Fate of the Country: The Civil War from June to September 1864. This item is unavailable.Fate of the Country: The Civil War from June to September 1864

Covers the events of the summer of 1864, focusing on General Grant's efforts and strategies

In this second volume of four, Lowry roams from Grant's strategy of besieging Petersburg and letting Sherman march through Georgia to Union-Confederate naval battles in Europe and Confederate efforts to threaten Lincoln's reelection. Lowry, a war-game journal and newspaper editor, reconstructs the battles and the intrigues with commentary and details collected from the various published sources. His frame-by-frame chronology succeeds in heightening the natural drama of the events. It's unclear whether he's writing a popular history--in which case his careful footnotes are unnecessary--or whether he presents this as a scholarly effort, which it is not. The text ranges from polished to awkward; he supplies a "Military Organizations" apendix, but using it regularly grows wearing. Better editing would have streamlined the text and let the author's thoughts shine through. Nevertheless, this will be enjoyed most by avid Civil War readers.
- Robert C. Moore, DuPont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. Information Svcs., North Billerica, Mass.
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