Enough graphic detail about the Civil War has been lost, never told or buried from the past. A very well written historical fiction book. This could also make another great Civil War movie, or better yet a mini TV series. A little hard to follow at times but I will still rate it at 5 stars. Mar 11, Adele rated it liked it.
I have mixed feelings about this book. It is perhaps better suited to a Civil War buff, as the flow of the battles, retreats, advances, strategies, became boring to me.
Historical – Phillip M. Bryant
On the plus side, however, it gave me a feel for what it might be like to be a soldier, fighting your fears and relying on your training and each other. The book juxtaposed the events from both the Union and Confederate points of view. I almost abandoned this book a couple chapters in because I had a hard time keeping track of th I have mixed feelings about this book. I almost abandoned this book a couple chapters in because I had a hard time keeping track of the characters, but I stuck with it and eventually sorted them out most of the time.
One thing that was particularly annoying was that some of the Union characters of German extraction spoke a mish-mosh of German and English, all in the same sentence. I don't mind foreign phrases in books, especially if they are translated by another character or if the meaning can be discerned from the context, and in fact I know a little basic German. But trying to wrap my brain around a sentence where every second or third word is interspersed with an English one was tiring, and needless.
I think the characters' broken English spoke for itself; and an occasional all-German sentence would have sufficed. Mar 11, Loretta Gabriel rated it really liked it. A story of the horror of war The author has written a story of the pain and heartache of our nations civil war. The author has done a great job of telling the stories of fear,bravery and coward ness of the soldiers of the North and South. Good reading for the Civil War enthusiasts.
May 21, Richard Myers rated it it was amazing. A wonderful interpretation of what happens when armies stand fifty or one hundred yards apart and just keep firing at each other. Also the personal relationships among the soldiers of both sides and the descriptions of camp life are wonderful. I recommend this book for everyone. Feb 21, Tom Davidson rated it it was amazing. The detail is exact moved nicely from unit to unit.
I could not stop reading it. Mar 21, maryellen belcher rated it liked it. It glossed over certain aspects of the battle and focused a lot on burial details after battle concluded. Sep 11, Deanna Gottreu rated it it was amazing. They Met at Shiloh by Phillip M. Bryant was a most interesting book and I liked the way that the story was told from the viewpoint of the enlisted men and not the viewpoint of the generals and other leaders.
All war is sad but for me the Civil War was extremely sad for young boys, some not even yet a teenager, joined the army thinking that they were in for a great adventure and that the war would be over in a few months. Those who did not die in battle or from other causes, lived through four lo They Met at Shiloh by Phillip M. Those who did not die in battle or from other causes, lived through four long years of bloody battles in which friends and family members were killed or seriously wounded. Most of the soldiers were poorly trained and in my opinion, at times it seemed as if the generals did not know all that much about what was going on.
Of course we have to remember that during this war, instant communication was not even a far fetched dream. I know that this was a novel but at times I forgot that fact for everything seemed so real and it read more like an interesting history book. I have to say that I enjoyed the last half of the book more than the first half. It seemed there was more dialogue between the men and I also liked the interaction between the soldiers of the north and the ones from the south.
At the end, it really did not matter which side they were on for most of their friends had been killed or suffered injuries that would be with them for life. It is evident that the author did a great deal of research before writing this book and this enabled him to made all the characters come to life.
Battle scenes were so well described that I felt as if I were behind a tree watching what was going on. The only suspense in the story was about which of the characters would make it home alive since the ending of the war is a known fact.
They Met at Shiloh
The author did a great job in telling how different cannonballs were used, how battles were fought, and how the soldiers lived and survived. There were a large number of characters which at times I had trouble following but at the end it all came together with the story being mainly about four friends, two from the north and two from the south.
I have read histories of how the soldiers lined up and marched toward each other killing those in the front and then the second row would start shooting. This has always seemed so unbelievable to me but I guess that is the way wars were fought for centuries. Something that brought tears to my eyes when reading the book was when brother was facing brother, one in blue and one in gray. I recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the battle that took place at Shiloh and how the enlisted men lived and survived the war.
