Product Description
Issued by Americanization Department,Chicago, USA ... Read more

Product Description
Ordeal by Fire blends the most up-to-date scholarship with interpretations based on decades of teaching, research, and writing, to tell an important story--that of the American Civil War and Reconstruction. Written by a leading Civil War historian and Pulitzer Prize winner, this text describes the social, economic, political, and ideological conflicts that led to a unique, tragic, and transitional event in American history. The fourth edition welcomes the addition of coauthor James Hogue of University of North Carolina, Charlotte. Hogue brings his Reconstruction expertise to the third section of the book, bringing more up-to-date scholarship and interpretations to the story of repairing a nation. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (13)

Excellent
The book was delivered in new condition and I greatly appreciate the speed of the delivery!

WOULD LIKE TO READ IT BUT...
Can anyone tell me why a paperback book costs over $65?Based on old reviews (not of the latest edition, obviously) many readers enjoyed it and would recommend it highly but has anyone read the latest '09 edition selling for what should be a hardbound copy?Maybe it's a textbook and not for the average Civil War buff but if the price remains this high only students taking a course on the subject will be seeing it.

Masterfully captures the passion and the futility
Absolutely masterful presentation, with the right degree of detail for a fair view of each issue surrounding the greatest American culture war. McPherson looks at all sides -- economic, religious, institutional and personal, bringing reality tests to the war's many myths. He tells the whole story in three solid sections -- the sources of conflict over previous decades, the killing contest itself, and the Reformation aftermath. I found it freshly moving and horrifying. The depth of racism McPherson exposes in both North and South is astonishing, as is the tidal wave of moral revulsion against inequality. It's a patriotic book, and McPherson conveys the glory of a crushing U.S. victory. But he doesn't draw his curtain on the story till the 1890's, when efforts to enforce racial equality came to an exhausted stop. It's a testament both to the horrific power of human passions, and the futility of trying to change people by force.

Easy to read Civil War history.
I bought the abridged version here instead of the two - volume set.This book was great!The chapters were fairly short and McPherson's writing style is easy to read.It was an "optional" book for a course I took in college and I'm glad I bought it.It focuses on the social and political aspects of the Civil War as much as the battles.I really like that.It begins with politics in the election of 1860 and ends with Reconstruction.When it does discuss battles, it has maps to show you the various stages and days visually.I recommend this book for anyone interested in the Civil War, including historians, students, and History teachers.

Excellent Civil War reference - Brilliant narrative
Ordeal by Fire is an excellent reference for anyone studying the Civil War. James McPherson has a brilliant narrative style that makes his work a pleasure to read, and easy to comprehend. This is a must-read book for anyone studying the civil war. It is also a good reference for the Reconstruction era. ... Read more

Product Description
Mathew B. Brady was already a famous photographer by the time the Civil War began. But the war gave Brady something else:

The chance to make a RECORD OF A WAR -- this war -- in a way that had never been done before:

WITH TRUE-TO-LIFE PICTURES INSTEAD OF JUST WORDS. He hired field photographers to travel with the troops, equipped them with cameras and wagons filled with supplies, and sent them out with the directive to make a visual record of the war and to show people scenes they could have only read about before.

The pictures the field photographers sent back were HAUNTING, BEAUTIFUL, DEVASTATING, AND TOTALLY UNFORGETTABLE. And thousands of them included the notation "Photo by Brady." Though Brady didn't actually take the photographs, he was the genius behind them. His vision and foresight gave the country images that not only touched the people at the time, but have gone on to leave an indelible mark on the collective memory of this country. And the name of Mathew Brady will always be remembered with them.

In Photo By Brady, Jennifer Armstrong tells the story of the Civil War as seen through the lenses of its recorders. It is a moving and elegant look at the brutal and deadly time. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Photo by Brady
This is a well written concise review of Brady's work during his lifetime and focusing on the Civil War.It is a nice size, not too long or too detailed for someone with an interest in the subject, but not needing scholarly detailed knowledge.

