"Bloody Bill Anderson: The Short, Savage Life of a Civil War Guerrilla" was a great book from beginning to end. Civil War literature is severely lacking in anything about Bill Anderson relying more on legend and myth than real life. This book corrects some of that. I enjoyed every minute of it. My only complaint is that it was too short, but, then again, so was Bloody Bill's life. It ties in well with the other Missouri guerrillas who went on the greater infamy after the war. The brutality of the irregular war in Missouri is very clear in the pages of this book.
As a student of the Civil War in Missouri, I was enthralled with every page of the book. It is very well written and documented. Relying heavily on the Official Record, contemporary news reports, and eyewitness accounts, this may be the definitive book on Bill Anderson. I recommend it highly!
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