Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award! A thrilling, page-turning piece of writing that describes the forces conspiring to tear apart the United States—with the disintegrating political processes and rising tempers finally erupting at Bull Run. " . . . a major work by a major writer, a superb recreation of the twelve crucial months that opened the Civil War." —The New York Times

Chronicles the history of the American Civil War, starting with the Democratic Party's Charleston Convention in 1860, and ending with first battle of the war at Bull Run.

"...Tells the story of two turning points which made the Civil War the most tragic and yet the most important in America's history."--Back cover.