The Last Full Measure (ISBN 0375403094)

Amazon.com Review:
As Stephen Lang reads the final installment of Michael and Jeff Shaara's American Civil War trilogy, he conveys the horror and exhaustion that overwhelmed the battered soldiers by allowing a hauntingly weary quality to color his voice. The Last Full Measure picks up where the previous novels (The Killer Angels and Gods and Generals) left off, after the devastating Battle of Gettysburg, as the Confederate Army begins a long and fiercely contested retreat. The author writes, "As the war enters its third year the bloody reports continue to fill the newspapers and the bodies of young men continue to fill the cemeteries. To the eager patriots, the idealists and adventurers who had joined the fight in the beginning, there is a new reality, where honor and glory are becoming hollow words. The great causes are slowly pushed aside and men now fight with the grim determination to take this fight to its end." Lang puts his theatrical experience (Hamlet, Death of a Salesman, A Few Good Men) to good use here, delivering the narrative with sincerity. Although his effort is occasionally distracting, he creates a multitude of voices for the many historical characters, adding an element of emotional authenticity to this exceedingly powerful story. Once again Shaara uses an evocative blend of historical fact and well-researched fiction to create a powerful portrait of the men, great and small, whose actions determined the outcome of the war. (Running time: six hours, four cassettes) --George Laney

a respectful finish to THE KILLER ANGELS...:
I've just finished THE LAST FULL MEASURE and it is a wonderful bookend to the Civil War trilogy started by the author's father in the Pulitzer Prize winning THE KILLER ANGELS and so respectfully finished by his equally talented son. THE LAST FULL MEASURE takes off where KILLER ANGELS ends as Lee brings his troops home from Gettysburg and brings us to the end of the war. I found this book to be the most emotional of the three, there were times where I literally had to stop to take a breath as the scope of the horrors of the war are so vividly brought to life. That's good writing. Jeff Shaara like his father has a gift of getting into the heads of the characters to the point where the reader has no doubt that this is actually who they are and what they said. Lee, Grant, Chamberlain, Longstreet are all brought to life and fleshed out to be the larger then life heroes we have always imagined them to be. Wonderful stuff!

Less Than a Full Measure:
I loved The Killer Angelsand didn't really care for the idea of the son adding to it with sequels and prequels and since then a whole series of historical fiction. This book has far fewer characters and it is hard not to think that the views they express are tailored by history and 20-20 hindsight. With The Killer Angels, you really felt you were in the moment. I wish I could have enjoyed it more, but I feel my time would probably have been better spent re-reading the Gettysburg classic.

Gentlemen Warriors:
This was a wonderful read. I learned so much about the Civil War conclusion, until I read this book I could appreciate the real situation of General Lee's army, I always thought he surrendered because of a political compromise and to avoid further useless bloodshed but I realized he really had no choice as his army was practically anihilated in the battles of march -april 1865. I learned also the ruthless pursuit of victory of the Union armies under Grant, that ultimately decided the issue. Grant really pushed through no matter casualties or personal reputation, ultimately puting an end to the war and to further killing. Lee was portrayed as a real gentleman at arms, almost as a knight of old, personally I would have followed him, his tactics sometimes were flawed or his secondary commanders did not deliver but he was the real spirit of the Conferderate Army. It was very sad to read of the destitution of his army, no food, no uniforms, but great spirit. In the end they gave it all for Lee but were swallowed by the industrial might of the North. I liked the portrayal of Chamberlain, also a gentleman soldier, very chivalrous at the end. This book really touched me, it was not a dry account of battles or meaningless action but the story of real men, desires fears, the grandious and the horror of fratricidal war. The vision Lee has of himself charging ahead of his troops at the moment of his death will always saty with me. Wonderful imaginery.

Breathtaking:
The perfect sequel to "Killer Angels." Spectacular -- you feel like you are there with Lee, Grant, Chamberlain, etc. This book kept me up way too late on way too many nights -- you'll have trouble putting it down. Michael Shaara must be smiling in heaven.

A Truly Grand Finale:
I had read both "The Killer Angels" and "Gods and Generals" when I started reading this. As such, I was expecting an excellent book and a grand finale to the Civil War. Jeff Shaara doesn't fail to deliver and "To the Last Fell Measure" is an excellent book. It primarily follows Ulysses S. Grant, Robert E. Lee, and Joshua Chamberlain. Naturally, Shaara would go through the months after Gettysburg rather quickly because Grant's Overland Campaign is going to be the primary sourece of action. I'm glad he did and he gives excellent views of the overland campaign. I could actually feel the frustration that Grant felt at lost oppurtunities that he felt were constant and Lee's desperation to turn back the overwhelming Union tide. I love how you can experiance it all and I enjoyed the time span from the fall of Petersburg to the surrender of Lee's army. Both sides are desperate with Lee trying to get supplies and Grant trying to trap Lee's army. I was sad when the book ended, but I compensated for this by getting other books by Jeff Shaara. To sum it all up, if you loved the first two books, then you will have to buy this book to complete the trilogy.