is not a fan of historic fiction and who honestly believed I had already read more than enough accounts of our country's revolutionary period, I was pleasantly surprised to discover The American Patriot Series by J. M. Hochstetler. The first book in this excellent series, Daughter of Liberty, was also the first book I had read by this particular author, but I knew right away it would not be the last. Within moments of turning to the opening page, I was captivated by this story of the brave and daring Oriole, a spy for the American Revolutionaries with a secret that could change the course of a nation, and Patriot, another spy with a most amazing secret of his own.

Hochstetler not only weaves a suspenseful tale of courage, intrigue, and romance, but also decorates the pages of this exquisite novel with some of the best writing I've come across in years. This book was well worth the read, and served to push me on to the second book in the series.

"The crack of the pistol's report came from directly behind the courier. Sizzling past so close to his ear he could feel the heat of it."

With these words, and the impact of a rebel fieldpiece, J. M. Hochstetler's Daughter of Liberty bursts onto the historical fiction scene.

Twenty-year-old Bostonian Elizabeth Howard sympathizes with the patriots' struggle for freedom from English oppression. Her convictions set her at odds with her parents' pro-British sympathies, and force her to live a life of lies and deception. By day she is a debutante, by night she is a spy.

Ruggedly handsome Jonathan Carleton was born in England, but is now a wealthy Virginian landowner. He's committed to serving his country, but to which does he owe his allegiance? As a member of the British regulars he stands for everything Elizabeth despises.

From the moment these two meet, their attraction is fiery and dangerous, and neither Jonathan nor Elizabeth suspects the other's true allegiance. Are they destined to remain enemies forever?

Add to this conflict a villain out to get both the hero and heroine, and a final plot twist that will delight fans of the Jane Seymore version of The Scarlet Pimpernel, and you've got a truly interesting read.

The Revolutionary War makes a great setting for the realistic plot and action Hochstetler incorporates. Fans of American history will appreciate this novel as a painless way to learn more about the lives of such famous historical figures as General Thomas Gage, General John Pitcairn, Paul Revere, and Dr. Joseph Warren.

Although I am a fan of historical fiction, I was a little overwhelmed with the depth of history included in this book. The emotion of "disgust" was also used too frequently in the prose for my taste. However, the plot, the lively dialogue, and the character interaction-especially the romantic development-are fabulous, so don't let the historical details stop you.

It is easy to forget the personal voice of violence, private and collective. It is even easier to distance oneself in dates, place names, and events. - this number of human cargo shipped to that port, the price that could be gotten for a "prime" young man, the political and societal arguments swirling around the economics and morality of the slave trade.

Day of Tears strips away all defenses and makes the listener or reader come face to face with the terrible loss of losing a beloved and becoming lost to loved ones. Parents were torn from their children. Husbands were wrenched from their wives. No photographs to hang in a place of honor and remembrance. No letters to cherish and serve as the voice of memory. Once the loved one, family member or not, was bought and began the journey to the new plantation, he or she was as good as dead, but worse - those left behind or carried off to a different place by a different owner knew that the loved one still lived, still struggled to survive.

Available as an audiobook, it is well worth the effort to track it down in this form. Although marketed to school-age audiences, it does not read as geared for that audience. Excellent for classroom use as an opening to a discussion on the realities of slavery. Characters are powerfully developed, presenting the variety of survival responses to an inhuman existence. Rather than simple caricatures of the different positions on slavery common at that time, even the accusation of being an "Uncle Tom" is no longer relevant. Highly recommended.

I read this book to understand what my daughter had been assigned to report on. And since I've read it, I am so excited to have discovered a truly gifted author who has many more books I can explore.

Normally, I don't like dark stories about slavery because of how difficult it is to experience the senseless cruelty of it. This story truly illustrated that cruelty. However, the dialog format allows you to get more absorbed in a "conversation" than just experiencing a painful piece of history.

Lester explains that he wrote the book to give voice to those "who did not have an opportunity to tell it for themselves." Because history only tells of this incredibly large slave auction and the details of the white slave owners and sellers, Lester fills in the details of the experiences of the slaves during this incredible event and after.

I loved how he allowed us to peak into the minds, emotions and motives of parties from all sides: the slave owners, the southern people absorbed in the slave culture, the slaves, both old and young, as well as those who disagreed with slavery and how they walked out their beliefs. And just when you were reading an account of a "villain" or a some other character whose views you disagree with, Lester would hit you with a profound, provocative statement that would transcends all social, economic, or others barriers and speak to any human condition, compelling you to take stock of where you really are on your own "road to independence."

