The Killer Angels

The Classic Novel of the Civil War

By: Michael Shaara, Jeff Shaara - introduction

Narrated by: Stephen Hoye

PULITZER PRIZE WINNER • NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The “remarkable” (Ken Burns), “utterly absorbing” (Forbes) Civil War classic that inspired the film Gettysburg

“My favorite historical novel . . . a superb re-creation of the Battle of Gettysburg, but its real importance is its insight into what the war was about, and what it meant.”—James M. McPherson
 
In the four most bloody and courageous days of our nation’s history, two armies fought for two conflicting dreams. One dreamed of freedom, the other of a way of life. Far more than rifles and bullets were carried into battle. There were memories. There were promises. There was love. And far more than men fell on those Pennsylvania fields. Bright futures, untested innocence, and pristine beauty were also the casualties of war. Michael Shaara’s Pulitzer Prize–winning masterpiece is unique, sweeping, unforgettable—the dramatic story of the battleground for America’s destiny.©1974 Michael Shaara, copyright renewed 2002 Jeffrey M. Shaara & Lila E. Shaara; (P)2004 Random House, Inc. Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

“The best and most realistic historical novel about war I have ever read.”—General H. Norman Schwarzkopf

“My favorite historical novel . . . A superb re-creation of the Battle of Gettysburg, but its real importance is its insight into what the war was about, and what it meant.”—James M. McPherson

“Remarkable . . . A book that changed my life . . . I had never visited Gettysburg, knew almost nothing about that battle before I read the book, but here it all came alive.”—Ken Burns, filmmaker

“Shaara carries [the reader] swiftly and dramatically to a climax as exciting as if it were being heard for the first time.”—The Seattle Times

A Killer War Novel

One of my favorite historical fiction novels of ALL TIME. I read this with my 13 year-old son and 12 year-old daughter and it was amazing. My kids loved it just as much as I did. It was tight, character-driven, and dramatic. Imagine my surprise when my kids are discussing the virtues of Team Chamberlain (smart, honorable, thoughtful, a natural leader) VS Team Longstreet (brilliant, ahead of his time, brooding, quiet).

The Civil War is one of those historical periods that is a bit anachronistic to me. It has elements of romance, chivalry, honor, gentility mixed in with the horrible stench of a modern, brutal war. There are characters like Lee, Chamberlain, Pickett, Stuart, etc., who seem to belong in some Arthurian myth/melodrama next to Longstreet and Hancock who could easily have been cast in some post-apocalyptic Battle Royale. Add to this, the fact that these were real men, with real failings, fighting real friends and the book almost seems to narrate itself.

Anyway, this is a top-shelf war novel -- it educates, it entertains (as much as a war novel can be called entertainment) and it is beautiful. There were some paragraphs I wanted Terence Malick to film.

GOOD-BYE, GOOD LUCK AND SEE YOU IN HELL

DYING IS EASY
Another perfect book to take on vacation. I wish high school history could have been this exciting and entertaining. I had read it before, but my wife had not. I liked it so much I wanted her to hear it. She loved it too. This puts you in the battle and helps you understand the reasoning behind it all. Be entertained and learn at the same time.

I wish there were more books like this.

This was an amazing audiobook. It is such a great book - a re-creation of the people and a battle during the Civil War told in a really fascinating way that you are completely taken in. It is well read (which to me means clear and easy to understand). This is definitely one of my favorite audiobooks.
My one criticism would be - since I was unfamiliar with who all the soldiers were during the Civil War, I had to concentrate to keep some of them straight.
If you are at all interesting in the history of America or just military history, you will really like this one.

Superb Historical Fiction

I happen to agree that "The Killer Angels" is the best fictional work on what happened in Gettysburg. After a while, I really forgot that Michael Shaara wrote this novel as a tale. I've read intensively on the Civil War and the American Revolution and while they were all great and informational, a historian can only go so far at narrating the story.

They mostly relies on facts, archives, and try to trace back what happened in a reportive journalism. Most historians cannot captive the audience with first hand battle. They are always looking outside of the window instead of being in the room.

Historical fiction is one of my favorite genres to read. Unlike studying on past events in our history, with historical fiction, you are in the fight, battles, and on the first line. I was extremely impress with Michael Shaara storytelling of Gettysburg, General Lee, Colonel Chamberlain and the war between the Confederate and Union.

Instead of reading about the strategy and what lead up to the Civil War, you feel like you are with the troops, marching the hill and not knowing the expectation to come. You get to understand both side of the Civil War by General Lee and Colonel Chamberlain. I was most interested on knowing about the Union side because most of our history are somewhat bias on the Confederates.

Also, instead of reading about constant blood shed, there are conversational pieces within each troops that make this book to be superb.

A magnificent book

I'm not a Civil War buff and although I have read a great deal of military history, Michael Shaara made Gettysburg come alive. While not avoiding the underlying cause of the war he does not use the battle to make a political statement or to try to interpret the underlying causes of the war through today's morays. He treats the leaders of both sides with humanity and dignity. He provides a soldiers perspective of battle and its and the people who fought there. The narration is outstanding. Wonderful historical fiction.