The first volume of John Jakes's acclaimed and sweeping saga about a
friendship threatened by the divisions of the Civil War In the years
leading up to the Civil War, one enduring friendship embodies the
tensions of a nation. Orry Main from South Carolina and George Hazard
from Pennsylvania forge a lasting bond while training at the United
States Military Academy at West Point. Together they fight in the
Mexican-American War, but their closeness is tested as their regional
politics diverge. As the first rounds are fired at Fort Sumter, Orry and
George find themselves on different sides of the coming struggle. In
John Jakes's unmatched style, North and South launches a trilogy that
captures the fierce passions of a country at the precipice of disaster.