Preview: Thomas Moore, ed. “The Civil War Memories of Michael Burns”

I received a copy of a 178 page paperback with the almost equally long title, The Civil War Memories of Michael Burns (Private Company C, Eleventh Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry): The Youngest Soldier and the Worst Soldier That Carried a Gun from ’61 to ’64, from its editor, Thomas W. Moore. This is a 2010 self-published effort available at the link above. As the title implies, this is the memoir of a young soldier who saw service at First Bull Run – that’s the most important part as far as we’re concerned. While the coverage of that battle is brief and not too descriptive, the author’s notes help fill in the blanks. Burns had a colorful career in the army, which climaxed with a court-martial and a trip to the Dry Tortugas. There’s a lot packed into a short, large-print book, but if you have a particular interest in the 11th MA or army discipline, I think you’ll find this worthwhile.

Preview: A Package from Ten Roads Publishing

A recent trip to Gettysburg garnered me a couple of books from Ten Roads Publishing courtesy of co-owner Jim Glessner. Both were penned by Gettysburg Licensed Battlefield Guide John Archer.

Ten Roads has reprinted and updated Archer’s 2002 guidebook Culp’s Hill at Gettysburg: “The Mountains Trembled…” The updates are primarily new photos and maps where necessary to show the ground as it is today – there has been a lot of tree clearing on Culp’s Hill. Also, the perspectives of some photos have been changed. So, even if you have a copy of the 2002 edition, if you’re headed out to the field you may want to pick up this updated version to further enhance the experience.

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The second book (and don’t get too used to seeing novel previews here) is Archer’s After the Rain: A Novel of War and Coming Home. It’s the story of Captain Daniel Spencer, a Pennsylvania Yankee soldier who, having served through Fredericksburg, and damaged physically and mentally, returns to his mountainside home near Gettysburg. Trouble follows, not just in his difficulties readjusting to civilian and family life, bt also in the form of an invading Rebel army. In the wake of the battle there, Daniel sets off to look for his missing sister-in-law in Gettysburg, where he’s forced to face the demons of his past in several forms. Jim told me that Archer’s book was on the shortlist for the 2011 Langum Prize in American Historical Fiction. Considering the four other titles on that list were published by Knopf, Viking, HarperCollins, and Random House, I think both Mr. Archer and Ten Roads should be justifiably proud of the Director’s Mention placing of After the Rain.

Preview: Ted Alexander’s “Antietam” and the NPS on Hispanics in the ACW

Antietam National Battlefield’s Chief Historian Ted Alexander has authored The Battle of Antietam: The Bloodiest Day, an entry in The History Press Civil War Sesquicentennial Series. This is a nice, concise account of the Maryland Campaign, the narrative running 139 pages plus appendices including orders of battle, notes, bibliography, and index. While the whole campaign is covered, the bulk of the book is on the battle and its aftermath. Now, quibbles with a 139 page account of an event with the scope of the Maryland Campaign are inevitable, but you really can’t go wrong with this overview written by someone who is generally recognized as an expert on the topic.

Ted also gave me a copy of a new NPS booklet, Hispanics and the Civil War: From Battlefield to Homefront. This nifty guide discusses the roles played by Hispanics on both sides of the conflict, including some surprising folks like Admiral David Farragut (his mom was Spanish) - although I could find no mention of George Meade, who was born in Cadiz, Spain.

Preview: “Unholy Sabbath: The Battle of South Mountain in History and Memory” – and a Preservation Opportunity

I’ve mentioned before that I serve on the board of the Save Historic Antietam Foundation, which does good preservation work down Western Maryland way. The good folks at Savas-Beatie publishing have partnered with us in the ongoing effort to raise funds for the preservation of Civil War sites in the Antietam vicinity. When you order a product from the S/B website (www.savasbeatie.com), simply enter SHAF as the coupon code and 10% of the retail price of your order will go directly to SHAF. This applies to all S/B titles, including current releases like Brian Jordan’s “Unholy Sabbath: The Battle of South Mountain in History and Memory” and SHAF President Dr. Thomas Clemens’s “The Maryland Campaign of September, 1862, Vol. I”, as well as upcoming titles like Vol. II of Tom’s work and Bradley Gottfried’s “The Maps of Antietam.” This is a great way to build your library with quality books and help SHAF achieve its goals in the process. Remember, enter SHAF as the coupon code.

Speaking of “Unholy Sabbath”, I recently received a copy in the mail. Physically, this is the standard, high quality book you’ve come to expect from Savas-Beatie. The author is a very young cat, a 2009 graduate of Gettysburg College who is currently working on his PhD. at some sheepskin factory called Yale. The author’s academic bent is reflected in the use of a colon in the title, and the focus on memory – not that there’s anything wrong with that (the memory thing, I mean). This is an example of the “new” military history, and I’m all for it, as how the fighting is remembered by participants and the public as time passes is fascinating to me, and tells a bigger story. It’s richly illustrated and includes plenty of Brad Gottfried maps – unfortunately, these don’t have topo lines and the lay of the land was vitally important to how the fighting developed at the passes. It’s a minor quibble for me, but then I’m pretty familiar with the area. Also included are full Orders of Battle and an extensive bibliography that confirms the author’s use of a wide array of manuscript and published primary and secondary sources. I say give it a whirl, though I must admit I have BIG problems with his description of Special Orders 191.

You can follow “Unholy Sabbath” on Facebook here.

