Reviews
"Remarkable and deeply researched. . . . Taylor masterfully captures the strangeness of this war." --Gordon S. Wood, The New York Review of Books "Easily the most sophisticated book ever written about a conflict that is often either neglected or seriously misunderstood. . . . Taylor's discussions of diplomatic and political maneuvering are woven with military set-pieces into a powerful narrative. . . . [This] book affirms his gifts for prodigious research." -- The Wall Street Journal "Credit Taylor with blowing most of the dust off America's most forgotten war. This is history with a capital H." -- The Seattle Times "A truly spellbinding narrative. Unlike other books on the War of 1812, [Taylor's] is about the hearts and minds of the people who planned it, fought it and lived through it. Almost every page brings a revelation." -- The Toronto Star "In this deeply researched and clearly written book, [Taylor] tells the riveting story of a war that redefined North America." -- The Washington Times "Comprehensive. . . . Taylor's account of a land war that roughly divided people with a common culture and heritage provides a new dimension for an understanding of 1812." -- The Boston Globe "An impressively accessible history. . . . A perceptively nuanced take on a war often forgotten or misunderstood. . . . Taylor offers persuasive arguments, a lively narrative." -- Richmond Times Dispatch "Taylor gives a fascinating account of the war and shows its importance to the fragile new republic in a book filled with stories about the people who instigated, commanded and fought in the conflict." --The Associated Press "Taylor serves up a corrective in [this] fact-laden account. . . . Nicely captures the confusion of a 'minor' war with major consequences." -- The Newark Star-Ledger "Taylor's beautifully written book offers a War of 1812 that's no longer an insignificant afterthought to the American Revolution, but its final, decisive act." -- Maclean's "As is his talented wont, Taylor puts the war into perspective, positing that it redefined the North American continent." -- Asbury Park Press (New Jersey) "Thoroughly researched. . . . Taylor illuminates an arena generally omitted from military histories of the war. Battles and campaigns do connect his account, however, which will stand history collections in good stead for a very long while." -- Booklist From the Trade Paperback edition., "Remarkable and deeply researched. . . . Taylor masterfully captures the strangeness of this war." -Gordon S. Wood, The New York Review of Books "Easily the most sophisticated book ever written about a conflict that is often either neglected or seriously misunderstood. . . . Taylor's discussions of diplomatic and political maneuvering are woven with military set-pieces into a powerful narrative. . . . [This] book affirms his gifts for prodigious research." - The Wall Street Journal "Credit Taylor with blowing most of the dust off America's most forgotten war. This is history with a capital H." - The Seattle Times "A truly spellbinding narrative. Unlike other books on the War of 1812, [Taylor's] is about the hearts and minds of the people who planned it, fought it and lived through it. Almost every page brings a revelation." - The Toronto Star "In this deeply researched and clearly written book, [Taylor] tells the riveting story of a war that redefined North America." - The Washington Times "Comprehensive. . . . Taylor's account of a land war that roughly divided people with a common culture and heritage provides a new dimension for an understanding of 1812." - The Boston Globe "An impressively accessible history. . . . A perceptively nuanced take on a war often forgotten or misunderstood. . . . Taylor offers persuasive arguments, a lively narrative." - Richmond Times Dispatch "Taylor gives a fascinating account of the war and shows its importance to the fragile new republic in a book filled with stories about the people who instigated, commanded and fought in the conflict." -The Associated Press "Taylor serves up a corrective in [this] fact-laden account. . . . Nicely captures the confusion of a 'minor' war with major consequences." - The Newark Star-Ledger "Taylor's beautifully written book offers a War of 1812 that's no longer an insignificant afterthought to the American Revolution, but its final, decisive act." - Maclean's "As is his talented wont, Taylor puts the war into perspective, positing that it redefined the North American continent." - Asbury Park Press (New Jersey) "Thoroughly researched. . . . Taylor illuminates an arena generally omitted from military histories of the war. Battles and campaigns do connect his account, however, which will stand history collections in good stead for a very long while." - Booklist, "Remarkable and deeply researched. . . . Taylor masterfully captures the strangeness of this war." -Gordon S. Wood, The New York Review of Books "Easily the most sophisticated book ever written about a conflict that is often either neglected or seriously misunderstood. . . . Taylor's discussions of diplomatic and political maneuvering are woven with military set-pieces into a powerful narrative. . . . [This] book affirms his gifts for prodigious research." - The Wall Street Journal "Credit Taylor with blowing most of the dust off America's most forgotten war. This is history with a capital H." - The Seattle Times "A truly spellbinding narrative. Unlike other books on the War of 1812, [Taylor's] is about the hearts and minds of the people who planned it, fought it and lived through it. Almost every page brings a revelation." - The Toronto Star "In this deeply researched and clearly written book, [Taylor] tells the riveting story of a war that redefined North America." - The Washington Times "Comprehensive. . . . Taylor's account of a land war that roughly divided people with a common culture and heritage provides a new dimension for an understanding of 1812." - The Boston Globe "An impressively accessible history. . . . A perceptively nuanced take on a war often forgotten or misunderstood. . . . Taylor offers persuasive arguments, a lively narrative." - Richmond Times Dispatch "Taylor gives a fascinating account of the war and shows its importance to the fragile new republic in a book filled with stories about the people who instigated, commanded and fought in the conflict." -The Associated Press "Taylor serves up a corrective in [this] fact-laden account. . . . Nicely captures the confusion of a 'minor' war with major consequences." - The Newark Star-Ledger "Taylor's beautifully written book offers a War of 1812 that's no longer an insignificant afterthought to the American Revolution, but its final, decisive act." - Maclean's "As is his talented wont, Taylor puts the war into perspective, positing that it redefined the North American continent." - Asbury Park Press (New Jersey) "Thoroughly researched. . . . Taylor illuminates an arena generally omitted from military histories of the war. Battles and campaigns do connect his account, however, which will stand history collections in good stead for a very long while." - Booklist From the Trade Paperback edition., "Remarkable and deeply researched. . . . Taylor masterfully captures the strangeness of this war." --Gordon S. Wood, The New York Review of Books "Easily the most sophisticated book ever written about a conflict that is often either neglected or seriously misunderstood. . . . Taylor's discussions of diplomatic and political maneuvering are woven with military set-pieces into a powerful narrative. . . . [This] book affirms his gifts for prodigious research." -- The Wall Street Journal "Credit Taylor with blowing most of the dust off America's most forgotten war. This is history with a capital H." -- The Seattle Times "A truly spellbinding narrative. Unlike other books on the War of 1812, [Taylor's] is about the hearts and minds of the people who planned it, fought it and lived through it. Almost every page brings a revelation." -- The Toronto Star "In this deeply researched and clearly written book, [Taylor] tells the riveting story of a war that redefined North America." -- The Washington Times "Comprehensive. . . . Taylor's account of a land war that roughly divided people with a common culture and heritage provides a new dimension for an understanding of 1812." -- The Boston Globe "An impressively accessible history. . . . A perceptively nuanced take on a war often forgotten or misunderstood. . . . Taylor offers persuasive arguments, a lively narrative." -- Richmond Times Dispatch "Taylor gives a fascinating account of the war and shows its importance to the fragile new republic in a book filled with stories about the people who instigated, commanded and fought in the conflict." --The Associated Press "Taylor serves up a corrective in [this] fact-laden account. . . . Nicely captures the confusion of a 'minor' war with major consequences." -- The Newark Star-Ledger "Taylor's beautifully written book offers a War of 1812 that's no longer an insignificant afterthought to the American Revolution, but its final, decisive act." -- Maclean's "As is his talented wont, Taylor puts the war into perspective, positing that it redefined the North American continent." -- Asbury Park Press (New Jersey) "Thoroughly researched. . . . Taylor illuminates an arena generally omitted from military histories of the war. Battles and campaigns do connect his account, however, which will stand history collections in good stead for a very long while." -- Booklist, "Remarkable and deeply researched. . . . Taylor masterfully captures the strangeness of this war." -Gordon S. Wood, The New York Review of Books "Easily the most sophisticated book ever written about a conflict that is often either neglected or seriously misunderstood. . . . Taylor's discussions of diplomatic and political maneuvering are woven with military set-pieces into a powerful narrative. . . . [This] book affirms his gifts for prodigious research." - The Wall Street Journal "Credit Taylor with blowing most of the dust off America's most forgotten war. This is history with a capital H." - The Seattle Times "A truly spellbinding narrative. Unlike other books on the War of 1812, [Taylor's] is about the hearts and minds of the people who planned it, fought it and lived through it. Almost every page brings a revelation." - The Toronto Star "In this deeply researched and clearly written book, [Taylor] tells the riveting story of a war that redefined North America." - The Washington Times "Comprehensive. . . . Taylor's account of a land war that roughly divided people with a common culture and heritage provides a new dimension for an understanding of 1812." - The Boston Globe "An impressively accessible history. . . . A perceptively nuanced take on a war often forgotten or misunderstood. . . . Taylor offers persuasive arguments, a lively narrative." - Richmond Times Dispatch "Taylor gives a fascinating account of the war and shows its importance to the fragile new republic in a book filled with stories about the people who instigated, commanded and fought in the conflict." -The Associated Press "Taylor serves up a corrective in [this] fact-laden account. . . . Nicely captures the confusion of a 'minor' war with major consequences." - The Newark Star-Ledger "Taylor's beautifully written book offers a War of 1812 that's no longer an insignificant afterthought to the American Revolution, but its final, decisive act." - Maclean's "As is his talented wont, Taylor puts the war into perspective, positing that it redefined the North American continent." - Asbury Park Press (New Jersey) "Thoroughly researched. . . . Taylor illuminates an arena generally omitted from military histories of the war. Battles and campaigns do connect his account, however, which will stand history collections in good stead for a very long while." - Booklist From the Trade Paperback edition.
