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Book Summary and Reviews of To Try Men's Souls by Gingrich & Forstchen

To Try Men's Souls by Gingrich & Forstchen

To Try Men's Souls

A Novel of George Washington and the Fight for American Freedom

by Gingrich & Forstchen

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  • Published:
  • Oct 2009, 368 pages
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About this book

Book Summary

After two bestselling series examining the Civil War and WWII, Newt Gingrich and William R. Forstchen have turned their sharp eye for detail on the Revolutionary War. Their story follows three men with three very different roles to play in history: General George Washington, Thomas Paine, and Jonathan Van Dorn, a private in Washington’s army.

The action focuses on one of the most iconic events in American history: Washington crossing the Delaware. Unlike the bold, courageous General in Emanuel Leutze’s painting, Washington is full of doubt on the night of December 25, 1776. After five months of defeat, morale is dangerously low. Each morning muster shows that hundreds have deserted in the night.

While Washington prepares his weary troops for the attack on Trenton, Thomas Paine is in Philadelphia, overseeing the printing of his newest pamphlet, The Crisis.

And Jonathan Van Dorn is about to bring the war to his own doorstep. In the heat of battle, he must decide between staying loyal to the cause and sparing his brother who has joined up with the British. Through the thoughts and private fears of these three men, Gingrich and Forstchen illuminate the darkest days of the Revolution. With detailed research and an incredible depth of military insight, this novel provides a rare and personal perspective of the men who fought for, and founded the United States of America.

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"After hacking their way through the Civil War and WWII, former House Speaker Gingrich and historian Forstchen take on the Revolutionary War with decidedly mixed results." - Publishers Weekly

"Starred Review. Grim, gritty, realistic, accurate, and splendid, this is a soaring epic of triumph over almost unimaginable odds." - Library Journal

This information about To Try Men's Souls was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

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More Information

Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the House, is the author of several bestselling books, including Pearl Harbor and Gettysburg. He is a member of the Defense Policy Board and is the longest-serving teacher of the Joint War Fighting course for Major Generals. William R. Forstchen, Ph.D., is a Faculty Fellow at Montreat College and is the author of more than 40 books.

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