Crazy Horse and Custer: The Parallel Lives of Two American Warriors Book

Stephen Ambrose is one of the most readable historians I've ever come across, and Crazy Horse and Custer is a prime example of why. He gives these men life on the page. Rather than focusing on their battle at Little Big Horn and propagating the prevalent misconceptions of the men, he reaches back into their childhoods and beyond, into the cultures that created the men. He picks no favorites and presents the stories of both in great detail.
I particularly appreciated the work on Custer. This was the first biography of him I'd read and I enjoyed it immensely. Far from the buffoon he is often portrayed as, Custer was intelligent, ambitious and courageous. However, he was also the product of his environment. The pressures that surrounded him, socially, economically and so forth, were a profound influence on the actions that led to the end of his life. Ambrose does an excellent job of illustrating how so many factors lead Custer to make the decisions he did.
Stephen is also very thorough in his illustration of the life of Crazy Horse and goes to great lengths in describing the basis for the Sioux warrior mentality. He shows the complexity of social institutions among the Indians and gives examples of how the cultures of White America at the time, and that of the Plains Indians were rife with impossible expectations of each other. The general lack of perspective by both peoples made the end result inevitable.
If you are looking for a book that tells the story of this epic event fairly and without political agenda I highly recommend you give this one a look. I've read many of Stephen Ambrose's books, this is the one that made me a fan.