This book is no easy read though it is a fast read. It confronts you with the consequences of institutionalized hatred, ignorance and greed. It also forces the reader to search his or her own heart to discover what part they play in their own contemporary environment of backwardness and to open one's eyes to the residual effects of this often "forgotten" institution of slavery.

This is NOT what I expected--I expected an actual story of slaves and their experiances but instead it is a book of a Play told in story form, where it gets confusing and frustrating trying to piece together who goes with whom. The author also leaves you hanging in the end--the final chapter starts out as if there is more then suddenly it ends and is over--nothing more. Many threads were left untied and hanging and those that weren't were short and not too sweet--very confusing but great on historical facts aside those which were also short not much to this book and certainly not worth buying--borrow it from the library instead.

The main character in the book called Day of Tears by Julius Lester is Emma. Emma is a young black woman, and she lives a life as a slave. Emma is faced with very many challenges. She is the nicest person in the book. In this story Emma is a slave for this man that has no name in the book except "master." Emma thinks he would NEVER sell her, so at the slave auction she told all the other slaves that they had nothing to worry about because he wouldn't do that to them. The master's daughter who is nine falls in love with the slaves and treats Emma like her mother. Master doesn't like that because his x-wife was a "slave lover" and he didn't want that for is daughter. Emma tries to run away with others but it doesn't work and they get caught. Master is very upset with Emma, and threatens to sell her. She can't believe her ears. I really like this book. Its non-fiction book and it's great. It was one of my favorite books. I would recommend this book to anyone.

Day Of Tears by Julius Lester is about slavery in the mid 1800s and how slaves felt about getting sold off at a slave auction. The book is also in dialogue. The characters in the book reminisce about their experiences with the slave trade, and what happened on the day of the auction, and also how they are feeling.

The book was very interesting. I think its good enough to read. It really shows how the slaves were feeling about having an owner, for example they didn't like getting sold off to mean owners.

Desert Exile: The Uprooting of a Japanese-American Family"by Yoshiko Uchida deals with a Japanese-American family who were sent to concentration camp during World War II as Japanese-Americans at that time were considered to be potential "spies" for the Japanese government. Uchida started off with introduction to her family, of how her parents met, and how California became their home. Even though she was raised with Japanese values and ideals, she was at the same time an American who can barely speaks Japanese. Her world was turned upside down when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.

Japanese-Americans were sent to concentration camp for fear that they could endanger the national security. This violates their Constitutional rights but there were no public support for their fellow citizens. It was indeed racist of the government as German-Americans were not sent to any concentration camps even though the United States was fighting Germany. The Japanese-Americans had to swallow their pride and dignity and were moved to barracks that were bare and ill-equipped. They were placed behind the fence, guarded by MPs and basically were treated as prisoners. Uchida's vivid descriptions of their living conditions were both horrifying and shocking.

"Desert Exile" was used by my professor for a History of American West class. This is truly an eye-opener as most Americans are unaware of their fellow citizens' ordeal and treatment. The Japanese-American loss was immeasurable. Not only did they lose financially (from selling their homes hastily), they lost touch with friends and relatives, lost their pride and lost confidence in their government. I highly recommend this book for anyone who wants to learn more about the ordeal of the Japanese-Americans during World War II. It is extremely well-written, eloquent and easy to understand.

I had to read a memoir for my 8th grade English class. This book was about Yoshiko Uchida's Japanese American family, who were put in camps during World War II. I chose this book because I was very interested in the war, which put over 8,000 Japanese American people into old race tracks and deserts. Yoshiko was placed in two different camps, one in Northern California and the other Utah, both the same: over stuffed with people and nowhere to cry.

Even though she suffered a lot while in the camps, Yoshiko learned that all the things in life, are worth living. She was a student, about to graduate from UC Berkeley, when they were taken off and disconnected from the "American's". They were stuck in the camps for a whole year, with no where to cry without someone seeing you.

This book gave too much background before the war, but when the war hit, the book got much more interesting and exciting.

Lori Sue
Northern California

"Desert Exile" is a wonderful book that is easy to read, yet totally enjoyable. A perfect book for a family to share together and talk about.

