Some of America's foremost historians - including Bruce Catton, David McCullough, James McPherson and Stephen Sears – tell extraordinary stories of courage, disaster, and triumph in this collection of the best articles from sixty years of American Heritage. The Civil War posed a critical test of the young nation's character, endurance, and will to survive. Coming only two generations after the nation's founding, the secession of Southern states challenged the very existence of the United States. "America's most monumental drama and morality tale" comes alive in this brilliant collection from America's leading history magazine, as selected by its current editor-in-chief, Edwin S. Grosvenor.