Americans at War: Eyewitness Accounts from the American Revolution to the 21st Century [3 volumes]

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Description

This unprecedented compilation of eyewitness accounts records the thoughts and emotions of American soldiers spanning nearly 250 years of national history, from the American Revolution to the Afghanistan War. Understanding primary sources is essential to understanding warfare. This outstanding collection provides a diverse set of eyewitness accounts of Americans in combat throughout U.S. history. Offering riveting true stories, it includes accounts from participants in the American Revolution, the War of 1812, the Indian Wars, the Mexican-American War, the Civil War, the Spanish American War and Philippine Insurrection, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, The Persian Gulf War, the Afghanistan War, and the Iraq War. Most eyewitness accounts of war currently available to the public are those of writers who enjoy higher military rank. Americans at War addresses this imbalance between officers' accounts and enlisted men's accounts by invoking oral history archives. Contextual essays and timelines allow the reader to place the accounts in time and place, while the entries themselves allow the reader to experience the thoughts and emotions of Americans who engaged in combat.

Reviews

For anyone interested in primary-source material from Americans engaging in warfare throughout the nation's history, Arnold's set is an excellent place to start. * Booklist *
By focusing on not only officers but also enlisted soldiers, this collection of diary entries, letters, autobiography excerpts, and oral history accounts sets itself apart from similar titles. . . . Readers will find it easy to locate documents, as each volume contains a useful list. VERDICT: Of interest to lower- and upper-level undergraduate military history students seeking primary source documents. * Library Journal *
It is encouraging to discover a source that provides better information than the internet offers. . . . [O]n any war one selects, the reader will be absorbed in pages of captivating reminisces. * ARBA *
The overall goal of this contribution is to not only provide easy access to such recollections but also place them within their proper context while giving a sense of what combat participation was like. . . . Summing Up: Recommended. General readers through faculty. * Choice *
2018 Top Community College Resource * Choice *

Author Bio

James R. Arnold is author of more than 30 books devoted to military and political history as well as the coauthor of the award-winning Understanding U.S. Military Conflicts through Primary Sources.