I was very interested in finding a book that wasn't just dry history. I wasn't born in this time period of World War II, so I was really eager to find a book relating to this topic. Possibly learning about someone who lived through this time period, something a little like Ann Frank's Diary.

My initial thoughts were, this book would be interesting learning about history without any government interference with the conditions of the camps. In fifth grade I made friends with my best friend who had just moved from Japan and her family was getting aquainted with the United States. I interviewed her mom on how she was liking America and the one resp9onse that really stuck out was, I have so much Freedom.

In the Book I realized that many Japanese Families experienced Racism from many nationalities. Children were taken out of school and from colleges. For a few years the students that were attending Universities were no longer able to graduate with their friends.

Having a friend from Japan gave me an extra push to read the book. To my surprise, I couldn't believe that families were living in horse stalls and that people did not have proper barials if they did die while in the camp.

The beginning of the book started off with how this Japanses-American Family pushed their way through life in America and tells us about their family success. At the end of the book I found that some of these Japanese American Families were actually more patriotic than many American families.

Ms. Uchida chronicles a personal account of a dark day in American history during WWII, when thousands of American citizens were herded into unspeakable conditions, purely on the basis of their race and ancestry.

The book is well written, portraying the bi-cultural life she led and the incarceration she, her family and thousands like her were forced into under the guise of well-sounding euphemisms. Her story must be read by all who need to know that part of American history and the desire to see that no such evil ever gets repeated.

A wonderful gallery of accurately painted forces of the Revolutionary War era including Loyalists & German hired troops as well as weapons & artifacts. All that seemed to be "missing" might be the 1st Continental Light Dragoons or the Continental Marines. It was also great to see that for the first time since John Mollo's 1976 Uniforms of the American Revolution the uniform of the 2nd Continental Light Dragoons correctly depicted with white facings as opposed to the inaccurate buff color.

Although the world is filled with books on the various sorts of things which armed and equipped the Revolutionary War soldier, this book moves into uncharted territory. While Troiani's paintings brings these diverse sorts of soldiers to life, the full color photographs of many of the most important surviving artifacts from the war adds a dimension found nowhere else.

Yet another excellent book by Don Troiani. A must for any AWI fan. I found the mixture of paintings and original weapons, uniforms and accoutrements a refreshing touch. However, those who have copies of 'Battles of America' and 'Soldiers of America'will find many paintings repeated in this new book.

Not since George Neumann's landmark "Collector's Illustrated Encyclopedia of the American Revolution" has there been such a remarkable assemblage of artifacts and images. The former, drawn from public and private collections from across the nation include many items that have never been published, let alone in color. Don Troiani's exquisitely detailed images, some new, some drawn from previous works, provide invaluable context for the objects, as well as documenting the bewildering variety of uniforms worn during the war. Both artifacts and images are described within the impeccably thorough research of noted historian James Kochan. This volume is destined to be the standard reference for the student of the American Revolution that "Echoes of Glory" is to devotees of the Civil War, and is a must for anyone from historian to general reader who is fascinated by the drama of the war that gave birth to America.

With nearly two and one-half centuries having passed and literally thousands of books on the topic having appeared since the events of the American Revolutionary War, calling a new volume "pioneering" seems a bit bold. Relative to this important and exciting new gift to students by master artist and collector Don Troiani, though, that term is fully appropriate. In literally no other book to date have such historically valid visual perspectives of our War for Independence been gathered, through both a remarkable array of original artifacts and Troiani's impeccably researched and executed artwork. For this pre-photography American military epoch, no other source yields such a "you are there" perspective



While the bookshelf of "material culture" albums relating to Civil War memorabilia is both broad and expanding nearly every year, the number of significant books on Revolutionary War artifacts and relics ever published can literally be counted on one's fingers, with most of the still best-selling volumes having appeared during the bicentennial years of the 1970s. That sharp contrast, of course, is a direct reflection of the exceptionally greater rarity of the arms, equipment, apparel, and everyday-life items that can be proven to have been used by the armies of the 1770s than is the case with the militaria of the 1860s. Troiani has done all Revolutionary War students a great service by expanding the presentation of such earlier artifacts beyond those from his own fine collection with a startlingly superb array of items from other private and institutional collections, most never before published and many rarely ever seen by the public. These historic jewels are brought to the reader through close-up, full-color photos of such striking detail and beauty as to almost produce the experience of having these fascinating artifacts in one's hands.



