H. L. Mencken wrote in 1927 that Ambrose Bierce was "the first writer of fiction ever to treat war realistically." This realism was based in large part on his experiences as a Union soldier in the Civil War. First as an infantryman and then a cartographer, Bierce was a veteran of epic battles: Shiloh, Chickamauga, Stone's River, and Pickett's Mill, among others. While many critics have noted a strong link between Bierce's military career and his literary work, none have traced this connection in great detail. In this provocative new book, David M. Owens shows how Bierce's involvement in the...