2 comments about Meteor of War: The John Brown Story.

1. I agree with the reviewer above - John Brown is one of those figures that noone really understands so a full length work with sources and analysis of Brown's writings like this has been a long time coming. I teach a class on the coming of the Civil War and my students have already been taught, like most Americans, that John Brown was at best a well-meaning madman. But this book shows the various John Browns of history and myth, so that, whether you agree with the actions of Brown, you will at least understand them better and see him as a complex and human individual. The Harvard authors have a sense for biography and history, and do convincing close readings of John Brown's own writings. Fascinating sources and great prose by the authors, good analysis of art a bonus. It's a good story and told well. I have some criticisms of the politics behind the book but this doesn't detract too much from the overall quality.



2. This book reads very well and covers all of John Brown's life and death, then also the huge range of responses to him and his career. The connections that Zoe Trodd and John Stauffer make between John Brown and Timothy Mcveigh is provocative. No one who buys this book will be disappointed.

No comments about Lee and Jackson.

1 comments about Civil War Stories of Northwest Ohio Heroes (Great Lakes Connections: The Civil War).

1. I am a native of Northwest Ohio and I am ashamed to say that I do not know much about the history of my region. I also have never read much on the history of Civil War except on the big battles that have been written about ~~ Gettysburg and Fredericksburg and so on. I never really paid attention in school (if the teachers did even mention it) regarding the Civil War soldiers from our area.
   
   Just by chance the other day at a festival that a little town in Ohio, Grand Rapids, hold every October, my family and I walked by this author's booth. My father bought this book. (I bought the other three books by this author because my interest in the Great Black Swamp area has been ignited by a series of newspaper articles a few years' back.)
   
   My dad read this book in three hours. I wasn't so lucky ~~ I do have two preschoolers ~~ but I managed to read it in two days. This is a very slim volume but it is full of historical tidbits about Civil War fighters from the Northwestern Ohio. It is full of emotion as the author compiled stories from old letters and poems written during this time. It is full of pictures. Every story in this book is a complete story. It is written very concisely and beautifully ~~ each character's voice was portrayed in a vivid way. In short, this book is a testament to heroes who just happened to live in a turblent time and did the best they could in their circumstances. It is a testament to those who have marched off to war and never returned home. This book has ignited a spark of interest on my behalf on the Civil War in the Cumberland Gap and other places in Tennessee and Kentucky as Sherman marched his way to Atlanta.
   
   If you are from Ohio ~~ even if you aren't! ~~ I highly recommend this book to anyone who is a Civil War or History buff. This book is a delightful addition to any American history student's library ~~ it is not boring (like too many history books are) and it is interesting. It is also a proud testament to the heroes from my part of the country ~~ these men are just ordinary men in extraordinary times ~~ and this book is exactly that!
   
   10-11-05

2 comments about Following in Lincoln's Footsteps: A Complete Annotated Reference to Hundreds of Historical Sites Visited by Abraham Lincoln (Illinois).

1. Here's an interesting and hefty travel book that lists and annotates sites from all over the country associated with Abraham Lincoln and/or his family in some way. Arranged by city or town within each state, Gary describes places where Lincoln made speeches, stayed over night or for extended periods, went shopping, attended concerts and theatre events, resided, went to school, and a myriad of other events too numerous to list. Gary also lists Civil War sites that played important roles during his presidency. The number of sites detailed is impressive (many hundreds easily), and fortunately there's an excellent index listing them all. With all that, I noticed one site here in NJ that he overlooked: the burial spot near Allentown of Lincoln's great-great grandparents' three-year-old child, Deborah Lincoln. Granted, it's not a major site by any means, but neither are a lot of the other places in Gary's book, and there's a roadside monument marking it to boot. Lincoln aficionados should find this book fascinating, especially as they plot out all the excursions they'd like to take from Vermont to Louisiana checking out the sites. But even if you don't leave the house the book is loaded with interesting tidbits regarding Lincoln, his life and legacy. Recommended.



2. You know, as I travel around I am always wondering about the history of an area and, "could this be more than just a field?"
   
   That crumbling old house along a major route, "did something important to history occur inside?"
   
   Ralph Gary must have spent thousands of hours researching and traveling around areas to discover all of the "who, what, when, where and whys" of Abraham Lincoln and his environment.
   
   This book has just the information the traveler needs to understand and "see" history unfold before his eyes.
   
   That old field suddenly comes to life as a thunderous battlefield with rain pouring down and famous phrases echoing loudly in the viewer's ears.
   
   We see the fury of the instant as a theatre turns into a haunted moment in time; and everyone who visits Ford's Theatre feels the morbid moment of Booth's derringer into the President's unassuming head as he gently cups his wife's hand in his - and, in that moment, history changed.
   
   Thank you so much Mr. Gary. Please, please, research other historical figures and bring us that "sight" that can only be had from reading about the moments in time that have become our
   history!

