Major General Stanley | 22 Dec 2013 5:13 p.m. PST |
Which one would it be? Why? I've got some bookstore gift certificates and need to sift through all those titles, Chris |
darthfozzywig | 22 Dec 2013 5:18 p.m. PST |
I very much enjoyed Stephen Sears book on Gettysburg. |
gamertom | 22 Dec 2013 5:38 p.m. PST |
The Gettysburg Companion by Mark Adkin. While he definitely has his opinions folded into the some of the famed Gettsyburg controversies, I haven't seen anything that approaches the thoroughness of coverage presented int his book. |
14Bore | 22 Dec 2013 6:00 p.m. PST |
The Gettysburg Campaign by Edwin Coddinton |
Theword | 22 Dec 2013 6:11 p.m. PST |
I second Sears
brilliant book. |
Dan Beattie | 22 Dec 2013 6:23 p.m. PST |
I third Sears, a masterpiece. |
Murphy | 22 Dec 2013 6:31 p.m. PST |
I agree with gamertom
I have numerous books and this one is simply amazing
. |
Allen57 | 22 Dec 2013 6:35 p.m. PST |
As a reference work Sear's book. But as a good, comfort food sort of read I like Bruce Catton's Gettysburg book or perhaps The Guns at Gettysburg. Don't recall the author and can not get to my copy at present. |
thosmoss | 22 Dec 2013 7:10 p.m. PST |
"Killer Angels" by Michael Shaara. Sorry, not necessarily historically correct, but a danged fine read. I've given more copies of that book away as a "must read" than any other. |
Augie the Doggie | 22 Dec 2013 7:27 p.m. PST |
Nothing can hold a candle to Harry Pfanz's books on Gettysburg . Even the park rangers and the licensed battlefield guides use Pfanz as their "bible". Pfanz's best book is "Gettysburg, The Second Day" |
jowady | 22 Dec 2013 8:09 p.m. PST |
Another vote for Coddington's "The Gettysburg Campaign, A Study in Command". Many Civil War historians consider it the Bible when it comes to the battle, the footnotes alone contain more info than most other books. BTW I hate to say it but Adkins Gettysburg Companion is riddled with errors, some due to poor editing , some to poor research. There are of course many good books on specific aspects of the battle, for example "Twilight at Little Round Top" , but for a one volume it's Coddington's, followed probably by Sears. |
Pictors Studio | 22 Dec 2013 8:27 p.m. PST |
I would go with Picket's Charge in History and Memory by Carol Reardon. It is not a full history of the battle but it examines how one part of the battle has been used and the history of it transformed down the years. It not only looks at that but also is a very interesting study on how history is made and what the eye witness accounts of that event, and by extension any event, are worth. link |
R Brown | 22 Dec 2013 8:36 p.m. PST |
I think this one is graphically outstanding..
It's a mosh pit of Butternut and Kersey Blue!!! Hold on
I don't see any Kersey Blue
At least the collar tabs on the Federal artillerist are red!! |
john lacour | 22 Dec 2013 8:52 p.m. PST |
well, i would say High Tide AT gettysburg, by tucker. |
john lacour | 22 Dec 2013 8:55 p.m. PST |
and i would strongly suggest "picketts charge, by stewart. it puts the reardon book to shame
|
GDrover | 22 Dec 2013 10:51 p.m. PST |
Killer Angels gives a great feel for the personalities that influenced the battle, and why it unfolded the way it did. Can't be beat for giving you the sense that you were there. I like Adkins book for being a one-stop shop for orders of battle, pictures of the battlefield, soldiers' uniforms, the chronology, as well as information on everything from the generals to the weapons to the tactics. Great book (though I like his Waterloo book better for some reason). |
Valerik | 22 Dec 2013 11:11 p.m. PST |
Mr Lacour, Allen57 and I all seem to be somewhat old school. I second the Glen Tucker "High Tide at Gettysburg" recommendation. Though somewhat dry, this is overall best SINGLE volume of the battle, standing the tests of time despite vast and more recent scholarship. Better even than Catton. I also concur with Stewart's "Pickett's Charge". A a snapshot of this part action it is unbeatable, and magnificent. "Killer Angels" remains a great read, for not being History, and has coloured many perceptions out of all proportion. I'm not sure Harry Pfantz has written a bad book, and once again I agree his "Second Day" is the best, and a must read for any student, serious or casual, of the battle. Fairfax Downey's "The Guns at Gettysburg" is a superb read, being a different look at the battle, from a redleg's perspective, yet well placed in context. I'm quite fond of the War College Guides, of which their Gettysburg was the first and has since been revised at least once. It is however interactive in nature and best used THERE, or after having BEEN there, or about to GO there. My absolute all-time favourite (Thank you Bob Potter) remains one you will need to dig deep for: "Soldier's Battle: Gettysburg" by James Warner Bellah. At it's core it is a time study, clear, incisive, useful, and quite entertaining as befits the author of so much fine fiction we still love today. Like Tucker, it's hard to pick a winning fight with Bellah, they both got a LOT right, a long time ago. There are better scholars today than Bellah, who never claimed that mantle, but no better writers, or storytellers. I have episodically picked up and re-read EVERYTHING on my list, Bellah and Downey most of all, but if I need to sort something out in another volume, I grab the War College Guide, it probably sees more use than everything else on the Gettysburg shelf combined |
Major General Stanley | 23 Dec 2013 4:04 a.m. PST |
