I won't be flip about this book, but I'm probably too old to have read it. I can now understand why it is so often assigned as a book report in school. It gives wonderful insight into the mind of a teenager who goes into battle and wants to be a hero. The descriptions of the main character's thoughts took me back to my own teenage years, describing well the myriads of trifling things that occupy the mind of a guy that age.
It's a coming of age story, as our main character - referred to as "the youth" - is worried that he will run from the battle. Will he stand and fight? Will he run like a big chicken? That's his worry. It's perfect. Looking at the Civil War from a distance, looking at the battles as an outsider, we see cause and purpose, we see strategy, we see a fight against slavery maybe, an insurrection perhaps, a great upheaval. We see all those things.
