Almost a Miracle: The American Victory in the War of Independence

Very detailed, yet concise narrative about the American Revolution. There were many tidbits of information I'd not read before sprinkled throughout the book. The style and tone were welcoming, with just the slightest bit of academia thrown in.

The book focuses more on battles, skirmishes, and such than it does politics. That said, the politics that are discussed seems far more focused on Britain's leaders and the decisions they made. Sure, folks like Franklin, Adams, Jefferson, Hancock, etc. are mentioned. But we got much more detail about what was driving the officials in London than we did those in Philadelphia (maybe because the American leaders were a much more loosely and novice bunch).

Author John Ferling also seems to take a show more different view of some commonly told stories than his contemporaries. For example, he doesn't think the Conway Cabal was as serious of a threat to Washington as many other historians.

Nevertheless, this is a very well researched, well written book about the American Revolution. Highly recommended! show less

Best history of the American Revolution I have ever read. Looks at all sides, British and American, French and Spanish, events big and small, generals and common soldiers and citizens on both sides of what really was our first civil war as much as a war of independence. Too many histories skip over that central point, and skip over the experiences of the individuals that actually experienced it first hand. This one does not. Highly recommended

Superb. Ferling writes with clarity and great economy and packs a lot of history *and* analysis in almost 600 pages. As the title would suggest, he believes that good fortune played a major role in the American victory. Ferling argues that Washington, too, was lucky. Intriguingly, Ferling has New England effectively winning their independence after Saratoga. However, he argues that the British Southern Strategy could have been a success with the Carolinas and Georgia staying with the Crown. Essentially, the Revolutionary War was a close run thing, with the Franco-American victory at Yorktown coming in the nick of time to prevent a likely peace settlement in 1782. For anyone remotely interested in the American Revolution.

This was a thoroughly enjoyable reading experience. Ferling's detailed descriptions of the battle lines and strategies are very informative but more maps would have been helpful. One account I found informative was his account of British Captain Ferguson's opportunity to take out Washington at Brandywine with clear shot to his back. He passed on it because he viewed it as cowardly and dishonorable as a soldier to do so. I found Mr. Ferling to be pretty tough on Washington both as a general and a human being. He describes him mostly as vain, indecisive, insecure, parsimonious, and obsessed with his own reputation. My guess is that, like most of us, he was all of these things at one time or another, but the author seems to me to go out of show more his way to point to these for almost every failure of the continental army. I guess it does serve to humanize Washington if you have him on a pedestal. His analysis of the war in the south is excellent and I especially liked reading about the Battle of Kings Mountain which was new to me. I didn't know that virtually all the participants on both sides were Americans, Loyalists vs. Patriots. Coincidentally, Ferguson figures in this battle also as he leads the Loyalist militia. show less

Real history

I appreciated the authors attempts to portray the historical facts with minimum inferences and assumptions. The use of various documents from multiple sides helped. I am usually skeptical of the accounts I read (both historical and current) and therefore I was pleased to read an effort to relate the events as fairly as possible. Recommended reading.

Almost a Miracle retells the military history of the American Revolution. But it is more than a new narrative of battles and dates. Instead it focuses on the strategic and tactical decisions made by both British and American leaders. Why did the British not fortify Dorchester Heights outside Boston? Why did Washington wait so long before doing so? Each year of the war is introduced with a chapter on strategic choices being made that determine the nature of the year’s campaign. Major battles are described from the perspective of why the generals made their particular forms of attack or defense.

I’ve read a lot of American Revolution history. I enjoyed getting Ferling’s spin on a story I love.

My complete review is on my blog, Nate's show more Library, specifically at: http://nates-library.blogspot.com/2007/11/john-ferling-almost-miracle.html show less

Excellent overview of the Revolutionary War. A fascinating read, I learned a lot.