An excellent look into Valley Forge, what took place before arriving there battle-wise, what was taking place once they got there, and also what was going on with the ordinary citizens and the politicians of the time. All had a hand in it. The research into this book is nothing that I have read before I had read just a small amount but nothing as thorough as this book, now having a better understanding of what took place there and in other places just makes the Revolution more interesting each time I read something new. A good book.

I am finding that the older I get the more I have started to enjoy reading non-fiction, specifically biographies and histories. And if you had ever suggested to my younger self that I would ever enjoy history, I would have laughed in your face. Ah, how we change.

Admittedly, part of my interest in this particular book comes from having lived for almost a decade in the New Windsor, New York area (home to Washington's cantonment - his last encampment) where Revolutionary War history is all around. Also, my visit to Valley Forge with my young family is still something we talk about. And also, strange as it may sound, there's an art museum in my community that has (owns) the Washington Crossing the Delaware painting that once hung in the White House. How can you not be inspired to know more about Washington, the Revolutionary War, and perhaps one of the most famous encampments, when you gaze at such representations of history?

Not too long ago I read another book by co-author Tom Clavin (<a href="http://lookingforagoodbook.com/2019/11/29/tombstone/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tombstone</a>) and just as I found with that book, here too I thought that the research that was done is just remarkable. The authors mention in their epilogue that George Washington and his aides produced 17,000 official documents, and having that much material direct from the subject, even though it is more than 200 years old, is certainly a tremendous resource.

There is a lot of detail here and it can be overwhelming (which is probably the number one reason I grew up disliking history) but for those who really enjoy reading and learning about all this history (my son would be one of those), then this is an absolute treasure.

I definitely came away with a better understanding of what it was like to be at Valley Forge with George Washington and his army, but I also came away with a new picture of the man George Washington and what he had to endure (from both sides of the war) and how impressive it is that he came out as he did.

And perhaps for those who already know history pretty well (I am <em>not</em> one of them) this maybe is old, common information, but I have a better understanding of what foreign governments, specifically France, contributed to the successful outcome (for the Americans) to the war. I attribute my learning of these things to the solid presentation of the material by authors Bob Drury and Tom Clavin.

Looking for a good book? Making history accessible and memorable is an art and the artists, Bob Drury and Tom Clavin, have done a wonderful job with their book, <em>Valley Forge</em>.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

The book gives a good overview of the Philadelphia campaign, so the title is a bit misleading as I believed Valley Forge would be the sole focus. However, I was drawn in by the history of the campaign itself, and felt I learned a good deal (I am as learned as I should be concerning the American Revolution), and to me personally that is the measure of a good book-will I learn anything new from reading this? I believe the answer is a resounding yes. The authors make good use of primary source materials, so we gain some new insights into personalities including the Marquis de Lafayette, Charles Lee, Horatio Gates and others. Overall I enjoyed this history and felt that it does add some new information to the story of our Revolution.

This recently published historical tome is an excellent look at one of the Revolutionary War's most famous episodes, the winter at Valley Forge. I was there as a child, and the images are still seared in my memory. That may be why I've always been intrigued by this particular historical subject. Drury and Clavin's masterpiece is a well researched and engagingly written look at the circumstances leading up to the winter at Valley Forge; the political, social, and economic landscapes and effects; and both the colonial and British experiences. Plenty of footnotes and maps detailing the military skirmishes furnish extra details that this reader loved. Highly recommended.

While I thought the use of primary sources was incredibly effective here, I found this book a bit complex and difficult to digest as a layperson.

The authors obviously did a lot of research for this book. They used a lot of letters and diaries from participants and there were many interesting details. There was a lot about military strategy, diplomatic negotiations and bureaucratic wrangling. It’s not that I didn’t learn things from this book, for example I had no idea that there were rudimentary smallpox vaccines and submarines at the time of the Revolutionary War, but how many times do you need to read that the army was untrained, cold and hungry? I found the book well written but repetitive. It’s probably a case of there being more here than I really wanted to know, but ultimately I enjoyed the book. I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.

This was an expansive and in-depth analysis of valley forge. felt the author did a great job of teaching us in an informative and engaging way about this most crucial winter in the birth of our american nation.

This book was well researched and well written! I live close to Valley Forge Park and frequently walk around and enjoy the history of it. After reading this book, I feel like I know so much more about one of my favorite places to visit and the importance it has in history.

As with all books dealing with history in almost any aspect, I enjoyed this book. It was hard to read at some points, but as an American I feel like the story here needed to be told and in the end I did have tears streaming down my face. This book lets you know what it's like and you feel for the characters in this book. And to know this actually happened makes it hit home all the more. Yes, it was hundreds of years ago, but you felt like you were right there with them. This was well researched and entertaining read. I would recommend it. 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Received ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review

Valley Forge is an excellent, well researched account of the Continental Army encampment during the winter 1777/1778. Its an interesting and detailed read about a part of history many have never heard much about other than a passing reference. Well written and hard to put down.

This is a wonderfully concise description of the event leading up to and the travails of Valley Forge. The authors have made a readable and enjoyable almost novel=like book that is hard to put down even if you know already what happened. The only irritant was the strange use of typography symbols to point to footnotes. They used the same symbols in each chapter, just adding to the number of symbols for each following chapter, such as %, %%, %%%, %%%%, etc.

This book details the events leading up to, during and after the Continental Army wintering in Valley Forge. The authors do an excellent job of making this history engagind and enjoyable. They clearly outline the challenges that George Washington faced not only from the British, but certain members of the Continental Congress who were trying to insert others in his place. It was a struggle for the army during the winter, but they perservered and eventually won the war. The authors do a good job of highlighting what happened to the main players in the final chapter.

I recommend this book for anyone with an interest in the Revolutionary War

I received a free Kindle copy of Valley Forge by Bor Drury and Tom clavin courtesy of Net Galley  and Simon and Schuster, the publisher. It was with the understanding that I would post a review on Net Galley, Goodreads, Amazonand my fiction book review blog. I also posted it to my Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google Plus pages.

I requested this book as I ahve read a great deal on the Revolutionary War, but not on this subject in the detail presented in the book.  This is the first book I have read by the authors.

Valley Forge is a good and intriguing read based on historical facts. It is easy to read and fast paced. I give it four and a have stars.

This is a readable, American, History of an event that most readers are familiar with. Important information and details about individuals, often in their own words, gives us new insight into who they really were. I found it somewhat dry reading but the huge bibliography should make any historian happy.

Great book for fans of the Revolutionary War! The book is called Valley Forge, but it actually covers the entire Philadelphia campaign in great detail. Shows George Washington's many skills as a General, a leader of men and a politician when he needed to be one. It documents the relationship of Washington with his senior staff, in particular Hamilton, Lafayette and Laurens. Gives much insight into life in camp for the average soldier at Valley Forge. It provides a post-script of what happened to the main characters later in life. Get ready to expand your vocabulary as many uncommon words are used throughout. Overall, highly recommend!