The author does not take sides but presents the facts in an easy to read novel. Thanks to the author, Phillip M. Bryant, for providing me with a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. May 12, Stanley McShane rated it really liked it. Looking forward to visiting a number of our civil war battlefield parks or sites this summer, I downloaded a free digital copy of "They Met at Shiloh" by Phillip Bryant.
Doesn't matter the war, when they say "war is hell", the phrase covers them all. One of America's most savage, this brutal conflict was one in which Americans fought Americans--in our own states--on our own soil--and in the beautiful countryside of Hardin County, Tennessee. Through the well researched archives of our documented Looking forward to visiting a number of our civil war battlefield parks or sites this summer, I downloaded a free digital copy of "They Met at Shiloh" by Phillip Bryant.
Through the well researched archives of our documented history, Bryant follows both individuals from the Union Army and Confederate Army that includes privates, sergeants, and captains, among which was Captain Michael Grierson. Soldiers came from various areas of the north and south and formed into brigades and batteries, companies composed of rank greenhorn farm boys to seasoned veterans of either our own Indian Wars of the West to military experience from their native lands. A consideration previously missed was the propensity of first generation members sporting native languages; one of which permeating the book was German spoken by the strong German populations of Missouri.
Private Philip Pearson, a former Methodist minister turned infantryman struggled heavily with his faith while administering unofficially to both his pards and later members of the opposition in dire need of spiritual support. Pearson's private internal struggle becomes public with numerous open discussions with 5th Sgt. Harper, a nemesis from one of his former Methodist societies. The moral right and wrong of the conflict the subject of many discussions neither solves the conundrum who falls under the protective cloak of God or if both felt they were in the right, how could a side be taken by Him?
Skirmishes beginning April 4th, at Pittsburg Landing leads in succeeding days to violent and horrific fighting leading to devastating descriptions of the destruction of men and horses in numbers never duplicated in any of the succeeding wars America fought thereafter. Chapters changed the scenes between north and south camps and the dates as the battle unfolded in each soldiers eyes.
Losing huge numbers of their compatriots leaves each soldier so demoralized with the sights of bodies torn asunder and the smell of death they eventually lose their north or south grounding. The enemy looks no different. Together they begin the deplorable task of burying the dead and reforming in some semblance of military order.
The book definitely brings home this shameful piece of our history and reminds us again the cost to our people in creating the country we know. Recommended for civil war buffs but be aware it contains some very graphic descriptions of the sacrifices made by thousands. No one really wins. Sep 02, Loraine rated it liked it Shelves: This is an historical fiction novel set during The Battle of Shiloh, also known as the Battle of Pittsburg Landing, was a major battle in the Western Theater of the American Civil War, fought April 6—7, , in southwestern Tennessee.
The main characters are a small group of soldiers from the Union and Confederate side who are followed from beginning to end in this battle. There were parts I really liked and other parts that I found exceedingly tedious. Bryant has done excellent research on this battle. The various parts of the battle are explained in excellent detail. I am sure Civil War history buffs would find this fascinating; but after pages, I almost quit reading. I found the characters in the first half of the book did not seem to have much depth so I couldn't connect with them. The second half they seemed better developed and more interesting.
There is also some German used here and there by some of the soldiers and it is untranslated. Sometimes I was able to get the gist and other times the conversation made no sense. The book definitely describes the horrors of the Civil War but sometimes, for me, in too much detail. There were scenes though, throughout, that grabbed your heart e. The discussion towards the end of the rightness of war from a theological standpoint was very interesting. Overall, a good book for people who are interested in battlefront history.
It is faith that saves us from Hell and faith that instructs us to know where we go when we depart this earth. No matter what faith you grew up in, there is a need for Christ to cover all. Opinions are mine alone. I was not compensated for this review. Mar 14, Mike Cuthbert rated it really liked it. He lets the participants in each sub-battle tell the story by what happens to him and those around him. Except that there is little about the setting of the novel that marks it as Shiloh. It tells its story from numerous viewpoints, North and South, and the stories are cleverly interwoven but ask me to draw the battle from these pages and I could not reconstruct it.