The element that weaves together and breathes life throughout this gallery of fine militaria, of course, is Troiani's peerless artwork. With more than 50 of his paintings beautifully reproduced in this volume, the artist has brought true vibrancy to an era and its people almost habitually misperceived as lifelessly archaic or, worse yet, patriotically "quaint." In particular, the single-figure and small-group studies clearly reflect the precise documentation yielded by author James L. Kochan's exacting material culture scholarship. Such world-class historical accuracy, together with artist Troiani's insistence upon "period-correct" faces and physiques, has produced for us a strikingly innovative window upon the Revolution.

Ever since my bf introduced me to Dragonlance I have been reading them non stop. These 3 books are awesome! They really are very action packed and make you sit back and go WOW. I didnt get sad with these 3 books at all I was more sucked in and sometimes got so outraged by the actions of some of the evil people (you know who Im talking about) These are a must read.

By far, these are the best set of books that I have read in a VERY long time. I agree with some of the other people that the contents, especially the ending should NOT be reveiled in an email. I think that such a wonderful book should be read by the reader & not told to you by some goof. Experience the wonderful world of Krynn for yourself & you'll find you'll be back again & again & again.... :) Enjoy them all but start with Chronicles first! :)

If you are reading this and thinking about buying, STOP READING THIS AND DO IT. I really can't think of any better book to read (other than the Chronicles) to get you started on fantasy. These books are easier to read and understand than most Tolkien novels. Caramon and Raistlin show the true struggle between Good, Evil, Love and Hate. Tasslehoff Burrfoot, our friendly Kender, also plays a MAJOR role, which I am glad to say. Just one more word......AWESOME!

It is almost impossible to describe how wonderful this book is. There is nothing about it that is not absolutly perfect. It is absolutly incredible what Margaret Weis and Tracy HIckman have written. I wish I could sit here and type out the whole plot, but unfortunatly, I can't. But I will say this. The characters are beyond belife. Anybody who didn't worship Raistlin before will now. He is most definatly the greatest fantasy character ever written. Crysania is good too, especially in Test of the Twins. Dalamar Nightson, Raistlin's apprentice, is one of the better characters, and is part of why this trilogy is so incredible. No one has ever written anythig close to this. Everyone should read this book, it is so wonderful. Personnaly, I've read it so many time I can almost recite it, and it never gets worse. Please, for the love of Raistlin, BUY THIS BOOK.

Off limits! Never buy these wonderful adventures. If you do, you will ever after be disappointed in everything else you read. It's truly sad to stumble through the rest of your life searching for a comparable read as lively and passionate as this series by the masters of adventure, Weis and Hickman. OK, you've been warned.

This is a very readable, engaging study of the last two years of the Civil War, in which General Grant is taken from his command in the west, to the "big show" as commander of the Army of the Potomac. He is shown to be a determined, relentless leader willing to fight the war of attrition that ultimately led to the destruction of the Army of Northern Virginia. He proved to be more than a match for General Lee, who was confounded by Grant's steadfast leadership and willingness to stand tough, despite the losses of thousands of men. Grant was a very different kind of leader than his predecessors.

I also liked the way Catton developed the personal side of Grant.

This is a terrific book for those who want a straightforward history of the latter part of the Civil War, without embellishment or political bias.

In the weeks before General David Petraeus - widely regarded as the most operationally and strategically brilliant of today's ground generals -- took command of Multi-National Forces - Iraq, a friend told me he was reading Bruce Catton's classic "Grant Takes Command: 1863-1865" about that earlier US general who took charge of a war at its most critical point. I and several others piled on and eagerly devoured this book. Two weeks later, we met to discuss our observations. Mine are below. I would bet you a paycheck that General Petraeus -- himself a formidable scholar as well as distinguished soldier -- has read this book more than once and probably even perused it before assuming his new post. "Grant Takes Command" offers timeless insights into the art of command and remains relevant for several reasons that should resonate today.

I found that several myths about General Grant were just that: myths. The first that Catton debunks is that Grant was not a political general. In one of his first chapters titled "Political Innocent", Catton lays out clearly that Grant understood that the Civil War was an extension of politics, and that certain personnel decisions in his Army would inevitably be affected by this. Thus, Grant's handling of Generals McClernand, Sigel, Butler, and Banks - all of them troublesome, of dubious competence, but politically useful at different times throughout the war -- was at once skillful, politically deft, and necessary. When they had each imploded after their political usefulness had been expended, they were thus easily discarded. To fire them when they were politically useful would have strained civil-military relations.

