McPherson brilliantly weaves diplomatic, political, and military history into a compact, swift-moving narrative that shows why Antietam was a turning point in our history. The book vividly describes a day of savage fighting in locales that became forever famous--The Cornfield, the Dunkard Church, the West Woods, and Bloody Lane. Lee's battered army escaped to fight another day, but Antietam was a critical victory for the Union. It restored morale in the North, crushed Confederate hopes of British intervention, and freed Lincoln to deliver the Emancipation Proclamation, which instantly changed the character of the war.
