The Glorious Cause (The American Revolutionary War)

This is enjoyable and filled with history, of course. But it is not an easy book to read, because the author has chosen to write in sentence fragments much of the time, instead of the narrative flow we expect when reading a novel. Still, it adds texture, and the tension mounts as we become familiar with this unusual writing technique.

The author makes history enjoyable. I have learned more about the causes of the Revolutionary war in any straight history book I have read to this date. Highly recommended. I have already ordered the sequel.

I just finished the novel; it was terrific. Jeff Shaara has a real talent in bringing history to life. I believe that The Glorious Cause is Jeff Shaara's best novel yet. I was really interested in the portrayal of Cornwallis. In most history texts, Cornwallis is portaryed as a bumbling British officer.I did not want the novel to end.

It had a different format the most novels. It showed a great abundance of historical research. Gave me great respect for those who fought to make this country a country rather than a colony of Britain

Jeff Sharra presents a clearly written narrative of the Revolutionary War. Admittedly written by one interested in preserving much in his characters that is stereotypical, the novel does not vilify or damn those persons commonly condemned simplistic partisan accounts of the war, such as Cornwallis.

The examination of personalities was masterful. I was able to use so many stories from this book in my high school history class. I thoroughly appreciate the work of Mr Shaara in bringing to our attention the sacrifices made on our behalf.

The Glourious Cause is an excellently written book. It is a novel yet you feel like you are listening in on history on both the British & American sides of the action. Ben Franklin and his negotiations with the French; the Hessian involvement in the War along with other up and coming leaders of our country are all represented in the novel. The story flows and keeps you interested in wanting to know what will be discussed next; what action is happening and what suffering the rebels were enduring to free themselves from Great Britian. It has Politics, War action, Family relations, Government relations all interwined into a fabulous novel. If you are new to Jeff Shaara novels I would recommend reading "Rise to Rebellion" first as it leads right into the Glorious Cause. A great Revolutionary Read.

Working my way through the Shaaras' books; they have clarified the civil war, elaborated on WWII and now the revolutionary war.

They are authors you find once in awhile that speak to you, or at least it seems that way.

Jeffrey Shaara writes as well as his father. I absolutely loved this book. MY only problem with it was that he did not write much about the Saratoga Campaign. Hopefully this will be another book. Charley Clapp

This is a strange book, covering some of the most dramatic times and characters in history, yet strangely flat and devoid of tension. It covers the war portion of the American revolution and centers especially on George Washington, who comes across as humane and wise, the right person for the time even though imperfect.

The lack of dramatic tension plays out most especially in the battle scenes, which are oddly confusing to read. This is compounded by Shaara's writing quirks that continue to be distressing to me even after reading 1000 pages of his work.

Let me indulge a bit in the grammatical details (skip this if you're not interested). The specific problem is that Shaara has no sense of the correct way to string together a compound sentence, and writes 100s if not 1000s of sentences with the following pattern: [subject] [does something], [does something else]. This is terrible grammar and is extremely distracting because the verbs introducing the second phrase could often be read as gerunds or similarly. When one gets to the end of the sentence, it's necessary to go back and re-read it because it didn't make sense. This detracts tremendously from fluent reading.

Example (page 230): "As Washington climbed down from the horse, he acknowledged the polite cheers of the small crowd, thought of Greene, relieved that his subordinate was not accompanying him." The third phrase, "relieved ...", is most properly and naturally read as a modifier of Greene, its immediate antecedent. However, it is actually Washington who was relieved that Greene did not accompany him. The sentence would be better written as "... thought of Greene, and was relieved that ..."

That key connector "and" is missing in 100s of places. This happens over and over, on almost every page, making the book an unpleasant chore to read despite the interesting history.

Overall, I found it less enjoyable than the first book (Rise to Rebellion) but moderately worth reading if you enjoyed that volume.

This book should be required reading for anyone applying for citizenship. It should also be required reading for everyone in any branch of our government. We do not serve the government, the government serves us.