In a message dated 7/24/03 6:25:02 PM Eastern Daylight Time, fran@ees.eesc.com writes: It's not really about the battle - the entire campaign, from Lee's army crossing the Potomac to McClellan's "pursuit", is covered in less than 35 pages. McPherson concentrates on _why_ Antietam is significant and a turning point, with the bulk of the book (156pp plus notes) discussing the military, political, and diplomatic events before and after the battle. Dennis: Thank you for the review. Saved me some money. That's one I can cross off my list of need-to-reads. Am presently looking for Priest's book on South Mountain. In due time... Sincerely, Mike Peters npeters102@aol.com