5 comments about Lee and Grant: A Dual Biography.

1. I have been reading about the Civil War for almost 50 years. Despite what most of the other reviews of this biography state, I consider this book the most superficial review of Generals R.E. Lee and U.S. Grant that it has ever been my misfortune to read. However, I do agree with another reviewer that some parts of the book appear to be fictionalized. The book also includes many errors. In fact, the only reason I finished the book was my interest in seeing how many other errors I could pick out.
   
   For example, I seriously doubt that U.S. Grant spent months attempting to take Vicksburg with a northern, overland attack, and several river-borne attacks that were only meant to mislead the Confederates, so that he could finally attack the city by bypassing it and landing further south. I am a great admirer of U.S. Grant, but if he showed up at my house today and told me that the above was true, I would call him a liar. Yet this is exactly what the author suggests Grant did.
   
   Another example, the author claims on one page that a formation of 17,000 Union cavalry was the greatest number of cavalry ever assembled in the *world*. I bet the Mongols would find that amusing.
   
   A third error... The author mentions more than once that 10,000 Union troops died in the attack at Cold Harbor. Meanwhile, every other Civil War historian uses the figure of 7,000. Are they all wrong?
   
   Enough examples, if you want to read good biographies about Lee and Grant then there are a number of them out there, including Grant's own autobiography. A good one-book biography is The Rise of U.S. Grant, and there is an excellent trilogy: Captain Sam Grant, Grant Moves South, and Grant Takes Command



2. The idea of comparing these two iconic figures in a single book seems logical. The author, I think, adds some suspense to the reading by swinging back and forth between the stories of these two men at points of common ground.
   
   Seemingly well researched, the author spends a sizeable amount of time to the pre-Civil War lives of Lee and Grant. This is good, because it is the less known parts of their lives. The post war years also get decent treatment. It's a smart move by the author not to overly reharsh the parts of the story we already know.
   
   If I were to criticize the writing, I would focus on only two points. First, the "early years" information seems overly long without explaining much about how those experiences helped to forge their future personalities. Second, the juxtaposition between Lee as the Scion of the Old South and Grant as the Ideal of the New North should have been driven home earlier. I think those changes might have helped turn this "good" dual biography into something special.
   
   My minor criticisms aside, this is a fine addition to the bookshelf of the Civil War buff in your life. Informative, well structured and not exhaustingly long, it's an enjoyable book.



3. True, documentation on Lee and Grant is extensive, and I enjoyed reading the book - in the beginning. But the minutest details of their lives are told without any kind of passion, making some of the certainly fictionalized mini-events quite boring. Parallelling their lives in alternating chapters would have been much more interesting had more emphasis been placed on the living conditions and philosophy of the time instead of this painstaking effort to details that read worse than the driest of dry history books.



4. 
   I purchased my first biography by Gene Smith on Woodrow Wilson in 1963 and was suitably impressed to later purchase this book that was published in 1984.
   
   In fact, had anyone but Gene Smith written this one I would not have been interested. Having several biographies of both Grant and Lee on the shelf I would not be too keen on an author attempting to cover these men in one book. But I have to laud Mr. Smith that once again he has written a very readable and interesting biography.
   
   By alternating chapters and concentrating mainly on the Western Theatre in Virgina he has been able to give focus on both these military men. Interestingly enough the humble Grant and the aristocratic Lee both ended up in the same room having a similiar goal in mind: bringing the Union back to peace. I stood in that 'reconstructed' room at the McLean house in Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia, a short time back, and after all the years even the replacement room can still hold a certain historical feeling.
   
   This is a very good, basic biography of these two military leaders and adequate view of the Civil War in Virginia.
   
   Semper Fi.



5. There is not a lot new to be said about Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant. They are, undoubtedly, two of the most documented men in History. What is more important, when tackling this subject, is presenting the subject matter in an interesting fashion. In this regard, Gene Smith succeeds.
   
   By alternating chapters, between each of his subjects, the reader follows the lives of two men as they grow and develop. All the while knowing, they are destined to meet in ultimate contest.
   
   Even more than the book's interesting structure, I was impressed with Smith's well formed thoughts. The narrative is never disjointed or piecemeal, and all details are presented in context to the two men's lives, manifesting in a highly readable work.
   
   I laud Mr. Smith for an excellent effort. And I encourage readers, whether new or old to the subject of the Civil War, to read this book.

No comments about Personal Reminiscences of General Robert E. Lee.

No comments about The Colton Letters: Civil War Perios 1861-1865.

2 comments about War of Words: Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War Press.

1. This book is interesting, but not compelling. It illustrates Lincoln's use of the printed word to influence the tide of history, but is not told in a compelling manner. The reader will have to dig for its importance.



2. Spin.--the calculated interpretation of a statement or event from a particular or partisan viewpoint.

   Spin doctor.--a person employed by a government, political ty, or company to present or interpret facts or events in a favorable light.

