I was particularly interested not in the moral judgments that the North and South made against the enemy, but [rather] did they ever hold the mirror up to their own face and their own conduct, as casualties in the war over time jumped from hundreds to thousands to tens of thousands...?
For many American families, the 20th century was defined by two wars, as fathers who had fought Germany and Japan watched their sons go off to fight North Vietnam. The two wars have more in common than many of us realize, says Michael Takiff, the author of this book on veterans of both wars.
I was particularly interested not in the moral judgments that the North and South made against the enemy, but [rather] did they ever hold the mirror up to their own face and their own conduct, as casualties in the war over time jumped from hundreds to thousands to tens of thousands...? 
