The controversy of General Custer and the actions that culminated his fate and almost three hundred men under his command has long been discussed and debated by many historians as well as important military officials all trying to conclude what happened at the Battle of Little Bighorn. There have been countless myths and legends of what occurred on that fateful day in American history, but there has yet to be a solid right answer. This answer is difficult to conclude for one reason, there were no survivors of the battle from Custer's troops. This led to the many different sides of story that were mostly fabricated by newspapers and authors to sell their papers and books, without much care towards the accuracy of the battle and it events.

The book, Custer and The Great Controversy try's to put into context the developing situations prior to and after the battle to get to the roots of these legends and myths to try and make sense of them. The author's goal is not to come to a conclusion and a theory of his own, but to disregard the myths and legends of the past and in doing so shed some light on the controversy for people who may have thought otherwise.

Utley achieves his goal by dissecting the myths and legends and leading to a better understanding of the Custer Controversy. Utley successfully gives the reader a better understanding of the subject leading the reader, if they wish, in the right direction of unlocking the mystery of Custer and the Battle. Brian W. Dippie, who is responsible for writing the introduction of the book states " There is no final word, no end to the Custer debate. But there is a beginning point, and readers of Custer The Great Controversy hold the key in their hands".

The author, Robert M. Utley, was first enveloped by the Custer legend as a seventh grader when he watched the movie They Died with Their Boots On. From there on Utley was devoured by the legend of Custer and determined to fine the answers of this mystery. By the age of twenty-two, Utley compiled his master thesis at the University of Indiana on The Custer Controversy: A Historiographical Story of the Battle of The Little Bighorn for the Period 1876-1900. At the age of Thirty-five he wrote the book, Custer and The Great Controversy trying to put the legend that has developed over the years into a format that explains the roots of these myths and legends. Utley believes if you can get to the roots of these myths and legends that were created in past and disregard them you can begin to solve the mystery of The Battle of Little Bighorn. Other books written by Utley followed Custer and The Great Controversy that concentrated on military and Indian affairs in the old west.

The author achieves this goal in a unique way by writing chronologically but at the same time wri

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Approximate Word count = 1095
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)