From Trenton to Yorktown: Turning Points of the Revolutionary War

Maass (National Museum of the U.S. Army; The Battle of Guilford Courthouse) draws readers in with a captivating narrative about crucial moments that shaped the American Revolutionary War. His book’s literary quality is praiseworthy, as is his ability to marry historical facts with an engaging, informative tale. Maass covers the familiar events of the war with original research drawing on primary source s(personal letters, military dispatches, government documents), all of which construct an intense and genuine portrayal of the era for readers to better understand what motivated specific men—George Washington, Nathanael Green, and Lord Cornwallis, for example—and the complexities of leadership during wartime. This book also contextualizes the war’s turning points and skillfully demonstrates how those pivotal moments influenced subsequent developments. Maass gives readers insight into the war’s overall course and the consequences that shaped the outcome. Other valuable aspects of the book are its extensive bibliography and endnotes.