Grant also believed in the mission completely. This included the elimination of slavery and the re-election of President Lincoln in 1864. This was no small matter in 1863. The democrats had been making overtures to Grant in 1863, and several recent commanders of the Army of the Potomac -- most famously George McClellan -- had leapt into the political arena. Lincoln felt Grant out through mutual friends before appointing him to command the Union armies. For his part, Grant did his own maneuvering to ensure that Lincoln won re-election in 1864. Grant not only gave Lincoln battlefield victories, but also ensured that soldiers of the Army of the Potomac had the opportunity to vote. One of the most skillful uses of "controlling the message" occurred after Cold Harbor and the bloody siege of Petersburg, when Union soldiers might have become demoralized at their high number of casualties. On the eve of the election, Grant ordered 100-gun salutes to celebrate the victories of Generals Sherman and Sheridan down south and out west. Catton points out that these "salutes" brought home to the Union soldiers the aura of the juggernaut of their armies inexorably closing in on the doomed Confederacy. Grant clearly understood the nature of the war he was involved in and took the action he needed to to get the job done.

Grant further understood that a great team of commanders was better than a team of great commanders. Great teamwork always beats great talent. Grant had worked very well with Generals Thomas and Sherman when he commanded out west, but with the exception of Hancock, he did not have as skilled commanders individually in the Army of the Potomac. But Grant did foster good teamwork in his army, and looked for this quality in his selection of key subordinates. In my opinion, this proved to be decisive. Grant kept and provided the required supervision for generals such as Meade and Burnside, but found little use for the self-seeking and overly critical generals such as Hooker and Smith, despite their comptetence. Most important was the relationship Grant fostered with his Commander-in-Chief, President Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln was much more involved in the military details of the Civil War than his own statements would indicate, and his oft-quoted remark that: "Grant doesn't tell me his plans, and I don't want to know" belies his own political skill at handling his best general and imposing his political will on the battlefield. It was the "marriage" between Lincoln and Grant, more than anything else, that saved the union. Catton's masterful work shows this quite clearly, and thus retains its great relevance for civil and military leaders.

"Grant Takes Command" is the second of two volumes by Bruce Catton on Grant's Civil War service and the third of a trilogy on Grant's military career (beginning with Lloyd Lewis's "Captain Sam Grant"). However, this volume can easily be read by itself. Catton picks up the story in the fall of 1863 with Grant's successful raising of the siege of Chattanooga, following which President Lincoln picks him for a third star and command of all the Union armies.

Grant is the latest in a long line of Union commanders, most of whom have been badly beaten by General Robert E. Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia, and none of whom have been able to bring superior Northern resources effectively to bear on a slowly weakening Confederacy. In fact, as Grant takes command, the war has not yet been won and could still be lost.

Grant will be the commander that Lincoln has long sought. Lincoln's telling exchange with an aide, repeated by Catton, lays out why. Grant is the first general to take the supreme command who will work in harness with Lincoln and in full acceptance of Lincoln's constraints as President of a democracy in the midst of a civil war. Grant is prepared to take full responsibility for the conduct of the missions of the armies, and without setting up an alibi in advance for possible failure. And as it becomes apparent in the course of Catton's absolutely superb narrative, Grant understands the terrible math. Lee and his army are too proficient to be easily beaten; great persistance will be called for. Grant grasps the essential truth that Lee's army is the Confederate center of gravity and the corollary that Lee's requirement to protect Richmond ultimately limits his ability to manuever. Further, Grant is able to cause the Union armies to work at a common design, denying Lee the ability to reinforce Virginia from other theaters of war. The result will be a long, grinding, and exceedingly bloody campaign stretching from 1864 into 1865, as Lee's army is slowly bludgeoned to death.

Catton's narrative does not spare Grant his errors; in the 1864 campaign, Grant underestimates both Lee's abilities as a general and the difficulties of conducting campaigns on such a massive scale. Grant has to learn the job of Army commander in chief on the move; the unnecessary casualties of Cold Harbor and the repeatedly failure to flank Lee out of position in Virginia are proof of the learning curve. But Grant's great gift is his refusal to be deterred from his objective. He pins Lee at Petersburg and uses the Union armies of Sherman and Sheridan, among others, to destroy the Confederacy's ability to make war.

