I'm a little surprised by the effusive reviews. It's OK -- what's a little unique is that it's organized by topic rather than chronology -- for example: weapons, battles, heroes, family life, etc. -- so you can pick up some interesting facts/perspectives. A "hard core" historian probably won't find much here -- pretty basic. I think either the "for dummies" or "complete idiot" book is probably a better intro.

I purchased this book as a "newly ordained" Civil War buff, but I'm incredibly disappointed with it's obvious Northern bias. For example, the author gives statistics on Northern information, but then claims that Southern statistics are unavailable, or missing, or, I suppose, lost to history, which is utter nonsense. The battles are mostly referred to by their Northern names (ex. Bull Run for Manassas), which as a Southerner (I was born in Va, moved back here in 2004, and was raised in Alabama) I find mildly offensive. Yes, I know that the North "won" the War, but I would have liked a more balanced description and explanation of things. Two thumbs WAY down. Yankee propaganda.

I purchased this book as a "recently baptised" Civil War buff, but I'm incredibly disappointed with it's obvious Northern bias. For example, the author gives statistics for Northern things, but then claims that Southern statistics are unavailable, or missing, or what-have-you. The battles are mostly referred to by their Northern names (ex. Bull Run for Manassas), which as a newcomer to Southern culture and history (I moved to Virginia in, 2004) I find mildly offensive. Yes, I know that the North "won" the War, but I would have liked a more balanced description and explanation of things. Two thumbs WAY down.

This is the greatest civil war paperback that I have ever read. It is printed in very readable type size and has some illustrations. The book is also nicely sized. It is an enormous treasure of civil war information. One can quickly read this book and it is so well chaptered, it can be referenced quickly for specific data. I highly recommend it.

This is the greatest civil war paperback that I have ever read. It is printed in very readable type size and has some illustrations. The book is also nicely sized. It is an enormous treasure of civil war information. One can quickly read this book and it is so well chaptered, it can be referenced quickly for specific data. I highly recommend it.

The Everything series is a great way to explore a subject in a condensed version. The Civil War and World War 2 editions are a fantastic source of information and an interesting read.

While I own many Civil War books, I found this to be a fun read. It covers all the basics and goes over the key events in such a way as to keep the readers attention. Get recap for Civil War buffs

I have always been interested in war history, mainly WWII and have read much on that subject but had never read anything on The Civil War. As of late I decided to read some books on the subject and this book was given to me for Christmas. This is a wonderful book in that it gives the reader a complete, precise fact filled overview of the war. It is easy to read and move through ( I finished it in 2 days) and lays the groundwork for the reader to move on to a deeper study of the subject with this as the foundation. Highly recommend!

This is a fun, fact-filled overview of the Civil War. Highlights include biographies of the major political and military participants, and a fascinating glimpse at mid-century America. Vaughan has definitely done his homework -- this is a wonderful read, accurate and loaded with little known facts and intriguing minutae. A must for Civil War aficianados and history buffs in general.