Previous knowledge of the battle might help a bit to orient the reader, but nothing here does. Of potential interest is the portrayal of a division in the Army of the Tennessee of German and Scandinavian descent. One of them, Huebner, is almost simple-minded, another was raised in St. Their reliance on each other and their care for each other reverberates until the final pages when they try to re-unite after the battle. Another ripe relationship features a former preacher Pearson who has given up the cloth after a bad disagreement with one of his parishioners.
That most of that discussion occurs as men are dying and about to die focuses the discussion but adds little to the depth of theology in the arguments.
The battle settings seem real, the technical information interesting and accurate and the sense of helplessness of each man in battle is acute. Battles in were far from pretty, though many of the rookies in the lines thought they would be before they started, and the characters vivid. Battlefield novels tend to plot themselves—they follow the chronology of the actual battles—but the ones that move me most always maintain and reinforce a sense of place and where each skirmish or major segment of the battle happened and how it fit into the whole result.
For everything but setting, Bryant did a good job. Jul 16, Anthony rated it really liked it Shelves: A Review by Anthony T. This work was a very entertaining and an enlightening book regarding the battle at Shiloh, unlike many other books I read on Shiloh. This account was from the perspective of the fictional characters on both the Union side and the Confederate side.
It brought to the reader an account, though fictional, of the common soldier. Shiloh was a back and forth battle with the Union being beat back and then when the Union reinforcemen A Review by Anthony T. Shiloh was a back and forth battle with the Union being beat back and then when the Union reinforcements arrived the Union taking back the lost territory from the Confederates.
The untimely death of the Confederate General Albert S.
Something for Nothing?
Johnston and the new Confederate General to succeed him, namely General PGT Beauregard had a definite impact on the strategy of the South and the ultimate order to retreat back to Corinth Mississippi. This book is, though, not so much about the failures or successes of leadership of Generals but what the common soldier on each side experience. The book is about the struggles of both routine soldiering and life, death, heroics, cowardice and heroics in combat. The reader develops a keen idea of the characters on both sides and their struggles with both death and the philosophical discussions by ordinary troops discussing meaning of war in general.
The description of the battles and their aftermath were as graphic as any I have read in both Civil War fiction and pure historical works. The reader is transported their and can almost experience with all five senses the horrors of this war where men actually faced off against each other in the field.
The book touches on the inhumanity of war but somehow touches on the humanity of the common soldiers on both sides. I totally enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to the reader who wants to round out his understanding of the historical events with the pain and suffering of men on both sides of the equation. Mar 24, Scot rated it liked it. The author knows history well, and he understands the importance of religion and the significance of sectarian theological distinctions that would have garnered more philosophical discussion and personal reflection for everyday Americans of the mid 19th century than they certainly do today.
He attempts to give us an understanding of the perspectives as well as routines and experiences for a range of soldiers on both sides of the conflict at the battle of Shiloh, Union and Confederate. While I app The author knows history well, and he understands the importance of religion and the significance of sectarian theological distinctions that would have garnered more philosophical discussion and personal reflection for everyday Americans of the mid 19th century than they certainly do today.
While I appreciated the social and military history details, the sense of narrative plot was confusing and often plodding, as we moved back and forth between different groups in different places, and dialogues were often redundant or repetitive. Feb 01, Gerd rated it it was ok Shelves: The writing didn't really capture me, and there was too much of a "finding God" theme running through the story for me to enjoy it. But worst are the "German" parts some of which seem to have been created using an online translator as this is the only explanation I could find for passages like this: Same as The writing didn't really capture me, and there was too much of a "finding God" theme running through the story for me to enjoy it.
Same as in Englisch march can mean an action or a month. And I won't even go into the various false translations in place of the German: Jan 22, Crystal Rafuse rated it liked it. I have to say, the only reason this book is getting a three0star rating is because of the beginning. I had quite a bit of trouble figuring out who was who, and who was fighting for which side, as this book seemed to jump about a bit from chapter to chapter.