"Grant Takes Command" was first published in 1960, and the details of the history of the Civil War have evolved since then. However, Catton's prose has stood the test of time. This is a truly magnificently told story on an epic scale and a highly recommended treat for the Civil War enthusiast and the casual reader alike.

Was Ulysses S. Grant a drunk? Did he win the Civil War simply by burying Robert E. Lee under a wave of superior manpower and resources? Bruce Catton addresses these questions, and many others, in GRANT MOVES SOUTH and its companion volume, GRANT TAKES COMMAND. Taken together, the two books chronicle Grant's Civil War experience.

I've read a lot of history, but I confess to being relatively ignorant about the American Civil War except in a very general sense. I've always been interested, I just never got very far into it. These two books are my first real foray into the subject. Both are very well researched and documented, while at the same time being very readable. Catton demonstrates a thorough knowledge of the facts as well as a genuine insight into Grant's character. The result, for me, was an experience that was at once informative and enjoyable.

What does Catton have to say about Grant's alleged drunkeness? Clearly, Catton is an admirer of Grant, but it's an admiration born of respect for the man as revealed in his personal records and actions, as well as in the record left by people who knew him. To get his take on this and other criticisms of Grant, read these books.

Conventional wisdom has it that GRANT MOVES SOUTH and GRANT TAKES COMMAND are definitive works on the subject of U. S. Grant's Civil War career. I certainly won't argue with that perception. If you have a deep interest in Grant or in the Civil War in general, they are "must haves". Beyond that, though, if you have just a casual interest, this is still great reading material. I highly recommend both volumes.

The second in a two part study of General Ulysses S. Grant's Civil War leadership, Bruce Catton has written a vivid narrative following the enigmatic Commander in Chief of Union forces through the final year and a half of the war.

This work won the Pulitzer Prize. Read it and you will appreciate why. It is a remarkably good book, excellently crafted, clear and precise. This one is truly well worth your time.

I finished this book in a single weekend and could not put it down. It was a very moving story, taken from memoirs written by a member of the author's family.

St. Sure has written a historical fiction novel that keeps you intrigued and interested. Her characters are well developed. Christina and her sister Nicolette experience the harsh realities of rural Missouri during the build-up to World War II. Christina is trained as an opera singer. Christina and her sister, Nicolette, sail to France at the beginning of the occupation by the Nazis. Their uncle, the Premier houses them. As time goes on, he becomes a mouthpiece for the Nazis.

Christina joins the French Underground being encouraged by a corporal in the Underground. Her fight for the French people, for her younger sister, and for a better world are spell-binding.

It is a bittersweet story, but one told by an excellent story teller. I look forward to a sequel. Ms. St Sure writes with assurance.

"EVENSONG" is beautifully written and provides a surprising and fascinating insight into the experiences that so many had to endure during the turbulent Nazi challenge. St. Sure has created a masterful collage of events and personalities that she overlays on to the history and intrigue that marked this agonizing period in Europe - as WW2 came into being.

Her style is vivid and the words are believable - you have the sense of being there. Her expressed memory to her Marine Corps father gives credibility to the descriptions she portrays throughout the book.

The only thing missing is the bio of the author, which would add dimension to this 'must read' book.

M.L. St.Sure tells an inspiring story of two sisters who's bravery carries them through family tragedy in rural Missouri and in Germany during World War II. The author has a descriptive nature which lends you to feel the pain and horrifying experience inflicted on the heroine of Evensong. A tragedy I will never forget.

While I thought I had no time to read, and that I would just browse this book for the feel and flavor of it, I read the entire book in two evenings. If you start this mesmerizing book, I guarantee you will finish it, just as sure as if you open a bag of chocolate covered cherries, you will finish it.

The author's masterful command of the story and penetrating understanding of the characters makes this book a memorable experience. Clearly this writer is a mature keen observor of life. I very much look forward to her next book.

I read this book which I now plan to give to my Dr. so he can read it also. I suffer from this illness and really appreciate this book altho some of it was above my head. I learned lots from what I was able to read and understand. I recommend it for all who are suffering from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and chemical injury and also for ALL doctors.

This book is technical, which it has to be, but still very useful for the non-biochemist. My purpose was to get ideas for treatment and I got them from the book.

