Booknotes IV (Oct '13)

New Arrivals:

1. Watauga County, North Carolina in the Civil War by Michael C. Hardy (The History Pr, 2013).

Michael Hardy's latest book is a chronicle of the Civil War in a western NC county. Far from the main theaters of war, the citizens nevertheless experienced plundering at the hands of Kirk's Raiders and witnessed the early stages of Stoneman's 1865 Raid.

2. "Old Slow Town": Detroit during the Civil War by Paul Taylor (Wayne St Univ Pr, 2013).

Taylor "charts Civil War­­-era Detroit's evolution from a quiet but growing industrial city (derisively called "old slow town" by some visitors) to a center of political contention and controversy. In eight chapters, Taylor details topics including the pre-war ethnic and commercial development of the city; fear and suspicion of "secret societies"; issues of race, gender, and economic strife during the war; Detroit's response to its soldiers' needs; and celebration and remembrance at the conclusion of the conflict."

3. The Battle of Big Bethel: Crucial Clash in Early Civil War Virginia by J. Michael Cobb, Edward Hicks, and Wythe Hicks (Savas Beatie, 2013).

A long anticipated title, one I'm glad to finally have in my hands.   I thoroughly enjoyed the pre-publication version I read way back when.

4. Nature's Civil War: Common Soldiers and the Environment in 1862 Virginia by Kathryn Shively Meier (UNC Pr, 2013).

This study examines how soldiers fighting in the Shenandoah and on the Peninsula in 1862 struggled with natural obstacles as well as each other.