James S. Robbins
Author James S. Robbins holds a Ph.D. from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Medford, Mass. He is currently a Professor of International Relations at the National Defense University in Washington, D.C. Robbins, a former Special Assistant in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, is a frequent commentator on national security issues for National Review, the Wall Street Journal and other publications.

Last in Their Class: Custer, Pickett and the Goats of West Point chronicles the Civil War trials and triumphs of West Point "goats" -- those officers who ranked last academically in their class when they graduated. By utilizing an impressive lineup of primary sources, Robbins sheds light on the determination and thought processes of these "goats" as they rose through the ranks and helped shape the American military experience.   Last in Their Class is a selection of the Military Book Club, the History Book Club and the American Compass Book Club.

Fred Chiaventone
Chiaventone, a retired cavalry officer and former Professor of International Security Affairs at the US Army's Command and General Staff College, is an expert on military history. His award-winning novels, articles and screenplays have garnered him with wide recognition and literary acclaim. Chiaventone is nationally regarded as an expert on guerilla warfare, counter-terrorism, peacekeeping operations and broadcast media. A historical advisor to film and television productions including Ken Burns' The West, and TNT's The Rough Riders and Two For Texas (winner of the 1999 Western Heritage Award), Chiaventone was also the Military/Historical Advisor and coach for principal actors for Ang Lee's Civil War film Ride With The Devil.

Chiaventone's novel, A Road We Do Not Know: A Novel of Custer at the Little Bighorn was published to rave critical reviews, won the 1999 Ambassador William E. Colby Literary Award and was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize in literature. A painstakingly researched and moving fictional account of the catastrophic Battle of the Little Bighorn, told in gritty detail from both sides of the conflict, it was voted "Best Novel of the Little Bighorn" by the Little Bighorn Historical Association.