Was Grandpa a Freeloader? (Three Stars)

This book provides some good information on the pension systems, those of the Federal government and the former Confederate states. Some of the information confirmed things I already thought I knew about the systems while some of it provided genuine new information. Dr. Lowry discusses the laws  which were passed and their effects on Union pensions (he does some of the same for Virginia pensions).




This is obviously a topic of interest to Lowry but the copy I got has some layout issues. For instance, the chapters are listed but page numbers are not included. There is some unnecessary blank space within the book. Also, the organization of the book seems to wander at times. I would have liked to have read something about past practices of the United States government to recognize veterans via land grants, both by the individual states and the federal government. Also, information on the Soldier's Homes, widow pensions, paid burials and markers and other Federal benefits available for veterans might make it clearer just how large the federal government's largesse was.
Still, it is the only book I have found on the topic and Dr. Lowry does make it more readable through his use of examples from his own family and by photographs of appropriate documents.

Midnight in America (Five Stars)

In this book Mr. White looks at sleep and dreams during the Civil War and does an excellent job on a unique study of the Civil War. To be honest, when I picked up this book I thought it might be an intellectual study, one that "tries to link the excess sleep of urbanized Union soldiers towards a thoughtful approach of war vice the more rural Confederates who lacked sleep and thuis were more inclined to brutality and bigotry." Instead, this is a carefully considered look at sleep and how its lack affected soldiers. How Lincoln declined to have sleeping sentries shot even though this was the standard punishment for such an offense. The types of dreams soldiers had during the war. The types of dreams civilians had during the war. How soldiers dealt with dreams of their own deaths in combat. And, of course, the dreams of President Lincoln and his own supposed premonition of death.

White uses first-hand accounts of dreams written in journals and newspapers and excerpts from documents talking about sleep. It makes for an interesting read and is illustrated with contemporary artwork and photos. Well worth taking time for, especially if you're a Civil War reader.



Lincoln's Labels (Five Stars)

I was very pleased with this book. While it primarily focuses on Northern companies which are well known today it looks and the way the Civil War made their brands household names it also looks at the scientific and industrial might of the Union, taking individuals who were effected by the war and the way that Squibb's medicines or American Express became a part of their stories. