The Killer Angels: The Classic Novel of the Civil War

The Battle of Gettysburg, July 1 - 3, 1863, is described in detail by the key leaders including Confederate Generals Lee, Longstreet, and Armistead and Federal General Buford, Colonel Joshua L. Chamberlain. We listen to each leader as they make difficult decisions and watch as they are carried out. In the process, we learn about each leader and can distinguish their personalities, and at the same time experience the painful pressures of war.Many Civil War buffs have claimed that even those that don't have much interest in this historic timeframe would be enthralled with this book. I beg to differ. The Killer Angels would have been a DNF had I attempted to read it. However, it is a perfect choice for those that are curious about the minute details of the 3 days in Gettysburg. Unfortunately, the amount of curiosity I held was saturated by the time I reached the 2nd CD.The contents are based on actual letters and other extensive research, but Shaara changed the dialog to represent the current flow of language. Also, Shaara was award the Pulitzer Prize for this work, and it was the basis for the movie Gettysburg in 1993. So, obviously more than a few like this book, but you won't be seeing me joining that camp.Originally posted on: Thoughts of Joy

This work in narrative fiction is beautiful, interesting and has a nice variety of perspectives from those fighting for the north and the south American Civil War. It is also excellent audiobook.

Shaara takes an historical event-The Battle of Gettysburg-and writes about it in novel form, and the result is living the battle with the main characters. The characters were real people--Robert E.Lee, James "Pete" Longstreet, George Pickett, Lewis Armistead, Ambrose Powell Hill, Richard Ewell, Richard Brooke Garnett, J.E.B.Stuart, and Jubal Early--Confederate generals; General George Meade, Colonel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, John Buford, John Reynolds, and Winfield Scott Hancock--all Major Generals and all officers for the Union.

The story of the battle is told through their various points of view--the successes and the failures, as well as their personal struggles they must cope with while engaged in fighting. Lee is ill with heart disease; Longstreet still struggles with grief over the loss of three of his children in one week, due to an identified fever; Chamberlain missing his family in Maine and his realization he will do whatever it takes to win a battle--a realization he isn't comfortable with.

The Battle of Gettysburg lasted for three days in the suppressive heat and humidity of early July. it's one thing to read historical accounts about the battle; it's another to read about the battle as it unfolds and experiencing it from the point of view of the principal commanders involved--Chamberlain making a desperate decision when his men run out of ammunition and the Rebels are charging again in an effort to take Big Round Top--Longstreet arguing with Lee against Pickett's charge and being overruled--Armistead leading that disastrous charge in a last ditch attempt to break the Union lines--Lee's grief over the loss of men.

Recommended for readers of historical fiction and especially those with an interest in the Civil War.

The Killer Angels is a historical fiction work about the Battle of Gettysburg in the American Civil War written by Michael Shaara. I read this after reading its prequel, Gods and Generals, written by Shaara's son, Jeff. Like its prequel, the novel tells the story of the battle through the eyes of the men who planned and orchestrated it. This book is similar in tone to Gods and Generals as it gets right into the town of Gettysburg, through the posturing, confusion and luck on the first day, and staying with the armies throughout the nights in camp as they lick their wounds and plan their next moves. Whereas Gods and Generals balances itself well between the men of the north and the men of the south, The Killed Angels focuses much more on the south. The reader spends a lot of time in the heads of Longstreet and Lee, giving you a lot of insight into the broader plan, while focusing only on Colonel Chamberlain in the North, with other Union officers making only brief appearances. Due to Chamberlain's lower rank relative to Lee and Longstreet, the insight into the strategic vision of the north is limited. While the basic approach of the book is similar to the one taken by Shaara's son in his prequel, there is a significant difference to the flavor of the prose itself. While Gods and Generals covers the generals in a relatively personal manner, it seems cold and clinical compared to the way the elder Shaara handles the men he peers into in The Killer Angels. The thoughts and descriptions are broken, scattered and rapid-fire, much like the way they actually come in battle. Rare is the neat examination of one's thoughts on a topic or a thick, flowery description of the scenery. Rather, the sensory detail is blunt and in your face and the thoughts jump around as they do in real life. Imagine yourself on the field of battle, mind wandering during a lull, but still hearing cannon fire in the distance, or seeing men milling about nearby...your thoughts are likely to bounce as you react to the stimuli around you. And that is exactly how they are handled in this book. It doesn't jar the reader, however. Rather it slides the reader more smoothly into the battle. You're standing there with the officers, reacting and thinking as they do. It's a very compelling approach. The Killer Angels shines particularly bright during the many moments the reader spends with Colonel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain. Chamberlain, being relatively new to the business of war, is still processing many experience for the first time. The reader can relate to him in that regard. He switches between introspective thought and raw instinct and he always seems to reflect on his actions as an young academic would likely do. Interestingly, my thought as I was reading this was that the author had to have some military experience, and I was correct. He was a soldier in the US Army, and after that a college professor. So it makes sense that the stories of Chamberlain are particularly good, since the soldier-turned-scholar author probably related well to the scholar-turned-soldier Colonel. The other great surprise for me was the newfound appreciation I developed for Longstreet as a man and as a leader. This book is a great read for any fan of history, military history or historical fiction. I do recommend reading Gods and Generals first, since it sets up the characters nicely. I recommend it, though I do not feel like it is necessary. Also of note, whereas I think someone who did not have some background on the American Civil War might struggle a bit with Gods and Generals, I do not think that is true with The Killer Angels. The book is self-contained in just the battle of Gettysburg, and I think that the little primer the author gives at the start is probably enough for someone to understand and enjoy the book, but I strongly believe that my experience was much richer for having a background on the war and for having read Gods and Generals first. I highly recommend this book.