I got some information and help, but as someone who reacts to books and ink, it was difficult for me to read. I'd like to see this made available on CD, or electronic version.... and maybe a simplified version for those of us who aren't very technical to begin with. Although, reading it electronically may have cleared some things up for me. I did pass it on to my more technically minded sister, who I'm sure will help me understand.

If you have any of the illnesses that are "unexplained", you really should try to read this. Even if you don't get it all, it may help you some with the direction to move for improvement.

I thank you, Dr. Pall, for your research and writing on this. Blessings on you and yours!

How wonderful it would be if all aspiring physicians were required to read this book! So many in the medical community are not aware of the mystery illnesses which Dr. Pall researches and writes about. If you have Multiple Chemical Sensitivty, Gulf War Syndrome, or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or you know or love someone who does, then this is the book for you. Dr. Pall's book is well-researched and documented as well as understandable. He's been there so he "gets it," and he offers some help and hope to people who live with these debilitating conditions. Don't miss this book! It's definitely a worthwhile read.

Dr. Pall's research and recommended treatment saved me. The core of my treatment for a variety of neurological and digestive problems involves his recommended techniques for down-regulating the NO/ONOO cycle. My improvement relies on specific supplements to turn down reactivity combined with avoidance of chemical and food irritants. I only dared read this book once I had recovered sufficiently to have hope again. Within its pages I found helpful advice, well-supported scientific explanations for my "weird" symptoms and some sobering observations. The lack of recognition of chemical toxicity leads to incredible suffering and financial hardship. Dr. Pall's book should be compulsory reading for every doctor. The biochemical mechanisms he describes should be researched thoroughly so that there can be proven treatments for the growing number of people with "unexplained illness". Also there needs to be increased awareness and regulation of those "harmless" chemicals that are literally destroying lives.

If you haven't read Regeneration, you are making a big mistake if you read The Eye in the Door before Regeneration. Regeneration sets the stage for The Eye in the Door and provides much background information that you need to appreciate this book.

Those who liked the first book in the Regeneration trilogy, Regeneration, will absolutely adore The Eye in the Door. The characters from Regeneration return, and you have a chance to find out the consequences of the treatments they received from Dr. William Rivers in Regeneration. Pat Barker builds on the tensions, damage, doubts, and despair of mid-World War I to show how much more desperate matters were for the British by the spring of 1918.

In developing these themes, Pat Barker does a masterful job of explaining how a soldier has to operate both by emotion and by objective distance in order to function. From there, she helps us use the crucible of war to see how that duality is important to everyday functioning for all people.

As the title indicates, the book builds on a central metaphor of everyone being under observation as doubts build about Britain's ability to win the war. Those on the margins are most under pressure and at greatest risk.

I thought that the portrayal of Lieutenant Billy Prior was brilliant. He comes across as the kind of complex, interesting character that can help us learn a lot about Ms. Barker's messages for us. The eye metaphor is nicely developed in the context of Billy's life.

Brava, Ms. Barker!

THE EYE IN THE DOOR is the second installment in Pat Barker's marvelous Regeneration trilogy. In this volume the principle characters of Dr. Rivers and Prior have left Criaglockhart War Hospital and are now living in London. Although Dr. Rivers has taken a new position treating shell-shock soldiers who have returned from the front in France, he continues to keep in touch and treat his former patients from Criaglockhart, especially Prior. Amidst the bombing and blackouts of wartime London, Prior continues to suffer from war neurosis as he embarks on solving a mystery that involves his childhood friends and acquaintances. He is confronted by England's societal fixation with fear and scapegoating of those who are believed to deter from the war effort (mainly war deserters and homosexuals). Individuals are often forced to hide their true attributes from society during this time of societal finger pointing and blaming. As in the previous volume of this trilogy, the characters of Prior and Dr. Rivers are well developed and nuanced. I continually enjoy reading about their trials and tribulations, and look forward to reading the third and final volume in this trilogy.

THE EYE IN THE DOOR (spoilers)

Ms Barker's epigraph, a quote from Stevenson, sets the tone: "It was on the moral side, and in my own person, that I learned to recognize the thorough and primitive duality of man. I saw that, of the two natures that contended in the field of my consciousness, even if I could rightly be said to be either, it was only because I was radically both."

I am hampered in critiquing the trilogy, since I've read only the first two works, REGENERATION and THE EYE IN THE DOOR. The first of these concentrates on the relation between the enlightened, humane Dr Rivers and the war hero/war protester Siegfried Sassoon, who has been labeled a war neurotic ("shell-shocked") in order to avoid confronting his rational case against the war. Both Rivers and Sassoon are historical characters who the author effectively fictionalizes (their dialogues, etc).

