one of the best . a be a fan of the civil war and i be very pleased with the first installment of the north and south trilogy . patrick swayze give and extraordinary performance and as well a james reed and leslie ann down . in watch this fabulous story unfold into a time never forget and the subject of love and passion and grief and shame and harmony and and cruelty come to life . i be first introduce to this series when i be in the eighth grade . be a young boy and you would think that i wouldn not have be interested in this civil war soap . to be honest and this story steal the heart of every one in my class and and this be just the first book . i buy the novel and study the like and difference and it be awesome . i be 17 now and still enjoy the story and character and subject and and remember the time of the civil war . a a movie director of the future and i will always enjoy north and south represent book one .