Fantastic historical fiction read! Wonderful characters and use of historical events.

One of the best Civil War books I have read. I thought at first I was going to be disappointed, but it brings the Battle of Gettysburg to life! Felt like I was there, and without playing sides, you feel the humanity on both sides of the war. Great read!! Had me wondering which side would win, even though the battle was 155 years ago!

Forty years since publication, how has this book not punctured the myth of Robert E Lee's greatness?

Great read. Put this one down to read every July 4th week to re-educate yourself on a significant part of our history. Then watch the movie "Gettysburg." I had the privilege of being at a dinner in NYC for the 20th anniversary of the Civil War Roundtable where the guest speakers were Shelby Foote and Ken Burns and they described the book and the movie based on Shaara's novel. The third speaker of the night who couldn't make it due to weather delays was the main funding source behind the movie, Ted Turner. His only request for putting up the money was that he wanted a small part in the movie. Burns placed him in Pickett's charge the last day of the battle. If you watch closely during that scene, you can see Turner get shot running up the hill along with the other Confederate's. Put this down on your annual read and movie list.

This book is often shown as being second in the "civil war trilogy", which I think is misleading: this book was written first, and the other two book in the so-called "trilogy" were written by someone else. So I consider this a stand-alone book.As a British person, I didn't know much about the battle of Gettysburg other than it was the first big defeat for the confederacy and marked the turning of the tide for the American civil war. I think the book expects you to know a bit more about the battle, as it makes comments that are ironic or pathetic when you know the final outcome.So I'd recommend that people who don't know much about the battle do a bit of research first, as that will help the enjoyment of the book.

A remarkable and unique re-creation of one of the bloodiest and hard fought battles of the Civil War. Shaara has you looking through the eyes of the officers on both sides, so that you can try too relate what the atmosphere was like during this conflict. It gave me a totally different objection about this battle.

The Killer Angels is a first rate fictional novel on the battle of the Gettysburg during the American Civil War. The book covers the span from the initial days leading up to the battle to just after Pickett's charge at the end of the battle. Shaara tells the story of the battle through the eyes of the major figures of the battle, General John Buford and Colonel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain for the Union, along with Generals Robert E. Lee, James Longstreet and Lewis Armistead for the Confederacy, so the story is mostly told in first person from multiple points of view. This offers a very unique perspective of the battle.

This Pulitzer prize-winning novel puts the reader right in the middle of the Battle of Gettysburg, the four bloodiest days of our nation's history and a place where more Americans were killed that were lost in the entire Vietnam War. Through the eyes of the major characters we are taken through the crucial points of the battle, including one of the most famous assaults, Pickett's Charge on Cemetery Ridge on July 3, 1863, the last day of the Battle of Gettysburg. Even though the narrators are battlefield commanders, they still manage to personalize the battle in a way that most readers will understand. This is historical novel at its finest and anyone with an interest in Civil War history who has not read this excellent book should find a copy immediately.

Sad, touching, humbling and moving. Probably one of the finest historical fiction novels I ever read.

"This is a different kind of army. If you look at history you'll see men fight for pay, or women, or some other kind of loot. They fight for land, or because a king makes them, or just because they like killing. But we're here for something new. I don't...this hasn't happened much in the history of the world. We're an army going out to set other men free."What motivates a nation to go to war with other nations? What motivates a nation to go to war with itself? Michael Shaara deals with this second question in his brilliant historical novel The Killer Angels. The battle of Gettysburg was one of the most important moments in our nation's history, and Shaara's novel brings it alive like few writers have. It is no wonder that it won the Pulitzer Prize for literature.By letting us inside the minds of the major leaders of both the northern and southern armies, Shaara puts us right in the middle of the action and helps us to better understand what happened at Gettysburg and what it was like. The Killer Angels takes a remote historical battle and makes us care about the people who fought it, and helps us understand the reasons they fought.Anyone with even a slight interest in the Civil War or military strategy should read this book. This is also a great book for those who have never tried historical fiction before. The writing never gets in the way of the story--it is easy to read, and moves along fairly quickly.

I dork out on history as it is, but Killer Angels is on it's own level. This is by far the best historical novel I've ever read. You feel the weight of what was happening on a grand scale and on a personal scale soldier to soldier. I loved it and I couldn't recommend it higher.

