ePub Stand to It and Give Them Hell: Gettysburg as the Soldiers Experienced it from Cemetery Ridge to Little Round Top; July 2; 1863 by John Michael Priest in History

Review

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful. An outstanding history of the second day of combat at Gettysburg; July 2; 1863By Joe OwenOutstanding history of the intense fighting at Gettysburg on July 2; 1863. Mike Priest gives a fascinating account of the intensive bloody battle on the fields of Gettysburg between the Army of the Potomac and the Army of Northern Virginia. The author gives a time frame and location of all the fighting during the second day of the battle. Giving the soldiers and commanders history of the action. The regiments both north and south hammered away at each other all over the vicinity such as the Peach Orchard; the Round Tops; the Wheatfield and the other locations. The narrative of the action is captivating and you are right in the action of the troops that fought against each other. The author has superb end notes; citations and bibliography based on the soldiers account of the battle. It is an intense read that draws you in the battle and you feel that you are witnessing the charges; defense; artillery barrages; and the hand-to-hand fighting that took place.It took years of great research from Mike Priest to write this book based on the soldiers accounts; hundreds of personal accounts; newspaper articles; manuscripts and memoirs from the soldiers of the AoP and the ANV and Mr. Priest has woven them together to make an outstanding account of the second day of fighting at Gettysburg on July 2; 1863.Mr. Priest as noted before did an excellent job citing the resources for the book and this greatly enhances the accuracy of the soldiers accounts of the battle.I can't recommend this book highly enough to anyone interested in the Battle of Gettysburg. It is a must read for the Civil War scholar; student; and historian and compliments the top books about the battle from the notable authors of the battle such as Coddington; Pfanz; Mingus; Petruzzi; Coco; and Wittenburg and other fine authors.Mike Priest is called the "Ernie Pyle of the Civil War" by noted National Park Historian Emeritus Ed Bearss. After reading this fine book and the other great books by Mike Priest I definitely agree with Mr. Bearss. A truly outstanding account of the fighting on July 2; 1863 at Gettysburg. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Chaos; Courage and SlaughterBy J. GroenThis is an excellent study of the 2nd day of the Battle of Gettysburg; focused on the attack by Longstreet and the defense of the well known locations - Little Round Top; Devil's Den; the Wheatfield and the Peach Orchard. Told through the eyewitness experiences of those who experienced the battle at all levels but mostly focused on individual soldiers; what comes through is a very accurate assessment of what happened.What comes through is what General Longstreet said during the Gettysburg movie - "it wasn't that close". Typically; books that are written about this battle from the top down; i.e. from the General's perspective; give the impression that the Confederates almost won on July 2nd; but they didn't and this book highlights that.Instead what happened; as usually occurred in a Civil War battle; was individual courage; a lot of chaos and a substantial amount of slaughter.Courage - continued stories of individual soldiers who kept fighting until they were shot and killed or wounded; General Barksdale being wounded but staying on his horse (because he couldn't walk due to his wounds) to lead his troops and making himself a target until he was wounded mortally; General Vincent; calmly standing next to his soldiers stopping a charge with nothing but a riding whip to defend himself - and their more and more of these stories.Chaos - their were no defined lines for regiments and brigades as units became mixed up; and often marched beyond their support to get surrounded and decimated. The Wheatfield had a number of these examples.And; Slaughter - there are numerous examples provided of soldiers being beheaded by cannon shot; diemboweled and dismembered; soldiers being shot in the head and their brains splattering all over their compatriots. The fact that these individuals who experienced this still continued fighting is also an example of the courage that they exhibited.There are many books written about the battle of Gettysburg; and I have read many of them. This is one of my favorites.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Excellent work on the second days actionsBy GeneTA great book to sit down and read with a map sat out in front of you! My choice was the McElfresh map as I find it one of the best. Yes the book is a bit choppy and hard at times to keep straight but you must remember it's NOT a novel! It's actually a nice study guide! I read and reread sections a number of times so as to get a clearer image of what was happening where and by whom. Again; a good map makes the read even more interesting. I started the book right after a trip to the battlefield and find myself wanting to go back with the book in hand to wander and read. All the personal anecdotes add that human touch and makes the read much more than a rigid; boring "They were here at this time and did this" type of book.I WILL reread this a number of times I'm sure and always with my map(s) set out in front of me!I highly recommend the book especially for one who has a solid understanding of the second days field.One who just picks it up without any or much knowledge most likely will not enjoy it as much.Dig in; read and reread. Digest it all and come away alot more knowledgeable on the second day of Gettysburg! Oh yeah...don't forget your map!