New Seven Days Campaign Title

OK I admit it, of all the campaigns in the Civil War, I still have trouble following the events of the Seven Days. Yes I've read the major works on the subject and been to the battlefields. I;m just still uncomfortable with my grasp of it. So I took the plunge and have place the brand new Seven Days Before Richmond on my wishlist. I see only one LTer has it. It looks good from what I can see on Amazon. We'll see how this turns out.

It is truly strange that the Seven Days campaign receives so little love from professional historians. Individual battle studies are long overdue. I especially like the drama of the battle of Gaines' Mill.

Unfortunately, the campaign is an amateur magnet. From what one can read at Amazon, Seven Days Before Richmond could have benefited from an editor, purging the many (slightly) contradictory statements. An editor might also have asked the author to reflect about the following sentence (p. XVII): "The Confederate Army finally had a leader who could be respected and followed without question." I really dislike the authoritarian sentiment which has been creeping up since the Bush years. "Following a leader without question" is not only anti-democratic, it is also not good military practice. Kadavergehorsam is not known to produce good results.

Another new amateur title is The battle of Glendale whose Amazon preview does not invite buying it. See also the rather harsh words by the competition.

Should I buy the two books or not? On the one hand, I really like the campaign and would like to signal to publishers that demand for further battle studies exist. On the other hand, both books are somewhat pricey and come with visible defects ...

At the moment, Extraordinary Circumstances: The Seven Days Battles by Brian K. Burton remains the best if flawed tactical account, while To the Gates of Richmond by Stephen W. Sears offers the best short narrative of the campaign. Or is there a hidden gem?

Agree, I found EXTRAORDINARY to be pretty ordinary & GATES seemed rather tapioca compared to what I'd grown to from Sears (actually he seems to be on a decline to me).

How good are the maps in Seven Days Before Richmond? The title image looks promising if a bit too modern inspired (overland marching through swamps).

Have not purchased book yet, anyone else?

I'm about a quarter of the way into The Seven Days' Battles: The War Begins Anew (Battles and Leaders of the American Civil War) by Judkin Browning and am very impressed. As I've mentioned previously this campaign has always been difficult for me to wrap my head around. The author has great comments on previous histories and presents a steady, very objective take on the leaders involved. Recommended.