Winston Groom has established himself unquestionably as heir to the late Shelby Foote with this commanding, thoroughly entertaining narrative account of the epic struggle for control of the Mississippi River during the Civil War. And, wow, what a fantastic read it is!

The argument about when the tide turned -- Gettysburg or Vicksburg --is almost as old as the war itself. In the popular imagination, Gettysburg clearly holds sway, largely because of the drama and compactness of the battle (it took three days compared with Vicksburg's three months) and because of Abraham Lincoln's iconic address at the site four months later.

But a more accurate reading is to be found among the participants themselves. In the South, Gettysburg was viewed not as "the high water mark," but as a setback from which Gen. Robert E. Lee's army retired intact. The meaning of Vicksburg, on the other hand, was crystal clear: It cleaved the Confederacy in two, separating the huge and vital areas west of the river from the eastern theater and allowing federal forces to use the network of rivers to destroy the Confederate economy, carry the war directly to the civilian population and defeat Confederate arms in the lower South in detail.

"The fate of the Confederacy was sealed at Vicksburg," Ulysses S. Grant wrote in his memoirs. If anyone would have known, he would have. His comrade in arms (some would say his alter ego), William T. Sherman, was characteristically blunt: "Vicksburg should have ended the war; but the rebel leaders were mad."

Groom places the campaign within the context of the war, giving the reader a refreshing take on the causes of the conflict, the paths that led the principal figures to the struggle for the "Confederate Gibraltar" and the skills (or lack thereof) they brought with them. Moreover, the adept use of primary sources gives the reader a genuine you-are-there feel that is unique in this genre.

Perspective is what makes this book a serious cut above previous works on the subject. Reading "Vicksburg 1863" is like spending a couple of evenings alone with Groom as he tells you a story dear to his heart. It is intimate, quirky, utterly fascinating and, ultimately, deeply personal. His outstanding narrative skills make the canvas of war come alive.

That canvas includes, of course, the central figures, whom Groom seems to have known personally, but it shimmers with the rich texture and vivid colors that come with the harrowing stories of the civilians caught up in the siege and the trials of the common soldiers of the opposing armies whose desperate struggles have never been told like this.

You needn't be a Civil War buff to relish the exceptional writing here. One would have expected no less from the author of "Forrest Gump," "Shrouds of Glory" and "Patriotic Fire." Foote would have agreed.

Michael J. Bonafield, who lives in Apple Valley, is a lifelong student of the Civil War and a member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans.