| Book Reviews |
Send an email to admin@sfcwrt.com giving the title and author of a book that you feel is a "must
read." Include a brief description, including the reasons for your recommendation.
And don't forget to sign your name.
But wait, there's more. If you would like to comment on a review, adding to it, disagreeing with it,
or just laughing out loud, send an email and we'll publish your comments.
Also check "Civil War Books and Authors" at http://cwba.blogspot.com/
read." Include a brief description, including the reasons for your recommendation.
And don't forget to sign your name.
But wait, there's more. If you would like to comment on a review, adding to it, disagreeing with it,
or just laughing out loud, send an email and we'll publish your comments.
Also check "Civil War Books and Authors" at http://cwba.blogspot.com/
Swamp Doctor:
The Diary of a Union Surgeon in the Virginia & North Carolina Marshes,
edited by Thomas P. Lowry
Thomas P. Lowry is no stranger to the Civil War reader. His previous books include
Tarnished Eagles: The Court-Martial of Fifty Union Colonels and Lieutenant Colones, The
Story the Soldiers Wouldn't Tell: Sex in the Civil War and more recently, Tarnished Scalpels.
In Swamp Doctor, he introduces the diary of Surgeon William M. Smith of the 85th New York
Volunteer Infantry. Smith hails from a medical family and his father was a country doctor.
As a medical practitioner, Smith had the benefit of medical schooling which, while primitive
by today's standards, was as complete a medical education one could receive in the
mid-nineteenth century. His regiment is initially assigned to the defense of Washington before
joining McClellan's Peninsula Campaign. Unfortunately, Smith's diary covering the early
part of the campaign has been lost but it picks up before the Seven Days Battle. After their
ignoble retreat where McClellan saves (?) the army from total destruction, they are sent to
Southern Virginia and caught up in the battles of Kingston and Goldsboro. Afterwards they
participated in the defense of Washington (NC) against a force led by A. P. Hill that is ten
times their size.
Reflecting the morals of the period, Smith converses with fallen women, but does not use their
services. He is also entangled in the politics of the regiment when their major accuses his
assistant surgeon of going AWOL and then attributes the accusation to Smith. Smith secures
the original documentation and the major is allowed to resign for his ungentlemanly conduct.
Perhaps the most valuable aspect of the book is Smith's examination papers where he is
certified by an examining board to be eligible to hold his post as Surgeon. For instance, he is
asked, "Describe a disinfectant and describe the several classes of disinfectants" or "What
are the conditions on which secondary hemorrhage after amputation depend, and what are
the best modes of treating them?" Microbes and bacteria were unknown in those days but
there was some knowledge about hygiene. Other questions are entirely irrelevant to the
medical field. Under what circumstances did the House of Hannover succeed to the British
crown? or What were the causes of the last war with Great Britain and in what year did it
take place? For a re-enactor working on his medical impression, the examination papers
alone makes the book worth its price.
Gary Yee
The Rebel and the Rose
by Wesley Millet and Gerald White.
Whatever happened to the lost Confederate gold? As a subject of speculation with even a
movie loosely based on it, it is a mystery that haunts us today. In the wake of Richmond's
evacuation, the gold bullion and Mexican silver of Confederate treasury of was moved south
to escape the approaching Union army. Until recently, our knowledge was limited to it being
escorted south by armed midshipmen of the Confederate Navy under command of navy
paymaster James A. Semple. Authors Wesley Millett and Gerald White spent years reseaching
every clue. While no gold was recovered by them, they have accounted for most of it in their
historical novel, "The Rebel and the Rose." Unlike most historical fiction, the authors'
approach is unusual in that "The Rebel and the Rose" is thoroughly endnoted like a
non-fiction work. Semple's movements are tracked as well as his relationship with Julia
Gardniner Tyler, former first lady and step-mother to Semple's estranged wife, Letitia. Millet
and White account for the money as it is disbursed on Semple's column fled south - sometimes
in company with Confederate President Jeff Davis. Men are paid off as they are discharged.
