Sickles made a glorious comeback with the Civil War, when the regiment he raised distinguished itself time and again under fire at places such as Chancellorsville and Gettysburg--where, defying orders in a bold maneuver, Sickles helped secure the Union victory. "His tendency toward berserk and full- blooded risk was partly characteristic of the city he had grown up in, the age he lived in, and his own soul," writes Keneally. Admired by no less than Mark Twain, Sickles figures only as a footnote in many histories. Ably recounting his triumphs and defeats, Thomas Keneally brings him front and center in a tale that will delight Civil War buffs. --Gregory McNamee
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Background Information
Tammany Hall controlled the politics of New York City from 1854 until the election of Fiorello La Guardia as mayor in November 1933. Francis Scott Key was being held by the British when he watched the bombardment of Fort McHenry and was inspired to write the Star Spangled Banner.