Thanks for the input. The Gettysburg Companion is out of print and used copies are in the $70 USD range, so that's out. So now I just have to sift through the other titles. I'm a bit surprised that no one chose the new "last Invasion" or yhe interactive one from Pantagoet (I don't think I got the spelling right on that one). |
WarWizard | 23 Dec 2013 5:02 a.m. PST |
I have several but I agree this is the one I enjoy the most The Gettysburg Companion by Mark Adkin. |
Dave Jackson | 23 Dec 2013 5:23 a.m. PST |
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Larry R | 23 Dec 2013 6:18 a.m. PST |
Killer Angels if your looking for a novel |
d effinger | 23 Dec 2013 1:23 p.m. PST |
I'd go with Harry Pfantz books or Coddington. The Mark Adkin is nice but it is no way near as complete or even as accurate as the two above. There are too many errors in this one. His book is a nice coffee table book although you need a big coffee table. :) Don actionfront.blogspot.com "Who ever saw a dead cavalryman?" |
stormcrow | 23 Dec 2013 1:58 p.m. PST |
"Gettysburg: A History for the People" by John D. Cox Disclosure – John and I are gaming buddies but I am a very critical reader. His book is very thorough, has maps and includes a list of sources. I wasn't really a Civil War person but after reading that all I want to buy is ACW troops! |
Oddball | 23 Dec 2013 2:41 p.m. PST |
Pfanz's best book is "Gettysburg, The Second Day" Unfortunately, if you could only have ONE book to cover the whole battle, I'd go with Catton as he gives a good overall view of the events. Haven't read Codrington or Tucker. |
Charlie 12 | 23 Dec 2013 7:56 p.m. PST |
Codrington or Pfanz are good choices. And Sears
And Tucker
Which just goes to show that narrowing it down to ONE choice is darn near impossible! (So many books, so little time!) |
avidgamer | 24 Dec 2013 5:21 a.m. PST |
"The Mark Adkin is nice but it is no way near as complete or even as accurate as the two above. There are too many errors in this one." Agreed. I go with Pfanz's books. Coddington _WAS_ considered the best but it has since been passed by others doing more research, finding new sources and having a more in-depth idea of the action. Plus, the book is good for what happened but not as well written as the current batch of 'storytelling' historians. |
Porkmann | 24 Dec 2013 12:00 p.m. PST |
One where the CSA wins please. |
vtsaogames | 24 Dec 2013 12:56 p.m. PST |
What you want, Porkmann is McKinley Cantor's "If the South Won the Civil War". The description of the CSA victory at Gettysburg is plausible, though the rest of the book is risible. Wilson becomes president of the CSA instead of the USA, both republics join the allies in WWI and WWII (right), etc. They decide to peacefully reunite in time for the centennial, when the book was written. Sure. |
Major General Stanley | 25 Dec 2013 7:42 a.m. PST |
Thanks for the input. I bought the Sears book. The Pfanz books will be my second round of reading and scour the used book shops for the Companion. |
Cleburne1863 | 30 Dec 2013 7:22 a.m. PST |
Single book: Sears. Series: Pfanz. |
Trajanus | 31 Dec 2013 11:04 a.m. PST |
Is the third book in Pfanz's series worth the read? I've often wondered why he never did a straight up "Day Three"? |
Cleburne1863 | 31 Dec 2013 2:23 p.m. PST |
Trajanus, do you mean the Culp's Hill book? If so, its an OK read. Not as good as his 2nd Day volume. Or even his 1st Day one. I actually found it a little bit of a chore to read, but that was mostly because of the material and organization of the book. Let's face it, while the actual battle for the hill is pretty gripping, the rest of the movement of the participants to and from the action really isn't. Don't get me wrong, the information in there is top notch. If I needed to look something up about Culp's Hill that's the book I'd find the information in. It just wasn't as good a read as the other two. |
Holdfast | 01 Jan 2014 7:21 a.m. PST |
It all depends how well you know the ground. If you do not know the ground well then you would do well to consider the books with the best, colour, maps. In that respect Adkin is the best. Of the others, the maps are all black and white and none are particularly good. David Martin's First Day of Gettysburg covers the same ground as Pfanz but has better black and white maps and is an easier read. For scenarios you have the option of 'Enduring Valor' or Wargaming in History Vol 3. |
Trajanus | 01 Jan 2014 7:29 a.m. PST |
Cleburne, Yeah, that's the one. Thanks. I'm at a loss to understand why he didn't focus on the whole of Day 3 in a single book as his next task, after doing that for the first two, rather than write something on one area of the battlefield. Most people will know, or think they know, about Pickett but there must be a lot who don't know much about the Cavalry fights. I just think its a shame he elected not to give all three days the same treatment. |
Cleburne1863 | 01 Jan 2014 2:56 p.m. PST |
I should add, the Pfanz book is titled Culp's Hill and Cemetery Hill. So it also has a great section on the Avery/Hays attack on the night of the 2nd. It also talks about the Twelfth Corps units sent from Culps Hill to reinforce the fight near Plum Run as the day ended Longstreet's attack. Can you see where I'm going when I say it was a chore to read? Skips all over the place, especially if you have already read Pfanz's Second Day. However, again for the actual information it contains, its an invaluable resource. |
Trajanus | 02 Jan 2014 3:30 a.m. PST |
I suppose that's part of what I was wondering. Apart from more depth what can there be that's not in the Day 2 book. |