Additionally, outstanding Confederate debts are paid as Semple disburses the bullion and
reduces his responsibility. The final disbursements are made when the midshipmen are paid
off and the remaining money is entrusted to Confederate loyalists whom they identify. Not
surprisingly, some was siphoned to Tyler. Not everything is accounted for, and some $26,000
in gold alone remains unaccounted for, but in tracing Sewell's movements, Millet and White
have given us the most up to date look into the mystery of the Confederate gold.
Gary Yee
Crusade in Europe
by Dwight D. Eisenhower
Ike has a crisp to the point writing style. He succinctly illustrates what the difficulties were
which he and others encountered before, during, and, to some degree, after the Second
World War. He gives very favorable treatment of Generals Marshall, Patton, and, Bradley,
as well as Naval figures such as Admirals Stark and King, the latter having been described as
having been so feared by his subordinates that Ike once was rumored to have said that King
shaved with a blowtorch. One of the more pertinent topics which Eisenhower covers is the
lack of an effective and coordinated intelligence organization and the difficulties which this
presented when the United States entered the war. Another was the need for a unified
defense system, which later came about in the Post War period with the establishment of the
Defense Department Ike also develops why the Allies adopted a defeat Germany first
program. The body of the opus is, as the title implies, about the European Campaign. The
Decisions to use Great Britain as the main depot for the allies, as well as the decisions to
invade North Africa and the Italian Peninsula as well as the invasion of "Festung Europa",
i.e., the European Fortress of the Germans, is covered in very clear terms. Ike, for instance,
describes the reason for going into the Saar area of Germany in the final months of the war.
In the ensuing decades, with revelations such as the existence of "Ultra" and the "Venona"
projects, and with the release of the Eisenhower Diaries in the 1990's, historians have a new
found respect for this key figure of the twentieth century who was instrumental in shaping the
post World War II era. "Crusade in Europe" lends to understanding and appreciation of this
historical figure and the times in which he lived and served. The memoir was written shortly
after Eisenhower retired from active duty and assumed the Presidency of Columbia
University. Eisenhower would pen other works in later years, such as "At Ease, Stories I Tell
to My Friends" and his Presidential Memoirs.
Mike McAdoo, Past President, SFCWRT
More Book Reviews
The Diary of a Union Surgeon in the Virginia & North Carolina Marshes,
edited by Thomas P. Lowry
Thomas P. Lowry is no stranger to the Civil War reader. His previous books include
Tarnished Eagles: The Court-Martial of Fifty Union Colonels and Lieutenant Colones, The
Story the Soldiers Wouldn't Tell: Sex in the Civil War and more recently, Tarnished Scalpels.
In Swamp Doctor, he introduces the diary of Surgeon William M. Smith of the 85th New York
Volunteer Infantry. Smith hails from a medical family and his father was a country doctor.
As a medical practitioner, Smith had the benefit of medical schooling which, while primitive
by today's standards, was as complete a medical education one could receive in the
mid-nineteenth century. His regiment is initially assigned to the defense of Washington before
joining McClellan's Peninsula Campaign. Unfortunately, Smith's diary covering the early
part of the campaign has been lost but it picks up before the Seven Days Battle. After their
ignoble retreat where McClellan saves (?) the army from total destruction, they are sent to
Southern Virginia and caught up in the battles of Kingston and Goldsboro. Afterwards they
participated in the defense of Washington (NC) against a force led by A. P. Hill that is ten
times their size.
Reflecting the morals of the period, Smith converses with fallen women, but does not use their
services. He is also entangled in the politics of the regiment when their major accuses his
assistant surgeon of going AWOL and then attributes the accusation to Smith. Smith secures
the original documentation and the major is allowed to resign for his ungentlemanly conduct.
