Personal Memoirs

by Grant Ulysses S

Description

GRANT ULYSSES S. Brand new. Faced with cancer and financial ruin, the Civil War's greatest general and former president Ulysses S. Grant wrote his personal memoirs to secure his family's future. In doing so he won for himself a unique place in American letters. Acclaimed by readers as diverse as Mark Twain, Matthew Arnold, and Gertrude Stein, Grant's memoirs demonstrate the intelligence, intense determination, and laconic modesty that made him the Union's foremost commander.Devoted almost entirely to his life as a soldier, Grant's memoirs cover his troubled years at West Point, his time in the Mexican War considered by Grant a "most unjust" affair and, of course, the ferocious, drawn-out, and celebrated campaigns of the Civil War. Amid the confusion and carnage of battle, the singular mien of Grant is ever present, meeting catastrophe and triumph with quiet pride, humility, and sadness. For their directness and clarity, his writings on war are without rival in American literature.

Book summary

Considered a classic of American literature and military autobiography, Grant's memoirs are an honest, clear retelling of the author's growing-up in Ohio, his graduation from West Point, his marriage to Julia Dent, and, most significantly, his experiences during the Mexican and U.S. Civil wars. This title is not a survey of the Civil War, but an assessment of particular incidents and leaders, with valuable insight into the mind of Grant.