Okay, Shelby is great. No question. And his knowledge and grasp aren't just encyclopedic, they're unsurpassed. That having been said (deep breath) if you're coming to this from the PBS series because you fell in love with his voice and insight there, you're probably going to be disappointed. Ken Burns turned to Shelby for insight, for color commentary, for a sense of the soldier on the ground. And he supplied it, in spades, with that slow southern drawn and his dead-on sense of events. This books is strictly a "great man" summary of the war. You won't find much of the common soldier, and beyond body counts and the odd quote you won't learn much about how the man-in-the-field felt or experienced events. For that matter. you won't find much about what Shelby thinks or feels about it to. While he is encyclopedic, in a strange way, it actually crowds out his voice and sensitivity, so you learn a lot about events -- in great detail -- but very little Shelby's own evaluation or perspective about them. Which for this reader, was the real reason to pay the price of admission. I doubt I will move on to the other books in the series as I'd planned -- it's incredibly informative without having any particular narrative drive or being in any way really gripping. Think of it as the Encyclopedia Britannia coverage (rather than a book by one man whose mind and erudition you love) and you'll get some idea. Oh, and for those of you tempted to get the audio version, again, I'd think twice. I was looking forward to Shelby's quite, authoritative drawl in my ear, but they chose a Northerner (award-winning, actually, but nonetheless!) who to my ear has an annoying drawl and stopped his mic every few pages so he's continually coming back in slightly different sound and register. Sorry to write this, really, wanted to love this book and the whole series.

Shelby Foote knows his stuff. Over 800 pages of exciting Civil War action, from the secession crisis of early 1861 to the inauguration of Mississippian Senator Jefferson Davis as President of the Confederate States. From Yankee disaster at First Manassas to Robert E. Lee's embarrassing debut in western Virginia. From riverboat actions on the Mississippi and its tributaries, to George McClellan's snail-like movement up the York-James Peninsula toward Richmond. And on and on, until October 1862, when the Confederacy retreats from failed invasions of Kentucky and Maryland.

As I said, Foote knows what he is writing about. He has plenty of stories to tell about the first two years of the Civil War, and he'll keep the reader busy with his storytelling. Along with James McPherson's Battle Cry of Freedom and Bruce Catton's work on the Army of the Potomac, Foote's Civil War Narrative belongs on the shelf of every Civil War enthusiast, this volume as well as the other two.

I could write a very long and boring review about this book but i won't. This series of books is one of the best about the war. It doesn't get bogged down in troop movements but it gives the reader an excellent overview of any particular battle. It shifts from theater to theater with plenty of adventure on all pages. This is not just an account of the Civil War, it is an account of all the aspects that make us who we are today. Enjoy not only the best retelling of The American Civil War but also one of the best American books of all time.

As military / political narratives go, this book is first rate. Foote explains the battles as well in a comprehensible way (something that many military history books don't do). The book is interesting and moves along (something that most 800 page books don't do either). Overall, it is a vivid picture of the people and the history.

That being said, here is my critique: reading this book is a major undertaking. The book is 800 pages and is only the first book in a triology. According to Amazon, the entire triology is about 3000 pages. While I do not consider myself a civil war buff, I guess I am one now -- at least for a third of the war. While well written, its not the kind of prose that you can race through. This is a major reading commitment.

A reading marathon like this raises a unique issue. Noone wants to read 3000 pages and conclude they could have spent their time better. While I have labored through inaccurate and ridiculous history books, these books were a lot shorter and I knew they were inaccurate / ridiculous when I read them. Worrisome to me, two reviewers say the book is inaccurate and I should read McPherson. I don't take that to heart though; reviewers of McPherson's Battle Cry of Freedom say you should read Foote.

Overall, a great book and recommended. Now I'm off {sigh} to read volume II.