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Sebastian Ritscher
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ON GREAT FIELDS

Ronald C. White

The Life and Unlikely Heroism of Joshua Lawrence Chanberlain

From the New York Times bestselling author of A. Lincoln and American Ulysses comes the dramatic and definitive biography of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, the history-altering professor turned Civil War hero.
Considered one of the most popular Union soldiers, and one of the North's greatest heroes of the Civil War, Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain is familiar to millions through Michael Shaara's The Killer Angels, and Ken Burn's miniseries, The Civil War. Now, New York Times bestselling author, Ronald C. White, delivers the dramatic and definitive biography of this enigmatic professor turned Civil War hero.

Chamberlain was a trained minister and mild-mannered professor at Bowdoin College when he, shockingly, volunteered to join the Union army. Wounded just on the second day at Gettysburg, after running out of ammunition, Chamberlain was told he would die, however, he survived and went on to become the Governor of Main four times and served as President of Bowdoin College.

This is the story of the life of General Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain that history buffs were craving. From his rural upbringing in Maine to his empathetic-style military leadership and post-war careers, Ronald C. White explores how this enigmatic figure carved out a purposeful civilian life after experiencing the highs and lows of war.

As many critics believed that White's AMERICAN ULYSSES was the Grant biography of our times, we believe ON GREAT FIELDS will prove to be the Chamberlain biography of our times!

Ronald C. White is the author of two New York Times bestselling presidential biographies, A. LINCOLN: A Biography (Random House, 2009) and AMERICAN ULYSSES: A Life of Ulysses S. Grant (Random House, 2016), which won the William Henry Seward Award for "Excellence in Civil War Biography". He has also written Lincoln's Greatest Speech: The Second Inaugural [2002], a New York Times Notable Book, The Eloquent President: A Portrait of Lincoln Through His Words [2005], a Los Angeles Times bestseller, and Lincoln in Private: What His Most Personal Reflections Tell Us About Our Greatest President [2021], recipient of the 2021 Barnondess/Lincoln award.
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Book

Published 2023-10-31 by Random House

Book

Published 2023-10-31 by Random House

Comments

America's Civil War recently spoke with White about his new book and what he learned about the "Lion of Round Top." Read more...

Mónica talks to historian Ron C. White to find out how our nation's most renowned bridge builder disagreed fully and freely with those around him while leading the nation through the Civil War. Taking a closer look at private notes Lincoln wrote to himself, the two explore everything from how to approach deep moral disagreements to what to do with your anger with the injustice you see. Read more...

Ron White does for Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain what he previously did so superbly for Ulysses S. Grant and Abraham Lincoln: vividly brings to life a history-altering American. On Great Fields is one of those exceedingly rare biographies that is beautifully written and superbly researched, as well as a truly inspirational tale. It is a phenomenal account of an extraordinary individual.

Based on extensive primary research, this book gives fresh insight into Chamberlain's life. Readers interested in the American Civil War and biographies of famous 19th-century Americans will enjoy this title. Read more...

[White] delivers a satisfying biography...A revealing portrait of an American hero who deserves even wider recognition. Read more...

Interview with author: A fresh look at Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain Read more...

Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain is one of the most famous soldiers who fought at the Battle of Gettysburg. Ronald C. White chronicles that story and Chamberlain's other Civil War exploits, but the distinguishing feature of this fine biography is its in-depth account of the varied achievements of this extraordinary American hero in a lifetime that ranged over more than eight decades.

By delving deeply into Chamberlain's intellectual and spiritual life, White successfully reconciles his subject's contradictory reputation as both a 'bookworm college and seminary student' and a 'risk-taking Civil War soldier.' Civil War fans and general history readers alike should take note. Read more...

Ronald C. White has given us a vital and vivid portrait of an unlikely military hero who played a key role in the preservation of Union and therefore in the making of modern America. From his bookish days as a professor at Bowdoin to the fields of Gettysburg, Joshua Chamberlain was a man of principle and of action, a surprising officer whose conviction and courage made all the difference. A marvelous book.

Author and historian Ronald C. White (American Ulysses, A. Lincoln) joins Daniel Ford on the show to discuss his new book On Great Fields: The Life and Unlikely Heroism of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain. Read more...

A thoroughly engaging portrait of the life and career of Civil War hero Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain. Ronald C. White demonstrates once again his mastery of the biographical art with a fresh assessment of Chamberlain's complicated yet inspiring journey.

Ronald C. White, author of acclaimed books on both Lincoln and Grant, has now completed his Civil War trilogy with a flourish. This evocative biography of Joshua Chamberlain manages to be both dramatic and understated - like the great war hero himself. Readers hoping for a rousing account of Chamberlain's heroics at Little Round Top will get not only a riveting, but a definitive version of that battle-changing moment at Gettysburg. But White also opens a window onto the 19th-century worlds of military service, politics, and academia, which Chamberlain bestrode with a unique combination of drama and dignity fully reflected in the narrative.

...Compellingly written in a story-telling manner, On Great Fields reveals Chamberlain as a living human, not a sculpted statue. With the background information woven so deftly into the book, the reader finds not a colossus Joshua L. Chamberlain striding through American history, but an ordinary man living his life as that history unfolds. Read more...