To Purge This Land With Blood: A Biography of John Brown FROM THE PUBLISHER
One hundred thirty-five years after his epochal Harpers Ferry raid to free the slaves, John Brown is still one of the most controversial figures in American history. In 1970, Stephen B. Oates wrote what has come to be recognized as the definitive biography of Brown, a balanced assessment that captures the man in all his complexity. The book is now back in print in an updated edition with a new prologue by the author.
FROM THE CRITICS
T. Harry Williams - Saturday Review
A major work, based on research in a wide variety of sources, including some manuscript collections not available to previous biographers. It is a full-scale biography that treats in detail Brown's career before he went to Kansas and his actions in that territory, as well the blazing climax at Harper's ferry.
Eric Foner - New York Times Book Review
Brown's life was filled with drama and Oates tells his story in a manner so engrossing that the book reads like a novel, despite the fact that it is extensively documented and researched.