Excellent addition to the genre
Although collections of Matthew Brady's work abound, most are targeted at adults or armchair war historians. The American War Between the States was the FIRST war that civilians could "follow from home" and the first to be photographed. This book brings the war out of dry history books and into harsh reality for young readers. Nice addition to a buff's library as well. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Great Reference Book!
Ever wonder what happened on a certain day during the American Civil War?This book covers all four years of the war day by day and is broken down by each year.It gives a nice thumbnail sketch of the events of the day for both the Eastern and Western theaters.Of course certain narratives are longer than others (1 July 63).Very nicely illustrated with engraving and period photos!
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Product Description
During the Civil War, approximately 56,000 Union and Confederate soldiers died in enemy military prison camps. Even in the midst of the war's shocking violence, the intensity of the prisoners' suffering and the brutal manner of their deaths provoked outrage, and both the Lincoln and Davis administrations manipulated the prison controversy to serve the exigencies of war. As both sides distributed propaganda designed to convince citizens of each section of the relative virtue of their own prison system--in contrast to the cruel inhumanity of the opponent--they etched hardened and divisive memories of the prison controversy into the American psyche, memories that would prove difficult to uproot. In Haunted by Atrocity, Benjamin G. Cloyd deftly analyzes how Americans have remembered the military prisons of the Civil War from the war itself to the present, making a strong case for the continued importance of the great conflict in contemporary America.

Throughout Reconstruction and well into the twentieth century, Cloyd shows, competing sectional memories of the prisons prolonged the process of national reconciliation. Events such as the trial and execution of CSA Captain Henry Wirz--commander of the notorious Andersonville prison--along with political campaigns, the publication of prison memoirs, and even the construction of monuments to the prison dead all revived the painful accusations of deliberate cruelty. As northerners, white southerners, and African Americans contested the meaning of the war, these divisive memories tore at the scars of the conflict and ensured that the subject of Civil War prisons remained controversial.

By the 1920s, the death of the Civil War generation removed much of the emotional connection to the war, and the devastation of the first two world wars provided new contexts in which to reassess the meaning of atrocity. As a result, Cloyd explains, a more objective opinion of Civil War prisons emerged--one that condemned both the Union and the Confederacy for their callous handling of captives while it deemed the mistreatment of prisoners an inevitable consequence of modern war. But, Cloyd argues, these seductive arguments also deflected a closer examination of the precise responsibility for the tragedy of Civil War prisons and allowed Americans to believe in a comforting but ahistorical memory of the controversy. Both the recasting of the town of Andersonville as a Civil War village in the 1970s and the 1998 opening of the National Prisoner of War Museum at Andersonville National Historic Site reveal the continued American preference for myth over history--a preference, Cloyd asserts, that inhibits a candid assessment of the evils committed during the Civil War.

The first study of Civil War memory to focus exclusively on the military prison camps, Haunted by Atrocity offers a cautionary tale of how Americans, for generations, have unconsciously constructed their recollections of painful events in ways that protect cherished ideals of myth, meaning, identity, and, ultimately, a deeply rooted faith in American exceptionalism. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Everyone some read it
One of the best books that I have read in a long time.If you are a history buff or a historian, it isa must read.

Controversial National Memories
First off, I sincerely enjoyed reading this book. Then again I was a captive audience seeing as how the study of Civil War prisons is a passion of mine, especially Andersonville.
The author traces the impact of Civil War prisons on our country's memory with special emphasis on such facets of the topic as the utilization of the "bloody shirt" in the Reconstruction South and how the martyred Union POWs became the favored topic of Northern politicians, speakers at memorial events, newspaper articles, etc.
The "blame game" is further examined as the South counters Northern verbage eliciting high death rates and deplorable conditions in camps as intentional with the argument that the breakdown of the transportation (rail) system, the federal blockade of the Confederate coastline and resulting deficit in medical supplies and food were largely to blame. This line of thinking and the breakdown of the Dix - Hill Cartel prisoner exchange system due to political squabbling and the refusal of the Confederacy to exchange captured black prisoners became popular topics for speeches by former POWs on both sides at reunions, monument dedications and gatherings of the old soldiers.
Published prison narratives, initially Northern and later Southern became embittered diatribes focused on the enemy's avowed purpose of designing prisons to kill as many of the unfortunate captives as possible. These played a key role in the aforementioned "blame game" and until the old veterans began dying off in large numbers, had a strong influence on Northern and Southern memories of the war.
As time passed with the election of Rutherford B. Hayes and the end of Reconstruction,the Spanish American War and America's participation in the World Wars, passions began to cool and Americans, North and South focused less on pointing the finger at the opposition and began to embrace the idea that the heroic deeds of Billy Yank and Johnny Reb were worthy of note by all Americans. ... Read more

