At Custer's Side: the Civil War Writings of James Harvey Kidd

Military Review, March-April, 2003 by Steven Leonard

Eric J. Wittenberg, ed., Kent State University Press, Kent, OH, 2001, 140 pages, $35.00.

The preeminent biographer of Brevet Brigadier General James H. Kidd, the quintessential companion and historical chronicler of General George Armstrong Custer and his Michigan Wolverine Brigade, returns with another glimpse into the wartime exploits of the "Boy General." Eric J. Wittenberg offers a collection of Kidd's speeches and writings that delve into the character of the legendary cavalryman and Indian tighter. From the dedication of the Michigan Cavalry Brigade Monument to a comprehensive sketch of Custer's life, Kidd describes events as only a talented and prolific writer can.

At Custer's Side is a companion volume to Kidd's memoirs and the collection of his letters. The book completes Wittenberg's literary efforts to bring to life the "trials and tribulations of the horse soldiers who followed Custer's guidon." In drawing his Custer trilogy to a close, Wittenberg once again explores the tragedy of The Battle of Little Big Horn, an event for which Kidd resolutely fixes blame on Custer's subordinate commanders Major Marcus Reno and Captain Frederick Benteen. At Custer's Side, however, is much more than a retelling of an epic of the Indian Wars; Wittenberg presents Kidd at his finest, as an exceptional orator and writer and as a genuine figure from a time long passed.

Originally intended to serve as appendixes to Wittenberg's earlier collection of Kidd's writings, One of Custer's Wolverines, The Civil War Letters of Brevet Brigadier General James H. Kidd, 6th Michigan Cavalry (Kent State University Press, Ohio, 2000), At Custer's Side is an exceptional first-person account of the Civil War exploits of one of America's most colorful military organizations and is a valuable addition to any library of "Custeriana."

MAJ Steven Leonard, USA,

Fort Campbell, Kentucky