The Guns of September: A Novel of McClellan’s Army in Maryland, 1862

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Author/Editor:
Alexander Rossino
Pub Date:
2024
ISBN:
978-1-61121-476-5
eISBN:
978-1-94066-994-6
Binding:
Trade paper, 6 x 9
Specs:
maps, photos, 284 pp.
Signed bookplates:
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About the Book

Summary:

The Guns of September is a sweeping fog-of-war account about the 1862 Maryland Campaign as experienced through the eyes of George McClellan, Ambrose Burnside, George Custer, and other historical characters in the reconstituted Army of the Potomac. It is a masterful companion to Rossino’s earlier bestselling Six Days in September, which unfolded the day-by-day drama from a Confederate perspective.

In-depth Description


September 1862

After John Pope’s devastating defeat at Second Bull Run, George McClellan reconstitutes the Army of the Potomac and marches in pursuit of Robert E. Lee’s invading Army of Northern Virginia. The Confederates have pushed north of the Potomac River into the border state of Maryland in search of one more decisive victory that might bring about Southern independence. Fortune smiles on “Little Mac” when a lost copy of Lee’s orders falls into his hands, revealing the Rebel general’s plan to divide his army and capture the Union garrison at Harper’s Ferry. McClellan pushes his army and catches Lee by surprise at South Mountain, where he inflicts a decisive defeat that turns Lee’s plan on its head and his army back against the Potomac for a final stand at Sharpsburg on September 17. The resulting battle could decide the fate of the nation.

Alexander Rossino brilliantly weaves together these momentous hours in The Guns of September: A Novel of McClellan’s Army in Maryland, 1862. Readers live the high-stakes drama through the gritty minutiae experienced by a host of historical characters—including a diligent General McClellan, the hard-fighting Joseph Hooker, a frustrated Ambrose Burnside, and the aggressive George Armstrong Custer. Rossino also displays a keen understanding of daily travails undergone by the common foot soldier, including experienced veterans from Ohio and greenhorns from central Pennsylvania.

The Guns of September is a sweeping account, superbly written with a “you-are-there” sense that will linger with you long after you finish the book. It is a masterful conclusion to his earlier volume Six Days in September: A Novel of Lee’s Army in Maryland, 1862, which is written from the Confederate perspective.

ADVANCE PRAISE

“This Union companion volume to Rossino’s acclaimed novel about Lee’s army at South Mountain and Antietam fully measures up to its predecessor. Of special interest is its portrayal of the fraught relationships between McClellan, Burnside, Hooker, and Porter, as well as the poignant fates of soldiers in the 23rd Ohio, a regiment that spawned two future presidents and several other prominent political figures. Highly recommended!” — James M. McPherson, author of The War That Forged a Nation: Why the Civil War Still Matters and the Pulitzer-prize winning Battle Cry of Freedom

“Detailed and meticulously accurate. I highly recommend it.” — The late Ted Alexander, former Chief Historian, Antietam National Battlefield

“Deftly woven and intriguing. The Guns of September is well worth your time.” — Thomas G. Clemens, ed., The Maryland Campaign of September 1862, 3 vols., by Ezra Carman

A resident of western Maryland, Dr. Alex Rossino is an independent historian and author. He earned Master’s and Doctoral degrees in History at Syracuse University before working for nine years as a historian at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC. Dr. Rossino turned his attention to the American Civil War in 2011 and after several years of research, he produced Six Days in September: A Novel of Lee's Army in Maryland, September 1862. The book proved to be popular among historians and enthusiasts alike, leading to a sequel titled The Guns of September: A Novel of McClellan's Army in Maryland, September 1862, which came out in September 2024. Dr. Rossino also returned to writing history, producing Their Maryland: The Army of Northern Virginia from the Potomac Crossing to Sharpsburg in September 1862 (November 2021) and co-authoring with Gene Thorp The Tale Untwisted: General George B. McClellan, The Maryland Campaign, and the Discovery of Lee's Lost Orders, which came out in January 2023. His most recent history, Calamity at Frederick: Robert E. Lee, Special Orders No. 191, and Confederate Misfortune on the Road to Antietam (October 2023), completed his in-depth study of the Lost Orders saga from the Confederate perspective.