Description: William Shea offers a gripping narrative of the events surrounding Prairie Grove, Arkansas, one of the great unsung battles of the Civil War that effectively ended Confederate offensive operations west of the Mississippi River. Shea provides a colorful account of a grueling campaign that lasted five months and covered hundreds of miles of rugged Ozark terrain. In a fascinating analysis of the personal, geographical, and strategic elements that led to the fateful clash in northwest Arkansas, he describes a campaign notable for rapid marching, bold movements, hard fighting, and the most remarkable raid of the Civil War.
Review Quotes: ""Fields of Blood" is the definitive study of an important campaign that heretofore has not received the scholarly attention its significance merits. Shea's research is thorough and professional, his narrative clear, and his analysis judicious. This is a first-rate example of the historian's craft."--William Garrett Piston, coauthor of "Wilson's Creek: The Second Battle of the Civil War and the Men Who Fought It"