"Best readable account" Topic

Ok, I give up, I want to read more about the ACW. So far I have kept on the edges with books like "The Killer Angels" – that what if trilogy which asked what would have happened if Lee had not fought at Gettyburg (excellent premise and first volume but seemed to get a bit lost after that) – Cornwell (don't laugh) – what would you recommend as a good readable account similar to "The Killer Angels"?
Thanks in advance
C

Bruce Catton's trilogy on the Army of the Potomac ("Mr Lincoln's Army", "Glory Road", and "A Stillness at Appomattox").

I second Catton's Trilogy.

You also can't beat James McPherson's Battle Cry of Freedom for a 1 volume book about the war.

McPherson for sure. Catton is readable but very dated. Grant's memoirs are very good as well, with crisp prose unlike the turgid writing that was so much the style of the day.

Its a novel, a prize winning one at that, but Tom Keneally's Confederates is very evocative of the period.

My thanks for all these suggestions.
C

Nobody mentioned Shelby Foote's Civil War trilogy. Highly readable and covers just about EVERYTHING. Be prepared for a lot of reading – but well worth it.

Do you want fiction or non-fiction ?

Fiction, Ralph Peters books are pretty good. I also recommend "Seen The Glory" by Hough

I agree that Foote is a great read. I don't care for McPherson, I found too many minor errors when reading his stuff.

For campaign accounts I would recommend anything by Stephen Sears. Landscape Turned Red was a great read.

Nothing like reading the commander's reports in the Official records! Sometimes hard to follow but there are some really great recollections from commanders in there! Most of all,their recolections had enough merit to have been included into the Official Records!

Nothing can really compete with"Killer Angels."

But the most readable and accurate one-volume account of Gettysburg is that by Stephen Sears: "Gettysburg."

""Jim Mundy" by Robert Fowler.

The Confederacy's Last Hurrah by Wiley Sword remains among the best – and most readable – books on the ACW I have found.

Start with Catton.

I agree with Extra, Wiley Sword is very good. I've been reading ACW for 55+ years. I've read all the authors mentioned here. They are all good, but Sword gives a decent balanced account and is fun to read. Sword gets my nod.

The best 1-volume history of the War is Fletcher Pratt's -- the paperback version (probably still in print; if not, plenty of used ones around) of which is called A Short History of the Civil War. (Original hardback title was Ordeal By Fire.) Very readable, in a dramatic style.

Thanks once again to all who took the time and trouble to answer.. food for thought indeed. This could become a serious dabble…

Coming from an historical novel perspective, Catton's Army of the Potomac Trilogy, (Mr. Lincoln's Army, Glory Road, A Stillness at Appomatox) is the place to start. His writing style has never been surpassed.
For an overall view of the war, Donlowery is right. Fletcher Pratt is an easy, quick read, and highly entertaining; (there is a reason one of the major Civil War book of the year awards is called the " The Fletcher Pratt Award".) I would start here, and if you like it you can always move on to Foote or McPherson.
I would follow this up with Sword's "Bloody April" for a campaign/battle narrative, or Sear's " Landscape turned Red", followed by Priest's "Antietam- A Soldier's Battle". All highly readable and well researched.

So I'm genuinely curious. Why is Catton dated. Or "very dated"? Is it because he references meeting with veterans himself when he was younger? Or because he compares the Civil War rifle-muskets with the state of the art M1 Garand?

Is his research or conclusions dated? Why or why not? Has more modern research proven him wrong on any of the big questions?

Is it his prose and writing style?

I'm re-reading his trilogy now. Its quite enjoyable.