interesting ( )

Wonderful book! I found it very touching, of course, but found some of it unexpectedly humorous. What a wonderful glimpse into a woman's life during the Civil War era. I was gratified to see that these women seemed to feel great power and purpose and did not feel like helpless, fainting, second-class citizens, as we are so often led to believe women of that era did--before suffrage and women's lib :) They realized the importance of the jobs they did "at home" to keep the soldiers clothed, fed, nursed, cheered, etc., as well as to take care of estates and families when the men were gone.

There were many parts that especially touched me. Here are a few:

Mary Custis Lee (wife of Gen. Robert E. Lee): "...the prospects before us are sad indeed & as I think both parties are wrong in this fratricidal war, there is nothing comforting even in the hope that God may prosper the right, for I see no right in the matter." (Such an unpatriotic, non-partisan view for the great general's wife to have.)

Varina Howell Davis (wife of Confederate Pres. Jefferson Davis): "As to the children, I think you must like them, at best your God child--he is pretty as was Maggie in her babyhood, and so very gentle & loving, gets occasions of tenderness while playing, and runs up and puts his dirtly little hands on either side of my face to kiss me. He talks sporadically--the words pronounced quite plainly, sometimes whole sentences, and then it is a month before another word is enunciated. Jeff is beaming, blustering, blooming, burly and blundering as ever. The repository of many hopes, promising of but little definite as yet. Little Maggie is gentle & loving, and considerate. She and I are good friends."- (What beautiful descriptions of one's children--obviously written by a mother who loved them.)

Rose O'Neal Greenhow (the courier who took information to the Confederates and was imprisoned for it): "I have been one week in my new prison. My letters now all go through the detective police who subject them to a chemical process to extract the treason." (She kept her sense of humor, at least!)

Cornelia Peake McDonald (living in Winchester when it was occupied by the Union; her two oldest children witnessed a battle nearby): "They had a position in the beginning of the battle near where a body of the Federals were awaiting an attack, and they, the boys, were perched on a fence for a better view, but the attack was made, and a man's head rolled close to where they were, and they prudently retreated to a more secure position." (What a matter-of-fact description of what must have been a life-changing event for those boys!)

Kate Cumming (nursing the wounded after the Battle of Shiloh): "I do not think that words are in our vocabulary to present to the mind the realities of that sad scene. Certainly, none of the glories of the war were presented here. But I must not say that; for if uncomplaining endurance is glory, we had plenty of it. If it is that which makes the hero, here they were by scores. Gray-haired men--men in the pride of manhood--beardless boys--Federals and all, mutilated in every imaginable way, lying on the floor, just as they were taken from the battle field; so close together that it was almost impossible to walk without stepping on them."

Obviously the better educated, upper-class was most represented in this book, because they were the ones who had the skills to write. I feel sure that poorer women suffered even more. But I was struck by the empathy that all the women in the book felt for the soldiers and for other women.

There was, of course, little empathy for the slaves in these entries, but no outright cruelty either. One woman spends a lot of time telling her husband about how all the "negroes" are doing, who has had a baby and what it was named, what preparations she is making to keep them comfortable during the winter, etc. (And these slaves are also shown as the exception because they choose to stay with the family rather than "run away," as so many of her neighbors' slaves did--perhaps this family provided exceptional care?) Slavery and emancipation were actually mentioned very little in this book, surprisingly enough.

Reading this book has made me want to do several things:

1) Start keeping a journal again. I kept one for 20 years but have fallen off since the birth of my second child five years ago. I never did write much about current events--too wrapped up in my own little world--but still it is a good outlet and an interesting read.
2) Rent Ken Burns's "The Civil War" and watch it all!
3) Watch "Gone With the Wind."

Anyway, I can't say enough good things about this book. I would love to read the second volume, as the story is only half told. It would also be interesting to hear what some of these same women had to say about the Reconstruction.

Sorry to ramble so much. My thoughts just went in lots of directions while reading this book! ( )

interesting ( )