Product Description
Although the exact number will never be known, it is estimated that there were over 10,000 military engagements during the Civil War. Most have long since been forgotten, but the places where a number of them were fought have been maintained as historic sites. Others have been memorialized by statues or markers, as have many Civil War leaders and soldiers.

Arranged by state, this reference work provides capsule descriptions and information on Civil War sites and collections throughout the United States, including battlefields, memorial markers and statues, museums, cemeteries, and other landmarks. In addition to the description, the address and telephone number for each are given, along with admission fees (if any) and policies, hours open and other pertinent information. For each state, there is a brief profile of its role during the Civil War and a timeline of significant battles or other events that took place there. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

check out these reviews
"Civil War buffs will warmly welcome Gelbert's guide" - Rettigon Reference

"an ideal supplement to any personal, academic, orpublic library Civil War collection" - The Midwest BookReview

"indispensible for Civil War buffs; others will find thisguide very useful" - Ozarks Bookshelf ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (8)

A Chronologist's Dream Civil War Book
"The Civil War Day By Day : An Almanac 1861-1865" is simply the most exhaustively detailed and fascinating book on the American Civil War of its kind. Not only does it provide a day-by-day look at the major events of the war, but lists so many of the small skirmishes and actions as well. Accurate and enjoyable, this tome weighs in at a hefty 1135 pages that I have referred to time and again. If you are looking for a book on this war in the chronological format then look no further, you have found the best.

The Civil War Day By Day
Wonder what was going on on this date during the Civil War? This book will answer that question, but that question only. Little or no social / political commentary in this book. Just the facts, Jack. At 1135 pages it is one of the biggest books I now own. However, in trying to keep the order of events, particularly when two - three battles were going on at the same time, over a period of days, this book goes far in that regard. The descriptions are brief, but greater details will have to be found in other places.
I like the book and it is at my left hand during this book writing I am trying to accomplish.

Great resource
The chronological format is excellent for quick reference and gives the student of the ACW a wonderful overview of concurrent events during that time frame. I found it useful in researching the era for my own writing.[ASIN:098146193X Call Me Kate: Meeting the Molly Maguires]

Presents day-by-day activities during the years of 1860 - 1866
Everette Beach Long, is acknowledged among the culture of history reading America, as one of America's primary authorities regarding the United States Civil War/The War Between The States. The exhaustive work he and his wife created in 1985 may have left out a single shot, a scuffle or a rattle of sabers somewhere, someday, however I doubt there were very many.
Long was scrupulous in his research. In his biography we read: "I got interested in the Civil War as a hobby," he explained. "Then it became an avocation, then a way of life. " Long was the director of research for Doubleday's multi-volume "Centennial History of the Civil War," written by Bruce Catton from 1955 to 1965.

The Civil War Day by Day presents day-by-day activities during the years of 1860 - 1866 beginning with November and the election of Lincoln down to Aug 20 1866 when the war was finally declared to be over. That was when Johnson declared the uprising in Texas to be finished.
For the many in our country who consider history to be 'boring', 'dry, and 'who cares, it was my least favorite class and how in blazes can there be 1135 pages in that stupid book when everyone knows there were only about six battles and it was over.' The Civil War Day by Day just may change your mind.

