On the surface, this is the story of a group of green soldiers from the hills of Vermont who responded to Lincoln's call in 1862 for 300,000 men to serve for nine months, and who found themselves, at the very end of their term, in the midst of the greatest battle of the war. What's more, at Gettysburg they occupied a key position on Cemetery Ridge and shattered the right flank of Pickett's famous charge. By doing so, they perhaps did "more than any other body of men to gain the triumph which decided the fate of the Union, " according to the New York Times. On another level, this is the story of ordinary men who confronted fire with extraordinary bravery, hardship with remarkable wit, and fear with surprising honesty. It is through countless letters and journals that we come to know many of these men and follow each through the war to his fate - sometimes tragic - at the final crushing battle.