[.ca] The Passing of Armies: An Account Of The Final Campaign ... (ISBN 0553299921)

The Passing Of The Armies:
I had always wanted to read this book to discern what took place during the Confederate surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia. Needless to say, I wasted my money. Chamberlain, who richly deserves accolades for bravery during the Civil War shows how not to write a book. This volume is one of the most sophmoric, self effacing volumes ever perpetuated on the reading public. If Chamberlain was paid by the metaphor, he would be wealthier than Bill Gates! When all is said and done, the facts mentioned in this book take no more than 20 pages. Where some Civil War historians call Chamberlain's writing "sublime" and "melodious," I call "boring" and "mindless." How bad is this book? Of the approximately 40 books on the Civil War read, it is the ONLY one I threw away.

Not for those who liked Shaara's books:
For those of you who wanted to know more about Chamberlin after reading Killer Angels, Last Full Measure, and Gods & Generals you will be disappointed. It reads very dryly vs. the story-like read of Shaara's books. He might be a brilliant man, but his writing style is dry and slow.

Excellent Historical facts:
Obviously this is different from Shaara's works beacuse this is historical non-fiction and reads more like history vs. Shaara's excellent historical fiction novel which is more like a story then this memoir of civil war hero Lawrence Joshua Chamberlain. If your looking for a novel like Shaara's I wouldn't reccomend this book but if you are looking for facts and more about Chamberlain then I strongly reccomend this novel for you.

A well written account of the final days:
Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain's book is a well written, detailed account of the final days of the Civil War. (As it should be - he was a Rhetoric Professor at Bowdoin College.) The book is not for those with a desire to read a more action packed or anecdotal view of the Civil War. It is intended to be a historically accurate and detailed account of what happened during the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia.

A Brilliant Account:
This book is a brilliant account of the final days of the Army of the Potomac, and serves as a wonderful primary source reading. I aggree with the previous reviewer who stated that the introduction is completely unneccessary. Chamberlain may not have been above propaganda, but I do not think he would change the facts when he was in dying years (where most people tend to be truthful about events). The inference from the reader above wo calls this book "dull" and "dry" shows me that he may admire the man, but he has no idea of Mr. Chamberlain's personality.