   Spin control.--the manipulation of news, especially political news; slanting the news from a certain perspective so that it will be interpreted favorably (or unfavorably, if so desired) by the public.

   Nowadays the word media includes newspapers, radio, television, and the internet. During the Civil War, however, the most important (and virtually, the only) source of information was the press: newspapers, journals, and magazines.

   In WAR OF WORDS: ABRAHAM LINCOLN AND THE CIVIL WAR PRESS, Harry J. Maihafer has written an engaging, reader-friendly account of how our 16th president (1861-1865) dealt with the press, putting a "spin" on events from his perspective as commander-in chief, so that the public would interpret the news in the most favorable light.

   The most influential Northern newspapers in Lincoln's day were in New York, Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C. Three newspapers in New York--the Tribune, the Times, and the Herald--were of supreme importance in shaping Union sentiment.

   Maihafer describes in fascinating detail Lincoln's relationship with five "movers and shakers" of the Fourth Estate:

   o Horace Greeley, the volatile New York Tribune editor who often waxed hot and waned cold, swinging back and forth from Lincoln supporter to Lincoln critic.

   o Henry Jarvis Raymond, the editor of the New York Times, who was generally supportive of Lincoln and his administration.

   o James Gordon Bennett, Sr., editor of the New York Herald, an obnoxious Lincoln critic who described the president as a "joke," "a buffoon," and a "pigmy."

   o Joseph Medill, editor of the Chicago Tribune and solid Lincoln supporter.

   o Wilbur F. Storey, editor of the Chicago Times, whose criticism of the Lincoln administration often included vicious personal attacks on the president.

   Lincoln once remarked that Horace Greeley's constant criticisms and misrepresentations [in the New York Tribune] annoyed him "probably more than anything which happened during his administration." As a consummate politician, however, Lincoln shrewdly wooed and courted newspaper editors and journalists, always seeking to put the best "spin" on his administration's policies and programs.

   "In waging war against the South," write Maihafer, "it must be admitted that Lincoln was willing to trample on civil liberties. Suspending the right of habeas corpus in September of 1863, and leaving it that way throughout the war, may have been his worst mistake."

   Nevertheless, Maihafer realizes that desperate times call for desperate measures, and his portrait of Lincoln is essentially a lionizing description of a man who was the right man for the right time--the helmsman who guided the ship of state through a treacherous storm--a bloody and brutal civil war.

   WAR ON WORDS is an impressive overview of a tragic era in our nation's history. Maihafer not only introduces us to a president who was a statesman of the first rank and a decent human being, but also takes us into the inner workings of the White House. Moreover, he presents a masterful bird's-eye view of the progress of military events: key battles, strategies, and tactics.

   WAR ON WORDS is a model of concise, cut-to-the-chase writing. In its less than 300 pages, Maihafer says more than other volumes that are two or three times its size--and does so with class and style. This volume is first-rate.

2 comments about Hard Tack and Coffee: Or the Unwritten Story of Army Life As Published in 1887.

1. This is a very genuine and accurate account of a subject that has always fascinated me. It is written by the person who would know the material best--a genuine Civil War soldier--in excruciating detail and a suprisingly lively, colorful style for a book of nonfiction, not the stuffy, pompous style of encyclopedias. It contains well-articulated, balanced, open-mided opinions that are probably as unbiased as is possible for someone so close to the source.

   Be aware, though, that this book contains only the personal experiences of the author, and is thus a source of information only about the Union, not the Confederacy. Still, it is an extremely informative book that reads almost like a novel, and I highly recommend it to any intellectual who is curious about conditions for the common soldiers in the American Civil War.




2. Josh Billings served with the 10th Mass Battery of Light Artillery during the Civil War. After having written the Official "History of the 10th Mass Battery" he responded to numerous requests to write a book about daily life in the Union Army. "Hardtack and Coffee" is an unpretentious, humorous look at life in the Union Army, Particularly the Light Artillery During the Civil War. Mr. Billings paints a vivid picture of living life under canvas, in the field. He addresses such topics as Army food, The day by Bugle calls, Beats (people who "avoided work"), punishments and more. This book is not a comedy, but is written with a light and readable style that makes it interesting to the average reader, as well as to those interested in the Civil War. this book is a must read for all readers of Civil War literature.

1 comments about Nat Turner: A Slave Rebellion in History and Memory.

1. This book changed my life forever. I once thought the notorious Nat Turner was just an angry negro who reacted to the best of his knowledge due to his harsh living environment, but this book proved otherwise. Not only was Nat Turner a wild heretic with a no-nonsense attitude, but his extreme hate for whites came from God's hidden intentions! That's right folks, God told Nat to kill those white men, therefore, I have concluded that God is racist, Jesus was black, and all white people are damned to an eternity of Hell and torment. Thanks Kenneth Greenberg! You changed my life for the greater good!