This is the story of a young man of seventeen and his friends who lie about their age and join the Union Army to fight in the Civil War. They run away from home, are accepted into the army and go through the rigorous training. They survive a bitter winter in the mountains of Virginia, sleeping in below freezing weather in tents and sometimes in the open to awaken covered in snow. Their first battle is uphill after marching through a driving snowstorm. They fight a few more battles and are captured in a battle at Port Republic, Virginia. They survive months of near starvation in prison and parole camps before being reunited with their regiment. They go on to fight at Chancellorsville, Gettysburg and on Lookout Mountain. After several more short battles above Atlanta, they reach the end of their three year enlistment. During that time, they marched almost 1,400 miles, traveled about 1,600 miles by train and several hundred miles by ship.
Although written as fiction, it does follow the real actions of the men of the 5th Ohio Volunteer Infantry, known as the Cincinnati Regiment, and is full of actual facts of what soldiers endured during this conflict. Anyone who is a knowledgeable of the Civil War, or who is just a lover of good stories about our history will find this an excellent read.