The table of contents lists not only the years of the warfare; but in addition notes information most/many people forget, never knew or just plain have never thought about regarding the war.
1860 1861 1863 1864 1865 Aftermath Special Studies The People of War
Men at War Economics of War

I reckon we would be hard pressed to locate anyone in our country who has absolutely no consciousness at all regarding Vicksburg, Gettysburg or 'Bull Run.' Long writing in his preface said, 'No one, no matter what method he uses, can encompass the entire course of those five years of our nation's greatest crisis. One form, that can add at least a measure of factual depth is an almanac. ... The format used to present The Civil War Day by Day is straightforward. It covers many events of the Civil War/War Between the States period from the late fall of 1860 into early 1866, with main concentration on 1861-65.

The design lends itself easily to use in classroom or for personal investigative study. Researchers, historians and readers may look for a specific date, or check the headlines under dates for specific occurrences.

Secession of Southern states, including some states having Confederate ties are presented by date. Some readers, who are not aware that the actual number of seceding states was not the accepted eleven long called 'the Confederacy,' may be surprised to learn that many other states, territories and nations were included in the Confederate States of America.

The firing on Ft. Sumter, and skirmishes in Missouri, two major battles near Manassas Junction, VA and two in Indian Territory at the Cabin Creek Crossing, battle at Chancellorsville, in Virginia and White Oak in Missouri, battle at the Wilderness, VA and one at Prairie Grove, Arkansas, are all detailed along with hundreds of others, in the book.

Many readers will be surprised to learn: The battle waged near Carthage, Missouri on July 5 1861, well after the firing on Ft Sumter, S C was raging as the US Congress met to declare war on the Southern Confederacy. Many more, well known along with lesser known facts of the war will be found. I personally like history and find the book fascinating.

Daily accounts are concise and edifying in addition to providing a foundation for the researcher to use when moving on to other texts having more detail. The format of the years is uncomplicated, listed by year, month and day it is an easy matter to find what you want quickly if you are seeking a fact or incident found on a specific day.

My personal copy has been used much over the years I have had it, I bought the book at the book store at Shiloh Battle Field. Knowing that my history B.A. husband and I would be using the book frequently, I covered the paperback cover with clear contact paper as soon as we bought it.

The volume is very well made, and has held up well to repeated use for nearly two decades. I have highlighted facts, hand written margin notes, and book marks in place all over the pages of the book, however, I do not have missing pages. There is something to be said for the particular binding used in producing the book.

This wide-ranging work is a resource tool found in the library of every serious 'civil war buff', true historian of our country and those who devour everything they can locate regarding the bleak period of our country during the mid 1860s. At 1135 pages, and heavy as a sack of sugar The Civil War Day by Day is not a work to stick in your back pocket as you stroll one of the nation's preserved battle fields.

About 1/3 of the tome is given over to the sections listed as : Aftermath Special Studies The People of War Men at War and Economics of War . These pages provide a wealth of information regarding the time. Maps of the areas of fighting found in Virginia, W VA, Richmond-Petersburg, The Trans-Mississippi area of Arkansas-Missouri, Kentucky-Tennessee, Lower Mississippi Valley, battle of Vicksburg, and the south eastern Theater are all included.

The section entitled The People of war list particular numbers of inhabitants encompassing both North and South, Slavery, Immigration and Cities are touched upon in brief. Men at War details size of armies, offers some minutiae regarding nativity, ethnic and social background of the men who fought, in addition to stating facts regarding casualties, disease. The chances of war, desertion, and prisoners are touched upon.

Of particular interest to me are specifics of regiments, battles, the blockade and economics of war over and above the cost of war. An all-embracing bibliography is integrated for further reading. An index by dates is incorporated so that the reader who does know the name of a battle or skirmish but does not know the date can locate the battle. The index by date might be better called the index by name, but either way it works.

The Civil War Day by Day is an outstanding resource for the serious student of history, re-enactors, teachers of history, and those who want to learn something of the history of our nation during that desolate era of war. I use my copy ongoing and am happy to recommend.

Molly Martin
Reviewer

Buy two copies
Why buy two copies?
One to have at your work place, to scan during your breaks; another for home.
This fact filled book is one you'll pick up every day, if you're a Civil War buff. I've book marked each year by the days in the book, and daily read the events, of those particular years.

