Salvatore Cilella’s Top Ten Civil War Books

Originally published November 2020 · pp. 28–29

Salvatore Cilella’s Top Ten Civil War Books 1. Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era, by James McPherson, (Oxford University Press, 1988). Anyone interested in the Civil War has to start with this masterpiece. Many books

have been written about the entire war, but this is the best one volume treatment on every aspect of the war. It will long remain so until the next generation finds a scholar of equal talent and erudition. Reconstruction by Eric Foner Harper Collins, 2002. Foner’s book follows McPherson perfectly and the two are a seamless match for the reader seeking continuity of our nation’s most harrowing period. Interestingly, Foner begins his reconstruction narrative in 1863, pegging it to Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, not the end of the war. The Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War by Drew Gilpin Faust. Knopf, 2008. Faust has explored the effects of war on the individual at the home front as well as on the battlefield. She has illuminated, like no author before her, all the ramifications of a solitary death not at home in the bosom of family, but on a field far away and most chillingly, anonymous and unidentified. This is riveting and clearly written. Lincoln by David Donald. Simon and Shuster, 1995. Despite several recent Lincoln biographies, this is perhaps the best single volume, stand-alone account of the great man. It, along with Foner and McPherson should be required reading for all students of the war. Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin. Simon and Schuster, 2005. Once one has read David Donald’s biography, Goodwin is a necessary follow up. She had been criticized for some of her earlier scholarship on Lyndon Johnson, but this single volume at 916 pages and 121 pages of endnotes, is a masterpiece of research and lucid writing that will appeal to the novice and the veteran. It is an excellent companion piece to Lincoln. Apostles of Disunion: Southern Secession Commissioners and the Causes of the Civil War by Charles B. Dew. University of Virginia Press, 2002. This extremely thin volume at only 124 pages is the most powerful book concerning the origins of the war. It’s expose of the southern secession commissioners who, in the winter of 1860 traveled to the Border States to convince those governments to join their cause, is devastating. Every one of them put the lie to state’s rights as the cause of the war, clearly and unequivocally arguing for the continuation of slavery. 7. Race and Reunion: The Civil War in American Memory by David W. Blight. Harvard University Press, 2001. There are usually two reasons to read. One is for information and the other for affirmation. This groundbreaking book was probably the most interesting and informative book I have read in American History. It was one of the first works to explore the vast area of the history of memory as it related to the Civil War. Although an earlier book on the wider subject of American cultural traditions, Michael Kammen (Mystic Chords of Memory: The Transformation of Tradition in American Culture, Knopf, 1991), paved the way, Blight’s clear writing and exhaustive research explored the impact of memory on our collective history since the war ended. (Or did it?) 8. The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara. David McKay Co., 1974. No list of ten or even five books about the war would be complete without Shaara’s Killer Angels. This fictional account of the battle of Gettysburg is a must read for any student of the war. I was surprised and pleased to learn that Civil War scholar, Gabor Boritt, founder of the Gettysburg College Civil War Institute, used the book in his curriculum for his classes. 9. The Iron Brigade: A Military History by Alan Nolan. Macmillan, 1961. Alan Nolan’s first book was a hit and it was my first Civil War book. Appearing just as the Civil War Centennial was beginning, and accompanied by popular new war histories from Bruce Catton, it was riveting for the “newbie” student of the war. I was so fortunate to get to know Alan Nolan when I was appointed President and CEO of the Indiana Historical Society as he was retiring as Chairman Emeritus. Using his groundbreaking book as a model of unit histories, I was able to publish my book on the history of Upton’s Regulars. Alan graciously read the first rough chapters of the book and provided unvarnished criticism. He is missed. 10. Lee Considered: General Robert E. Lee and Civil War History by Alan Nolan.

University of North Carolina Press, 1991. When this slim volume debuted in 1991, it caused an uproar below the Mason Dixon line. A fiercely intellectual lawyer, interested in getting at the nub of the controversy, Alan Nolan brought his skills to the examination of the myths surrounding the South’s most favorite son. Unfortunately, Nolan was excoriated by Lee supporters for attacking Lee and not those myths which accreted after his death. The cliché that Nolan exposed the fact that the marble man had feet of clay, is partially true. This book is especially relevant today in the midst of the turmoil surrounding the removal of statues, equality, and civil discourse. After 43 years in the museum field, Salvatore Cilella devotes his time collecting American prints and maps and writing. His last professional position was President and CEO of the Atlanta History Center. His most recent books are Upton’s Regulars: A History of the 121st New York Volunteers in the Civil War (U. Press Kansas, 2009). His two-volume Correspondence of Major General Emory Upton, (U. of Tennessee Press, 2017), received the 2017–2018 American Civil War Museum’s Founders Award for outstanding editing of primary source materials. His latest book “Till Death Do Us Part,” an edit of Upton’s letters to his wife 1868– 70, was published in May by the Oklahoma University Press.