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(More customer reviews)Larry Sklenar's "To Hell with Honor: Custer and the Little Bighorn" is a boldly presented picture of the most famous battle of America's Indian Wars. As might be expected after more than 35 years of study of the subject myself, I have more than a few ideas about the battle. I concur with much of what Sklenar writes, but disagree with other parts. He has come up with some definitely new twists on the old story, and for this reason his book should be read by anyone seriously interested in the Little Bighorn.
Sklenar's basic stance can be characterized as strongly pro-Custer, and he sharply criticizes Custer's two principal subordinates, Major Marcus Reno and Captain Frederick Benteen. And I personally won't disagree with that view. His analyses of Reno's and Benteen's actions (or inactions) are arguably the strongest portions of the entire book.
Sklenar has reached some quite startling conclusions regarding Custer's initial battle plan and the position occupied by the rest of the regiment during their abortive effort to locate Custer late in the day. Frankly, I do not think that the primary evidence supports Sklenar's deductions about these points, but I would encourage Little Bighorn students to read what he has to say, then evaluate the questions for themselves. His reconstruction of the fight by Custer's battalion, on the other hand, does not break much new ground, and is in good agreement with a number of books in recent years.
All in all, it is a Little Bighorn analysis worth adding to the bookshelf, but I would urge the reader to go beyond the book to read the actual evidence before deciding whether all of Sklenar's conclusions are valid. People have been writing about this battle for nearly 125 years, and no one ever has the last word.
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