Simply stated, the book records events during the Civil War on a daily basis. (Both major and minor events, plus political events and things on 'the home place'.)

The end of the book has regimental figures, ( wounded, killed, etc.) plus many other gems. [ yes, we know causality figures can vary]

This is a great book, you might even buy one to sit in the bathroom, for reading material at times ;-)

Every Civil War buff needs this book. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Packs a punch
In less than one-hundred and fifty pages McWhiney details events leading up to the War Between the States and the major battles and events of that war. After all the many books any of us interested in the history of this terrible event have read, such a small volume may appear to be a triviality. I thought so when a friend proposed I read it, but upon scanning itI found out otherwise. This is both a great aide memoir for those familiar with the subject and a fine introduction for the new reader . There are a number of reasons I say this: first, after an introduction by Donald Frazier giving the geographic circumstances of early nineteenth century America, Mc Whiney takes his reader in short, clear paragraphs through Clay, Calhoun And Webster and the Fugitive Slave Law. The Missouri Compromise,the Kansas Nebraska act and the admission of Texas are neatly discussed, and what this meant to the election of 1856 and the role of these events in the Lincoln -Douglas debates follows. The Dred Scott decision and the Supreme Court's upsetting legislative compromise is also touched. How the split in the Democrat party and the Know-nothing elected Lincoln is the eventual consequence of all that. From there to conflict, with useful maps and details, the text works its way through the war.
Second, while the politics of the era is discussed, it does not stand alone. McWhiney provides numerous examples of data which put events in context. For example, one chart/map shows slave populations in 1810 and 1860. A surprise is the comparative slave populations of secessionist South Carolina and unionist Maryland. The dwindling slave population in the north, New Jersey for example goes from 12, 000 to 2,000 in these thirty years, leads to some understanding of how slavery was expected to wither as an institution, but the increase in the south made for conflicting experiences. Throughout this volume, such telling data surface: populations, production, agriculture, exports arms manufacturing and the horrifing casualties.

Finally, the clear, precise English of the author is a joy. No obscure theorizing, no guessing. Paragraphs announce the topic sentence and move detail by detail through proof of the statement. A writing teacher could use this as a guidebook on the art of the expository essay.

In closing, I have read numerous books on these events, have walked many of the major battlefields, and have had more than a few discussions of the war. I am happy to have added this volume to my library and would tell anyone, including scholarly authors whom I know, that this is an essential.

In-depth depictions and essays of the Civil War's battles, campaigns, victories and demises
The Civil War: A Concise Account By A Noted Southern Historian from the collective studies and historical perceptions of Grady McWhiney (Founder of the Grady McWhiney Foundation) is an invaluable compendium providing the reader with an overall understandings and historical survey of the American Civil War. Diligently compiled within 144 pages, The Civil War is inclusive of 11 maps with very detailed and in-depth depictions and essays of the Civil War's battles, campaigns, victories and demises, vividly and accurately detailing key particulars of the conflict. The Civil War: A Concise Account By A Noted Southern Historian is very strongly recommended, to all students of American History, most particularly those with an interest in the Civil War for its informative study not found elsewhere.
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Product Description
Follow as events transpire across Missouri within thosefour long years.From raids and pursuit of the outlaws to the huntingdown of Southern sympathizers and the Federal scouting parties acrossthe state.Something for everyone in this book. This book is deemedby many readers as a Missouri classic. Illustrations by Rocky Medley. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Day by Day Civil War
My interest in the Civil War and study of it primarily relates to the events in and around Missouri between 1855 and 1865.I have dozens of books on the Civil War and this is one of my favorites.I initially read it cover to cover, and since that time have often returned to it to read specific 'days/dates' to research references made in other Civil War readings.If you're interested in the details of Civil War in Missouri, this book is a must have.I own several of the Bartel's civil war books and all are well worth the money for those interested in reading about more than the conventional treatises that focus on the 'big/major' battles and actions taking place in the East and Southern states.

