This is the best presidential memoir written, once earning praise from no less than Mark Twain… Grant wrote in a clear and logical style, much as he issued orders, which brings the day-to-day challenges and tremors of war to his readership with never a suggestion of embellishment. “espect for Grant can only be reinforced by reading… The Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant Presidential Library at Mississippi State, for its invaluable notes identifying almost every personage mentioned by Grant, expanding on incidents and events Grant glosses over and even correcting his occasional misstatements. “Of the many editions of the memoirs, I recommend the annotated edition published by Harvard University Press overseen by John F. He was a man who could cringe at the cruelty of a bullfight but was willing to send men into certain slaughter to gain a riverbank, a man who understood both dignity and disgrace. Whatever Grant hides in his memoir is less than what he reveals. Grant’s ability to be empathetic and ruthless in the span of a few sentences-coolly calculating the costs of losing lives against the benefits of pushing on testing what Southerners could bear and what would make them break-is consistently on display. Grant’s assessment of the Civil War and the decisions that went into its waging is mostly brisk and engaging, but what really compelled me through the book were the psychological insights on nearly every page-both of the prominent men whom Grant encountered and of the masses of people whose desires and fears he recognized, sympathized with, and often exploited. There is a level of intimacy that no amount of confessional writing could guarantee. “Grant’s style is direct and plain, but it has a kind of quiet music to it, the indescribable quality of an authentic voice. White, author of American Ulysses: A Life of Ulysses S. Their annotated edition will increase appreciation among both longtime admirers and a new generation discovering why Grant is winning his deserved place among American leaders. Renowned Civil War historian John Marszalek and his team of editors are owed our gratitude. “If Mark Twain called Grant’s Memoirs ‘a great, unique and unapproachable literary masterpiece,’ The Complete Annotated Edition is its ‘unique’ companion. “ new edition, the most thoroughly annotated ever produced, provides the general reader and scholar alike with detailed access to the general’s early life and military career. If Grant’s voice is never confessional, it almost never rings false… Grant’s style is strikingly modern in its economy. “A richly annotated new edition… What gives this peculiarly reticent book its power? Above all, authenticity. Grant Presidential Library are building a formidable array of books illuminating many aspects of the general’s life. Marszalek and the folks at the Ulysses S. The book is deeply researched, but it introduces its scholarship with a light touch that never interferes with the reader’s enjoyment of Grant’s fluent narrative. Grant’s Personal Memoirs, this fine volume leaps straight onto the roster of essential reading for anyone even vaguely interested in Grant and the Civil War. “As the first fully annotated edition of Ulysses S.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |