At least 8,000 Jewish soldiers fought for the Union and Confederacy during the Civil War. A few served together in Jewish companies while most fought alongside Christian comrades. Yet even as they stood "shoulder-to-shoulder" on the front lines, they encountered unique challenges.

In Jews and the Civil War, Jonathan D. Sarna and Adam Mendelsohn assemble for the first time the foremost scholarship on Jews and the Civil War, little known even to specialists in the field. These accessible and far-ranging essays from top scholars are grouped into seven thematic sections--Jews and Slavery, Jews and Abolition, Rabbis and the March to War, Jewish Soldiers during the Civil War, The Home Front, Jews as a Class, and Aftermath--each with an introduction by the editors. Together they reappraise the impact of the war on Jews in the North and the South, offering a rich and fascinating portrait of the experience of Jewish soldiers and civilians from the home front to the battle front.

One man, Abraham Lincoln, was the sole cause of the War Between the States, l861 - 1865, and the deaths of almost one million Americans. Honest, compassionate and kind hearted, but forthright to an extreme, Lincoln spoke for millions of Americans who detested slavery, and wanted to eradicate it, and for millions more who wanted to preserve the Union upon confronting the secession of eleven southern states By calling for 75,000 volunteers, men to defend the Union immediately following the attack in Charleston Harbor, Lincoln knowingly inflamed the situation. The war was on. Lincoln wanted it. He also knew that it could have been avoided, it could have been settled amicably without the loss of any men from the North or the South. Lincoln knew that the U.S. Constitution was silent on the issue of secession, that there was then, as there is now, absolutely nothing in the Constitution that prevents any state or any number of states, from peacefully leaving the Union. REVIEW: "A great yarn - worthy of a Pulitzer." B. Ballard, Rockville, MD

'Shiloh' as Seen by a Private Soldier
by Warren Olney
The Battle of Shiloh
by Joseph W. Rich
Shiloh from the ranks-Shiloh from the historian
The first piece in his vital book is a description of battle from the sharpest end of combat. It is the recollection of this momentous conflict of the American Civil War by a very ordinary private soldier who stood in the ranks of the Union Army-more significantly from his perspective-among his comrades of Company B, Third Iowa Infantry. It is not-nor does it purport to be-an overview of the battle. It is an ordinary soldier's narrow view-devoid of the larger picture-filled with noise, smoke, mud, fear and blood. For those who study military history it is, of course, precisely the kind of invaluable material that brings history alive. The second piece offers that objective perspective that the first account lacks. It is an overview and appraisal of that day of relentless and often controversial collision of arms. More significantly the author's interest and focus is drawn from the fact that this was a highly significant event for the State of Iowa since there were, apart from the Third Infantry, no less than ten other Iowa regiments engaged upon the field. This is an ideal book to help gain an understanding of 'both perspectives' of this famous battle-the human and the academic-within one volume and is recommended to all students of the period. Available in soft cover and hard back with dust jacket.

"The American negroes are the only people in the history of the world. . . . that ever became free without any effort on their own." W. E. Woodward stated this in his biography of General Ulysses S. Grant. Nothing could be farther from the truth as will be seen in this history which will show that the African Americans fighting in the Civil War may have been the deciding factor in determining the outcome.

Considered one of the best treatments of the presidency of Abraham Lincoln of its time, this portrait of the man and his administration of the United States at the moment of its greatest upheaval is both intimate and scholarly. Written by two private secretaries to the president and first published in 1890, this astonishingly in-depth work is still praised today for its clear, easy-to-read style and vitality. This new replica edition features all the original illustrations. Volume Nine covers: Sherman's campaign to the Chattahoochee the Cleveland convention the Wade-Davis manifesto the last days of the rebel navy Horace Greeley's peace mission Atlanta Sheridan in the Shenandoah Cedar Creek Lincoln reelected and much more. American journalist and statesman JOHN MILTON HAY (1838-1905) was only 22 when he became a private secretary to Lincoln. A former member of the Providence literary circle when he attended Brown University in the late 1850s, he may have been the real author of Lincoln's famous "Letter to Mrs. Bixby." After Lincoln's death, Hay later served as editor of the *New York Tribune* and as U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom under President William McKinley. American author JOHN GEORGE NICOLAY (1832-1901) was born in Germany and emigrated to the U.S. as a child. Before serving as Lincoln's private secretary, he worked as a newspaper editor and later as assistant to the secretary of state of Illinois. He also wrote *Campaigns of the Civil War* (1881).

In Lieu of a Draft: A History of the 153rd Pennsylvania Volunteer Regiment documents the daily chores of camp life and the long hours spent waiting to engage the enemy, Historian James I. Robertson, Jr. has noted that soldiers spent "more time in camp than on marches and in battle combined." This book presents the uncensored story and explores the deep political divisions within the regiment. William R. Kiefer, the regiment's historian, admitted that many incidents recorded in diaries had to be omitted, because they dealt with "certain personal matters," offensive to some of the survivors, but which admittedly "would otherwise have added relish to the stories." Kiefer also had to exclude material he felt was "heavily tainted with odium cast upon certain officers" and "written in such partisan style" that the reader would find it unacceptable. The battles of Chancellorsville and Gettysburg are retold through the eyes of the 153rd volunteers as only they could have seen and experienced them. Every effort has been made to present this story as a chronological narrative of their service.

Based largely on Civil War veterans' own words, this book documents how many of these men survived the extraordinary horrors and hardships of war with surprising resilience and went on to become productive members of their communities in their post-war lives. Nothing transforms "dry, boring history" into fascinating and engaging stories like learning about long-ago events through the words of those who lived them. What was it like to witness-and participate in-the horrors of a war that lasted four years and claimed over half a million lives, and then emerge as a survivor into a drastically changed world? Veterans North and South: The Transition from Soldier to Civilian after the American Civil War takes readers back to this unimaginable time through the words of Civil War soldiers who fought on both sides, illuminating their profound, life-changing experiences during the war and in the postbellum period. The book covers the period from the surrender of the armies of the Confederacy to the return of the veterans to their homes. It follows them through their readjustment to civilian life and to family life while addressing their ability-and in some cases, inability-to become productive members of society. By surveying Civil War veterans' individual stories, readers will gain an in-depth understanding of these soldiers' sacrifices and comprehend how these discrete experiences coalesced to form America's memory of this war as a nation. Documents how Civil War veterans' combat experience changed them in ways that allowed them to become productive members of their communities and leaders in their sections-a largely overlooked "benefit" to the war Identifies overarching trends among veterans' experiences while also underscoring how varied Civil War soldiers' experiences were, depending on which side they fought for, where they fought, and their socioeconomic status

Relying principally on Ian Saberton's edition of The Cornwallis Papers: The Campaigns of 1780 and 1781 in the Southern Theatre of the American Revolutionary War, 6 vols (Uckfield: The Naval & Military Press Ltd, 2010), this work opens with an essay containing a groundbreaking critique of British strategy during the momentous and decisive campaigns that terminated in Cornwallis's capitulation at Yorktown and the consolidation of American independence. The essay begins by analysing the critical mistakes that led the British to disaster and ends, conversely by describing how they might have achieved a lasting measure of success. The remaining essays address certain characters and events in or connected to the war.

The Dakota Conflict, or Great Sioux Uprising as it was called, occurred 150 years ago in 1862 and became identified as part of the American Civil War. The Dakota Conflict caused the greatest loss of civilian life in an Indian war in U.S. history, and resulted in the largest mass execution in U.S. history. The author is a direct descendant of settlers living in Blue Earth County, Minnesota, who witnessed htis dark chapter in American history. We commemorate all victims of the Sioux Uprising, we forgive the crimes of our ancestors, and we support efforts at reconciliation between the white and Indian cultures. This hardcover book, Blood on the Prairie A Novel of the Sioux Uprising Sesquicentennial Edition, is a collector edition intended for personal and community libraries.

The Native Peoples of the United States could only take so much from the world. "Blood on the Prairie" is a novel set amongst this theater of the American Civil War, where the Sioux Nation rebelled against Minnesota and led to some of the bloodiest conflicts of the period. Author Steven Ulmen draws on his own personal history to tell the story of the conflict. "Blood on the Prairie" is a strong pick for fans of historical fiction, recommended. Burroughs Bookshelf, MIDWEST BOOK REVIEW, September 2012

This edited collection of Civil War correspondence between Col. Thomas Cahill and his wife, Margaret, offers a rare glimpse into the symbiotic relationship between soldiers and their home communities. In the only substantial extant collection of letters from an Irish American woman on the northern home front, Margaret's pivotal role as a go-between in the financial affairs of men in the regiment and their wives is made evident, as is the broader interplay between the community of New Haven, Connecticut, and the regiment. The couple's correspondence was nearly constant in their four years apart. There is an inherent intimacy in the way that daily life during the Civil War is documented and in particular in the gradual revelation of the emotional toll taken by a long-distance relationship. Because the volume includes letters from both Cahill and his wife, the interplay between the regiment and the home front is traced in a way most collections are not able to achieve. This lively correspondence provides a great introduction to primary source reading for students of the Civil War home front. These teaching opportunities will supplemented by a companion website that features more correspondence, maps, and additional learning materials.

The war and views of a foot soldier in gray
The author of this book has written of his experiences of the American Civil War from the perspective of an ordinary private soldier of the North Carolina Infantry. Modern readers should allow for the fact that James Carson was very much a man of his time and place. His support for the Confederacy and the Southern way of life of the mid-nineteenth century is evident within these pages and include an ardent belief in the slave system. Nevertheless, this book is invaluable for those interested in a Confederate view of life on the sharp end of the infantryman's war including scenes of the march, camp life and the battlefield particularly at Petersburg. Available in soft cover and hard cover for collectors.

Considered one of the best treatments of the presidency of Abraham Lincoln of its time, this portrait of the man and his administration of the United States at the moment of its greatest upheaval is both intimate and scholarly. Written by two private secretaries to the president and first published in 1890, this astonishingly in-depth work is still praised today for its clear, easy-to-read style and vitality. This new replica edition features all the original illustrations. Volume Eight covers: conspiracies in the North habeas corpus Chickamauga Chattanooga Burnside in Tennessee the Gettysburg address foreign relations in 1863 Grant general-in-chief Spotsylvania and much more. American journalist and statesman JOHN MILTON HAY (1838-1905) was only 22 when he became a private secretary to Lincoln. A former member of the Providence literary circle when he attended Brown University in the late 1850s, he may have been the real author of Lincoln's famous "Letter to Mrs. Bixby." After Lincoln's death, Hay later served as editor of the *New York Tribune* and as U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom under President William McKinley. American author JOHN GEORGE NICOLAY (1832-1901) was born in Germany and emigrated to the U.S. as a child. Before serving as Lincoln's private secretary, he worked as a newspaper editor and later as assistant to the secretary of state of Illinois. He also wrote *Campaigns of the Civil War* (1881).