Booknotes IV (May '15)

New Arrivals:

1. Lens of War: Exploring Iconic Photographs of the Civil War by J. Matthew Gallman and Gary W. Gallagher (Univ of Georgia Pr, 2015).

The 27 essays from 27 different Civil War scholars each take a single photograph and "interpret it in personal and scholarly terms." From the description, it appears that going with obscure yet evocative images not already discussed extensively is not a central concern, with readers also invited to "rediscover familiar photographs and figures examined in unfamiliar ways." The concept definitely has potential.

2. The Best Writings of Ulysses S. Grant edited by John F. Marszalek (SIUP, 2015).

"In this collection, editor John F. Marszalek presents excerpts from Grant’s most insightful and skillfully composed writings [originally published in the 32 volumes of The Papers of Ulysses S. Grant] and provides perspective through introductory comments tying each piece to the next." ... "In sixteen chronological chapters, selections from Grant’s letters and other writings reveal his personal thoughts on the major events of his momentous life, including the start of the Civil War, the capture of Vicksburg, Lincoln’s reelection, Lee’s surrender, his terms as president, the Panic of 1873, and his bouts of mouth and throat cancer."