That being said, if you are a Civil War history buff as I am ,and once you figure out which character is with which regiment, and whether or not they are "Reb" or "Yank," you will easily fall in love with this book. Being a hardcore New Engla I have to say, the only reason this book is getting a three0star rating is because of the beginning. Being a hardcore New England "Yankee" myself, and only having visited the sacred battlefields of Gettysburg, I found this book fascinating!
I had no idea what those men had endured at the battle of Shiloh one I had heard about, but not in much detail, seeing as it's so far from my home.
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While I did find some scenes a bit gruesome, I also found that to be expected in a close-to-facts book about a battle. Very graphic, but at the same time, it felt VERY real to me. Overall, a fantastic story, just wish I could have caught up a bit sooner! Looking forward to the next book in this series!! Bryant 1 5 May 03, Recently Finished Historical 3 38 Mar 20, They Met at Shiloh promotion 1 11 Feb 11, Books by Phillip Bryant.
Trivia About They Met at Shiloh. No trivia or quizzes yet. Quotes from They Met at Shiloh. You know this whole thing is bent on surprise.
They Met at Shiloh, historical fiction
Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. They Met at Shiloh promotion. An apt name for a tiny Methodist chapel close to the banks of the Tennessee river. It has borne witness to christenings, weddings, and funerals. Its parishioners are thankful for their peace. Peace, that is, until Grant's Union army arrives to take up every available space in and around the church and on all of the community's farm land. Within his camps are soldiers that are simple, scared, green, boastful, veteran, and foolish, all hoping that they do not shirk their sworn oaths.
They are full of hope that soon they will sally forth and give battle to their enemy, thirty four miles away. Or so they think. Battle is less than a few miles away as another army of green and untried soldiers is marching, stealing up upon the Union army's encampment with the Tennessee river at its back and no hope of immediate reinforcement. These Confederates are full of hope too, hope that they will not shrink from their oaths when the fire is the most intense and their friends are falling left and right.
Battles are planned by the generals, but they are fought by the soldiers; the simple, the scared, the green, the boastful, the veteran, and the foolish. They Met at Shiloh is a civil war historical novel. In the tradition of Michael Shaara's The Killer Angels and All Quiet on the Western Front, you'll smell the powder and suffer the anguish of loss and understand why soldiers above all else prefer peace to war.
Grab the first and penultimate start to a journey through the American Civil War in the western theater and experience the war from the ranks as a soldier. Meer lezen Minder lezen. Klanten die dit item hebben gekocht, kochten ook. Pagina 1 van 1 Opnieuw beginnen Pagina 1 van 1. An Adventure of the Spirit English Edition. Amazon Media EU S. Klantrecensies Er zijn nog geen klantenrecensies. Deel je gedachten met andere klanten. Nuttigste klantenrecensies op Amazon. Each man must fight not only the battle set before him, but internal wars as well.
To the interested reader, to the person who wants to know more about Shiloh and the cog this battle fit in the larger scheme, this book may be helpful. Even more valuable, if someone asks 'what was it like to be a soldier in the western theatre of the Civil War,' 'They Met at Shiloh' is highly recommended. To the average reader, this novel may feel somewhat sluggish, especially at the beginning. Bryant brings to life the soldiers who fought for a variety of reasons, risking their lives for their 'pards' and their country.
Well researched, well thought out, and well worth the money. The Civil War novels I have read before were primarily from the view of the officers, especially the generals, but this historical fiction was written from the viewpoint of the privates and sergeants, the men on the front lines. The men who were being targeted with the cannons and rifle fire had a different perspective from those who were planning the strategies.
They wondered why they were there, why they were fighting their fellow countrymen. Bryant did an excellent job of expressing their conversations and thoughts. He also gave perspective on their lives in the military Bryant, who was a soldier himself, also had his characters express the thoughts, doubts, and sometimes arguments with fellow soldiers about God and eternity which is a topic that men would be driven to discuss as they watched men die at their side and contemplated their own mortality Another thing I appreciated about this book was that both sides, the Union and the Confederacy, were equally represented and neither side condemned.
The book seems to be well researched and contains many details about day to day camp life that were fascinating to me. I look forward to more from Mr.