The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara

 

Author: Michael Shaara

Publication Date: January 1974

Time Setting: June 29, 1863 to July 3, 1863

Pages: 344

Geographical Setting: Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

Appeals: fast paced and it deals with events that historically occurred

Writing Style:  Compelling, Descriptive, and Conversational

Point of View: Third person

Subject: United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865

Synopsis: 

Killer Angels follows Robert E. Lee, James Longstreet, Joshua Chamberlain, and John Buford throughout the crucial battle of Gettysburg. Shaara shows how each soldier profiled in the novel has an important impact on the battle’s outcome. Throughout the work, Shaara details how the venerable, Robert E. Lee is seeking this victory in Northern territory to propel the Union into peace talks. The book is very descriptive of the battle and what the soldiers endured during the battle.

Read a likes (from NoveList)

1.     The March by E. L. Doctorow

Union General William Tecumseh Sherman's devastating march through Georgia and the Carolinas during the final years of the Civil War has a profound impact on the outcome of the war.

2.     The Black Flower: a novel of the Civil War by Howard Bahr

Bushrod Carter stoically awaits each Civil War battle until the Battle of Franklin, during which the Union forces defeat Carter and the Army of Tennessee.

3.     The Final Storm by Jeff Shaara

While covering different wars, The Final Storm and The Killer Angels are richly detailed and gritty war stories about American military valor and leadership. They are historical fiction but include accurate historical detail alongside a compelling story.

Nonfiction read a likes

1. Gettysburg by Stephen W. Sears.

2.  Witness to Gettysburg: inside the battle that changed the course of the Civil War by Richard Wheeler

3. Gettysburg, the second Day by Harry Pfanz.