Brands and Bandages

Author and blogger Jim Schmidt sent me nicely inscribed copies of  his book Lincoln’s Labels: America’s Best Known Brands and the Civil War, and a collection of essays he co-edited with Guy Hasegawa, Years of Change and Suffering; Modern Perspectives on Civil War Medicine.  I long ago realized I’ll never be able to read all the books I have cover to cover, let alone all the new ones I get.  But Labels looks right up my alley, current day connections to the Civil War, so I’m going to read this one as soon as I finish my current read, a biography of Israel B. Richardson.  I’ll read at least a few of the essays in Years of Change since I read Doctors in Blue last year.  But for now here’s a brief preview:

Years consists of eight essays: four by MD’s, one by a PharmD, one by a PhD, one by a bioanalytical chemist, and one by an MA in history who specializes in medical history.  No dummies here.  Topics are a Virginia medical school; Scientific American Magazine; Amputations; a biography of a Confederate medical innovator; urological wounds (ouch!); Southern Resources, Southern Medicines;  neurology; and the effects of “Combat Exposure”.  Most of the essays run about 20 pages, so this looks like a quick read.