Overview: Hilderman's book follows in the tradition of the 1924 classic, Conscription and Conflict in the Confederacy, written by the chair of the history department at the University of Alabama and descendant of Confederate veterans, Albert Burton Moore. They Went Into The Fight Cheering focuses on the inner workings of conscription and its related enforcement in North Carolina. It is meticulously researched and presents the often overlooked aspect of troop procurement by the Confederacy in North Carolina as initial enlistment periods expired. The discussion of conscription (and desertion) in this book does not besmirch the honor of southern soldiers. A good case can be made, however, that those who hang on to the myth - in the face of overwhelming factual evidence - that conscription did not occur or was not necessary to field Confederate armies, do dishonor those soldiers by failing to acknowledge and accept the realities they faced and the choices they made. Serious students of the war will appreciate this book; others may want to take a pass.