Perhaps the most valuable aspect of the book is Smith's examination papers where he is
certified by an examining board to be eligible to hold his post as Surgeon. For instance, he is
asked, "Describe a disinfectant and describe the several classes of disinfectants" or "What
are the conditions on which secondary hemorrhage after amputation depend, and what are
the best modes of treating them?" Microbes and bacteria were unknown in those days but
there was some knowledge about hygiene. Other questions are entirely irrelevant to the
medical field. Under what circumstances did the House of Hannover succeed to the British
crown? or What were the causes of the last war with Great Britain and in what year did it
take place? For a re-enactor working on his medical impression, the examination papers
alone makes the book worth its price.
Gary Yee
The Rebel and the Rose
by Wesley Millet and Gerald White.
Whatever happened to the lost Confederate gold? As a subject of speculation with even a
movie loosely based on it, it is a mystery that haunts us today. In the wake of Richmond's
evacuation, the gold bullion and Mexican silver of Confederate treasury of was moved south
to escape the approaching Union army. Until recently, our knowledge was limited to it being
escorted south by armed midshipmen of the Confederate Navy under command of navy
paymaster James A. Semple. Authors Wesley Millett and Gerald White spent years reseaching
every clue. While no gold was recovered by them, they have accounted for most of it in their
historical novel, "The Rebel and the Rose." Unlike most historical fiction, the authors'
approach is unusual in that "The Rebel and the Rose" is thoroughly endnoted like a
non-fiction work. Semple's movements are tracked as well as his relationship with Julia
Gardniner Tyler, former first lady and step-mother to Semple's estranged wife, Letitia. Millet
and White account for the money as it is disbursed on Semple's column fled south - sometimes
in company with Confederate President Jeff Davis. Men are paid off as they are discharged.
Additionally, outstanding Confederate debts are paid as Semple disburses the bullion and
reduces his responsibility. The final disbursements are made when the midshipmen are paid
off and the remaining money is entrusted to Confederate loyalists whom they identify. Not
surprisingly, some was siphoned to Tyler. Not everything is accounted for, and some $26,000
in gold alone remains unaccounted for, but in tracing Sewell's movements, Millet and White
have given us the most up to date look into the mystery of the Confederate gold.
Gary Yee
Crusade in Europe
by Dwight D. Eisenhower
Ike has a crisp to the point writing style. He succinctly illustrates what the difficulties were
which he and others encountered before, during, and, to some degree, after the Second
World War. He gives very favorable treatment of Generals Marshall, Patton, and, Bradley,
as well as Naval figures such as Admirals Stark and King, the latter having been described as
having been so feared by his subordinates that Ike once was rumored to have said that King
shaved with a blowtorch. One of the more pertinent topics which Eisenhower covers is the
lack of an effective and coordinated intelligence organization and the difficulties which this
presented when the United States entered the war. Another was the need for a unified
defense system, which later came about in the Post War period with the establishment of the
Defense Department Ike also develops why the Allies adopted a defeat Germany first
program. The body of the opus is, as the title implies, about the European Campaign. The
Decisions to use Great Britain as the main depot for the allies, as well as the decisions to
invade North Africa and the Italian Peninsula as well as the invasion of "Festung Europa",
i.e., the European Fortress of the Germans, is covered in very clear terms. Ike, for instance,
describes the reason for going into the Saar area of Germany in the final months of the war.
In the ensuing decades, with revelations such as the existence of "Ultra" and the "Venona"
projects, and with the release of the Eisenhower Diaries in the 1990's, historians have a new
found respect for this key figure of the twentieth century who was instrumental in shaping the
post World War II era. "Crusade in Europe" lends to understanding and appreciation of this
historical figure and the times in which he lived and served. The memoir was written shortly
after Eisenhower retired from active duty and assumed the Presidency of Columbia
University. Eisenhower would pen other works in later years, such as "At Ease, Stories I Tell
to My Friends" and his Presidential Memoirs.
Mike McAdoo, Past President, SFCWRT
More Book Reviews
