Tag Archives: American Civil War

American Illiad | Reluctant Voices

Posted on August 17, 2020 by smellincoffee

As part of my attempts to scale Mount TBR,  I read two smaller works on the Civil War this week. They may be later joined by This Republic of Suffering,  a survey of the war’s unprecedented death toll and its … Continue reading →

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The True Soldier

Posted on March 26, 2020 by smellincoffee

The True Soldier © 2014 Paul Fraser Collard 496 pages Jack Lark hadn’t intended to get involved in a civil war. He’d come to America bearing the letters from a friend who had fallen in combat, a man whose side … Continue reading →

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Johnny Reb’ s War

Posted on March 3, 2019 by smellincoffee

Johnny Reb’s War: Battlefield and Homefrontpub. 2001 David Williams102 pages Johnny Reb’s War is a curious collection of two historical articles by David Williams, the contents of which were later encompassed by his impressively depressing People’s History of the American … Continue reading →

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Short rounds and the week ahead

Posted on January 23, 2019 by smellincoffee

On Saturday the library was partially evacuated owing to a tornado warning, and today Father Winter has well and truly hit the town.  I’m currently reading a scrutiny of political utopias, transhumanism, and religious-spiritual ideas about life beyond death (from … Continue reading →

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These Rugged Days

Posted on November 22, 2017 by smellincoffee

These Rugged Days: Alabama in the Civil War© 2017 John Sledge296 pages Although Alabama was not the site of as many bloody battles as Virginia and Tennessee in the Civil War, it was not a quiet backwater only troubled at … Continue reading →

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The Unvanquished

Posted on March 22, 2017 by smellincoffee

The Unvanquished© 1938 William Faulkner254 pages Years ago in a ninth-grade literature class,  I chose to read a book by William Faulkner for a class project on the basis that he was a southern writer. My teacher cautioned me against … Continue reading →

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Robert E Lee

Posted on March 9, 2017 by smellincoffee

Robert E. Lee: A Life© 2003 Roy Blount Jr272 pages They say that God in heav’n  is everybody’s god I’ll admit that God in heav’n Is everybody’s god But I tell ya John, with pride, God leans a little on … Continue reading →

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Selma: A Bicentennial History

Posted on February 27, 2017 by smellincoffee

Selma: A Bicentennial History© 2017 Alston Fitts III384 pages On December 4th, 1820, the Alabama legislature granted a town charter to a burgeoning community established on a high bluff overlooking the Alabama river. The place, named after a cities of … Continue reading →

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The Red Badge of Courage

Posted on July 7, 2016 by smellincoffee

The Red Badge of Courage© 1895 Stephen Crane170 pgs Stephen Crane practically introduced Civil War historical fiction, writing this tale set during a war that was ended six years before his birth. The Red Badge of Courage is the account … Continue reading →

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Green, Blue, and Grey

Posted on June 18, 2016 by smellincoffee

Green, Blue, and Grey: the Irish in the American Civil War©  2009 Cal McCarthy325 pages Three cheers for the red, white, and blue! For the green flag of Erin so true.. The music of the Civil War reflects the sheer … Continue reading →

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