The second novel focuses on the relation between Rivers and Billy Prior, a relatively minor character in the first. The book is set on a wider stage than REGENERATION, which was confined to the (real) mental hospital of Craiglockhart in Scotland. Here we are in London, during the crisis produced by the initial success of the Germans' spring offensive in 1918. As happens during defeats, the search is on for scapegoats seen as undermining the war effort, groups like pacifists and ... who are seen as destroying the nation's "moral fiber." Ludicrously, the leading anti-... crusader, lays the blame on the Germans, who are said to have sent homosexual agents over before the war to corrupt English youth.

Billy Prior, on medical leave from the front, works for a counter-intelligence agency, but his loyalties are divided, since his earliest friends are pacifists and "conchies" (conscientious objectors). The result of these divided loyalties is a split consciousness, where the fugue state ("Hyde") takes over at times, doing things that the "daytime" Billy is not aware of, but whose consequences nevertheless he must face. It is this split consciousness that Rivers must deal with-and on one occasion, he deals directly with "Hyde," who speaks of Billy in the third person.

At the crisis of the novel, Billy's alter ego betrays his closest friend, something that the daytime Billy at first denies doing, but which he finally comes to suspect he has actually done. Rivers treats the psychological phenomenon by making Billy see that it is basically Oedipal, that he actually wished to kill his father, who had, in Billy's sight and hearing, beat and abused his mother. One manifestation of this hatred is "Hyde's": punching the agent provocateur Spragge, who looks like Billy's father. To complicate the issue, his father is a socialist/pacifist, a fact which may contribute to Billy's ambivalent attitude to his pacifist friends, one of whom he helps, as he betrays the other.

Sassoon make another appearance here, having gone back to France (partly at Rivers' suggestion), and once again been wounded (by friendly fire). But Sassoon's appearance doesn't seem to contribute to the plot of this novel, tho it may have a role to play in the trilogy as a whole. (Maybe his divided consciousness is relevant, since he was very effective at killing Germans, but at home becomes a "dove") Another seemingly extraneous thread is Manning, one of Billy's sex partners.

But basically a rich novel, recalling a key point in Western history. In many ways, WWI was more traumatic than WWII, since it occurred after almost a century or relative peace in Europe. And, as Barker makes clear, WWI was harder on soldiers than was WWII.

Trivia: Why were French troops show on the covers of the paper editions of the first two novels? They play no role in the novels themselves (tho they played the major role on the Western Front).

People existing against a war background-normal people doing normal things whilst shouldering the burden of their experiences, their fears and societies norms and expectations.

A lovely book that always has the lightest of touches in the darkest of moments. Nothing is simple and nothing is complicated, but everything is ambiguous and dwarfed by "the front" and what is expected.

The writing is always simple, but the ideas, concepts and dilemmas dealt with are complex and impossible to resolve. Class and duty are themes; the most interesting theme in my opinion is that of being a pacifist, a father figure to your men and a violent war hero simultaneously. (By the nature of things, war heroes are violent.)

My one regret is that I have only just realised that this book is part of a trilogy and that I have read it out of sequence... although on the positive side it means I have two more books to explore. I would strongly recommend this book; I have just gone and bought one of Sassoon's books as a direct result of it awakening school hood poems by him and Wilfred Owens.

After reading "Regeneration", the second novel of the trilogy "Eye in the Door" expands in terms of characterization and plot complexity. Whereas Regeneration is superb in its exploration of the consciousness of Siegfreid Sassoon and his psychiatrist, Dr. River; Eye in the Door expands the character of Billy Prior to become one of the most psychologically well developed and complex characters in English fiction.

Billy Prior , a bisexual, has both male and female lovers in this novel. These relationships are embedded in the homophobic atmosphere of war torn London. Prior, suffering from "shell shock" struggles with his identify of war hero and pacifism. He struggles with childhood trauma in a society where repressesions are let lose in a war charged atmospher.

The book is beautifully written. Whereas Regeneration explores Sassoon's struggles to brng meaning into a meaningless situation, Eye in the Door explores more of the societal struggles with the war and individual reactions to the pressures of a war time society.

I loved this book and would give it 10 stars if I could.