I began reading this book after my visit to Gettysburg and the realization of how little I knew about a part of American history that, growing up in Canada, I've heard so much about. It is a heartbreaking read but also such a beautifully written account of the battle of Gettysburg that I understand why this book has, at times, been mandatory reading for cadets at a number of military academies. This novel, based on actual letters and diaries, is not only a glimpse into the minds of those engaged in the battle but also a very clear telling of how the battle unfolded. I walk away with a much greater understanding of the complex issues behind the civil war and the people who took part.

The best thing about The Killer Angels is it re-ignited my latent interest in the Civil War which had burned out in the 1990s, after a few stints as a reenactor. I've been to Gettysburg many times but oddly never really studied the battle in depth. This novel, along with some online resources, helped me to better understand the general course of the battle. It's a fantastic gateway to Gettysburg geekdom.

This novel is the epitome of HISTORICAL in historical fiction. Shaara makes the major commanders (Longstreet, Lee, Hancock, J.L. Chamberlain,etc.) become alive, one has to stop and remind themselves that this is not strictly a history or a biography (in terms of genre). Many may not know that the 1993 Tim Turner film "Gettysburg" is the movie-version of this text. (Anyone who reads this novel, should also watch the "Gettysburg" movie in conjunction or after reading.)

Outstanding. Do look at the maps in the paperback version or online to help follow the audio book.

The Killer Angels is a remarkable work of fiction. The author explores the personal dynamics of the leaders and soldiers who fought at Gettysburg. While there are some minor errors in the history portayed, the overall story is true to history. This is a must-read for anyone interested in the Civil War. The author does vindicate Longstreet, but also demonstrates the rise of the Lost Cause motif.

An all around great listen! Compelling story and I liked the narrator.

This is a tricky book to rate - I will say that, just like in Gods and Generals, I tended to zone out a bit when the author goes into extreme detail about brigades, their positioning. The play-by-play of the battles are mostly for Civil War buffs, which I am not one of them. I do, however, enjoy learning about history and the Civil War and aside from a few repetitive bits, this is a tremendous book. Passages like the opening chapter of the Spy, or the chapter featuring the Englishmen, or Armistead's final chapter are masterful, beautiful writing. I had to stop several times at the gorgeous prose and tragedy of the whole battle. Shaara does a terrific job showing both sides, the chaos of battle and how the soldiers/generals felt. If there were more chapters like the ones I mentioned and fewer "and then they did this, and then they marched here, and then they dug in here" it would be an easy 5 stars.

Everyone I know who has read this book has enjoyed it, but I am not a war buff and I really thought that an entire novel dedicated to the battle of Gettysburg was a bit too much. But - I was wrong. This book is excellent! It's a wonderful peek into the minds of soldiers and leaders of both sides of this conflict. You get insight on why people fought and how hard it was to fight against neighbors and friends. Not a weeper, but definitely moving.

Well-executed, as an embellished recounting of what happened at Gettysburg...it seems well-researched, and gives insight into the minds of men at war. but it doesn't really have everything I look for in a novel.
I can definitely see that it would be LOVED by players of strategy
games, tacticians, and military buffs.
I doubt that there is a better book out there that gives a blow-by-blow recounting of the Battle of Gettysburg, so, four stars.

Jeff's father has written a book about just the Battle of Gettysburg. It plods in places but places one right in the battle. Clearly, the way Lee fought the battle was not the best way but amazingly, except for a few criticisms and his own admission of failure, Lee is not blamed. It's almost as if Lee was a god. Shaara insinuates health issues for Lee through out the first 3/4 of the book. He also describes a Confederate army that has no concept of defeat and an inability to accept its limitations.

Gettysburg. A three day fight in the middle of the American Civil War that was in many ways a pivotal moment that brought eventual northern victory. The Killer Angels focuses on each day of the battle from multiple perspectives: Joshua Chamberlain, the leader of a Maine division whose brother is with him; General Longstreet, a Virginian who argues with General Lee but does his duty as a soldier; General Lee, commander of the southern army who seeks God's will and fought for man and soil over country; and many others.This is the book on which the movie Gettysburg was based. Just as when I was watching the movie, there was so much going on and so many people that I sometimes lost track of who I was following. The maps were really helpful in understanding strategy, which gave a good amount of detail without getting overwhelmingly technical. Shaara's style was often staccato bursts of sentence fragments and not the prettiest-sounding prose, but his descriptions of warfare were heartbreaking and vivid.

It takes a great writer to get me interested in a military battle, generals, strategies, etc. This author makes Gettysburg come alive by making the participants into real people.

I loved this novel. The Civil War fascinates me, as I think it does many others, and it makes me so sad. The section on Pickett's charge made me bawl. I obviously don't ultimately wish that the South had won, but reading this made me want to yell, "Don't do that!" My heart broke for Lee and Longstreet and all the other Southerners involved in the Civil War. I have fond memories of watching this movie with my Dad, but the book blows the movie away.

Remarkable stories. One of my favorites.

This book was absolutley GREAT!!! I Recommend this book for anyone who loves History, The American Civil War, and historical novels in General.

Centered on the battle of Gettysburg, the novel sees the battle mostly from the Confederate perspective. The major exception is a reliance on Joshua Chamberlain, a personal hero of mine, for a the Union view. One can never rely much on a historical novel for a truthful view, but this one seems to carry the day on this battle.