Question of the Week: 1/15-1/21/23
The recent posts by Evan Portman about Killer Angels prompt this week’s question:
Is there a Civil War novel that you particularly enjoy? Why?
The recent posts by Evan Portman about Killer Angels prompt this week’s question:
Is there a Civil War novel that you particularly enjoy? Why?
‘True History of the Kelly Gang’, by Peter Carey.
It puts forth that Ned Kelly and his gang of bushrangers got the idea for their suits of armour from the battle between the Monitor and the Merrimac.
Also, ‘Tattered Gray’, by L.E. Woodfox. Superbly written!
Gone With The Wind
Long Remember by MacKinlay Kantor (1934). Less overwrought (and shorter!), than his Pulitzer-winning Andersonville, this engaging novel about the battle of Gettysburg is better literary-fiction than Killer Angels, in my opinion. The author wrote three full novels of the Civil War, and as a youth, he knew and spoke with Civil War veterans. The main (fictional) characters of the book are interesting, and the author doesn’t try to get inside the heads of the generals. This gave me a much closer sense of ‘you are there’ than any Civil War novels (except perhaps, Red Badge of Courage). I need to re-read it again, but if I remember correctly, Kantor had the main character travel from one end of the Union line to the other of the course of the battle, so you got a good overview of what was going on. Has anyone else read this, and am I remembering correctly?
Many excellent choices. My vote goes to “Widow of the South”, by Robert Hicks.
My favorite is Widow of the South by Robert Hicks. Although I had been a Civil War buff for many years, the Battle of Franklin was just not on my radar. It wasn’t until I read Hicks’ book that I discovered the history and significance of this horrendous battle. The book, though historical fiction, brought home the impact of the War on the noncombatants. After reading the book, I started researching the battle, then traveled to Franklin to walk the ground. There wasn’t much! I joined the CWT and ‘Save the Franklin Battlefield’ and contributed to the efforts to buy the Pizza Hut strip center, and other reclamation efforts. I went back in 2014 for the 150th Anniversary and reenactment, and several times since. Franklin is a great victory for Battlefield reclamation and preservation. My journey in that effort started with Hicks’ book.
Across Five Aprils- a book written for a young audience that had an impact during 6th grade. How many other people were influenced by this book as a young person?
All the Ralph Peters books. Entertaining, and informative historical fiction.
However imperfect it is, The Killer Angels is probably still my favorite in the genre, and the one I’m fastest to recommend (with a couple caveats).
But for a younger audience, I have a soft spot for The 290 by Scott O’Dell, which was also a big part of what first sparked my interest in the Civil War when I was a kid.
David Poyer wrote a trilogy about Civil War navies. The first book (which I am most partial to), Fire on the Waters, covers the secession movement, Fort Sumter’s attempted relief and surrender, and the evacuation of the Gosport Navy Yard. Book two, A Country of Our Own, follows early Confederate commerce raiding. Book three, That Anvil of Our Souls, covers the battle of Hampton Roads.
I’m enjoying Rebel Yell, Stonewall was such an interesting, intricate person. Love his faith.
Mysterious Island by Jules Verne is often overlooked.
The Falling Hills by Perry Lentz, which involves two main characters who eventually collide at Fort Pillow.
The Cosgrove Report, about a Pinkerton detective investigating the Lincoln assassination. It has a neat plot twist at the end.
Among my favorites are a Civil War Trilogy by Don Robertson: The Three Days, By Antietam Creek, and The River and the Wilderness. Great characters and great descriptions of the battles and emotions. (These were published in 1959, 1960, and 1962 but I didn’t read them until the early 90’s.)
I would like to acknowledge a book from my childhood, “Across Five Aprils,” by Irene Hunt. I think that it is the origin of my interest in the Civil War.
“Gone with the Wind” for it’s impact on American History.
“To Play For a KIngdom” Two squads, one from the 14th Brooklyn and another Confederate play a series of baseball games between the horrific battles of the Overland Campaign. Surreal, good.
The Other Side by Kevin McColley (2000) – a unique perspective on the Kansas/Missouri border war; not for the faint of heart.
The Crater by Richard Slotkin (1996) – all kinds of perspectives regarding the battle. Extremely suspenseful – even knowing how it all ended.