And here’s the book trailer:

Previews Coming

I have a backlog of titles that I need to talk about. I just want all the authors and publishers who have sent me stuff over the past one or two months to know that I will be getting to those in the coming weeks. In two cases (a book on Bull Run and another of letters from a member of the 8th PA Reserves), I want to go into more detail. The first I think will feature an author interview. The second will incorporate the results of a trip I made this week to Antietam National Battlefield, where historian Ted Alexander was nice enough to come in on his day off to give me access to the park’s file on the 8th PA Reserves. What I found in that file pertaining to my great-grandmother’s brother was startling. Fantastic, in fact.

But more on that, and on all the other books in the queue, later.

For now, here is the very best Confederate battle flag image to come down the pike in a long, long time.

My mom's maiden name was Powers but, sadly, I don't think I'm related to the Myrtle Beach Mermen closer.

Reviews of Hines, “The Battle of First Bull Run”

I recently briefly discussed Blaikie Hines’s The Battle of First Bull Run Manassas Campaign – July 16-22, 1861: An Illustrated Atlas and Battlefield Guide. An interview with Mr. Hines is still scheduled for the upcoming weeks, but in the meantime more substantial reviews of the book have been posted by Drew Wagenhoffer and Brett Schulte. Check them out.

Preview: Larry B. Bramble, “For Liberty”

Larry B. Bramble’s For Liberty is billed as “my ancestor’s story of immigration and the Civil War.” Bramble examines his great-great-granfather’s (and various other relatives’) move from Europe to the United States and his experiences as a Union soldier during the Civil War. In doing so he tells a larger story of immigrants and there experiences not only in the war but in becoming a part of, and shaping, a new society. The bulk of the book deals with the war, with engagements spanning the conflict from beginning to end and from theater to theater, and focusing on the actions of the regiments in which members of Bramble’s family served.

Preview: “The Battle of First Bull Run”

A few weeks ago I received a copy of Blaikie Hines’s The Battle of First Bull Run Manassas Campaign - July 16-22, 1861: An Illustrated Atlas and Battlefield Guide. Anything with a title like that deserves some attention from a blog with a name like this one’s, and I plan on going into deeper detail with an author interview in the future, but I just wanted to get the word out. This is a pretty nice book, even if it does have several elements that are eerily similar to something I’ve been working on myself. No, I’m not accusing anyone of espionage, and really it’s only one of many elements in this book and on a much smaller scale than what I’m thinking about. Mr. Hines gave Bull Runnings a very nice acknowledgement (no, I did not see or even hear of this one until it was finished), but I’ll use that to point out a problem with the book: the web address in the acknowledgement is wrong. He left out the “.wordpress” part of it. No, I’m not whining, but here’s why I bring it up: this book is self-published. There’s nothing wrong with that in and of itself, but a problem often seen in self-published works is weak editing. The narrative here does suffer from typos and grammatical errors that drive a Chicago Manual of Style toting geek like me to distraction. Call me pedantic, call me what you will. I’m not going to dwell on the mistakes of grammar, punctuation, or fact at this point.

OK, now that we have that out of the way, let me briefly describe this oversized, landscape oriented book. It’s paperback, and the pages are a glossy, heavy stock. That’s good for taking out onto the field, and that’s where it’s meant to be taken. The layout is a little unconventional, but Hines has touched all the bases, giving an overview of events leading up to the battle, descriptions of the players, plenty of photographs (many labeled with landmarks), various maps including some utilizing satellite imagery, orders of battle, then and now photos, narrative vignettes, descriptions of arms, equipment, and uniforms, I can go on. At first glance, here’s what I think: if you have a particular interest in First Bull Run, you really should get your hands on a copy, if you can afford it. Stay tuned here for more.

Et Tu, B&N?

See the whole WaPo article here.

I got a Kindle Fire for Christmas. I fought it for a long time, but the wife made my decision for me. It’s easy to read a book on the Kindle. The screen is nice and clear. So, why should I still buy books made out of paper if I can get it electronically? Now, I love books: the look, the feel, the heft, the smell of them. I take pleasure in knowing I have a lot of them. But I also know I buy many of my books with the full realization I will probably never get around to reading them cover to cover. Will I do that with an ebook? Here’s another question – will publishers see the benefit of “bundling” printed books with their ebook counterparts before the “real thing” bites the dust?

A Tease…

I’m feeling guilty because I have four books that I simply have not had the time to give their due. I’m still swamped, but the least I can do is get the links to these up now.

The Battle of First Bull Run Manassas Campaign – July 16-22, 1861: An Illustrated Atlas and Battlefield Guide, by Blaikie Hines. Interview likely.

Your Affectionate Son: Letters from a Civil War Soldier, Milann Ruff Daugherty, ed. Interview likely.

For Liberty: My Ancestor’s Story of Immigration and the Civil War, by Larry B. Bramble.

The Library of Congress Illustrated Timeline of the Civil War, by Margaret E. Wagner

Zouave alert! I also received the following from Patrick Schroeder. Interview likely.

With the 11th New York Fire Zouaves in Camp, Battle, and Prison: The Narrative of Private Arthur O’Neil Alcock in The New York Atlas and Leader, Pohanka and Schroeder.

Charlie’s Civil War: A Private’s Trial by Fire in the 5th New York Volunteers – Duryee Zouaves and 146th New York Infantry, by Chalres Brandagee Livingstone

Campaigns of the 146th Regiment New York State Volunteers, by Mary Genevie Green Brainard

All I need is TIME!