Outstanding resource material for research
I'm a huge fan of Missouri history and Civil War history and love this book.I haven't completely finished reading it yet...but it seems well researched and detailed.A must have for the Missouri history or Civil War in Missouri researcher. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (6)

Not what you may be expecting
What do you think of when you think of Matthew Brady's Civil War photographs? Lincoln, Grant, Lee portraits certainly, but I'll bet what most people would think of would be the shatteringly dramatic scenes of the dead of several battles. Guess what? There are only a small handful in this large, expensive coffee table book. There are chapters on every aspect of the Civil War, from transportation to camp life to weapons, but none on the what Brady is best remembered for: Documenting the horrors of a battlefield days after a battle. The few photos of the dead that ARE included are always based upon something else in the photo. A train in the background, a rifle placed for effect, etc. The captions are dull and often erroneous, and several mention a Brady Exhibition of the period "The Dead of Antietam" and yet there is not a single photo from this landmark exhibition.
Google "Matthew Brady" and click on images. What do you see? THAT'S what should have been in this book. I'm not trying to be gruesome or one-dimensional here, but that's what the man is known for - and what every generation needs to see.

Civil war in pictures
This book is full of pictures.I am a little disapointed with the photographer Brady as to having always or mostly "planted" his subjects rather than taken them as he found them.It presents, I think, a false vision of the war.This can not be blamed on the collector of photographs otherwise said as "editor". While I found that the brief descriptions of the photograhs sometimes went against other written data and with less, if anything, to back up the information that this was not intended as such a book.If war could ever be seen as for "pleaure viewing", this book would be it.Nice front cover and many nice pictures within of groups of people not commonly found together.

Ignore the text
The photos are... well, they are what they are. Photographic technology sucked in the 1860's and we're lucky to have what we do. It seems to me that this volume doesn't contain nearly all of Brady's shots, but maybe I'm just mistaking others' work for his. As for the text and captions, the other reviewers are right about the egregious errors and nonexistent editing. There are statements made which are downright factually wrong. How did this get published in such a state?

Doesn't appear to have been edited
This collection has some fabulous photographs, but the errant, often ungrammatical, and sometimes incomprehensible descriptions accompanying the photos is offputting, to say the least.Also, the introductory page to each chapter has the font aligned in the center, rather than on the lefthand margin. While this may not seem important, in a visual book such as this, it is not only annoying, but plain hard to read!Finally, the font-size occasionally changes in mid-sentence.Unbelievable!This thing looks rushed into print.

Too many errors in Brady's Civil War
While I agree with the previous review as to quality of Brady's photos, etc., I do not give the book a high rating because of the large number of errors, both major and minor, found in the photo captions.These are of such serious nature as to confuse the non-specialist seeking information, and some are so flagrant as to stagger the imagination as to how they could have happened.Aphoto of Col. John S. Mosby, the famous "gray ghost" of the confederate army is captioned with the information that he can be identified as a colonel even though he wears no chevrons on his shoulder straps. Well, he isn't wearing shoulder straps, and even if he were, chevrons indicate rank for corporals and sergeants, not colonels, and are worn on the sleeve above the elbow, not on the shoulder straps.The book is literally filled with such mistakes, and one must conclude that Mr. Garrison may not have finished the book prior to his death last summer, and that someone with less knowledge may have been called in to complete it.If such is the case, they picked the wrong person.On page 41, "numerous colonels of the 164th NY Regiment" are shown in an outdoor shot.Whoever did this caption did not know that each regiment had only one colonel(and usually one Lt. Col. and a Major)and these are most likely just the company officers of the regiment.On page 34, we learn that "revolvers were not issued to enlisted men", but they were in cavalry and many artillery units. In one photo, Thaddeus Stevens is identified as the man beaten with a cane by Preston Brooks, when in reality, the victim was Mass. Sen. Charles Sumner(the caning of Sumner). Finally, on page 53, Colonel Stokes is said to have "no gold on his elaborately ornamented sleeve" but the galloons, or sleeve loops are totally gold braid!Errors such as these abound throughout the book and one would hope for a total revision in the near future to make it the book it should be.Charles S. King, educator/civil war collector. ... Read more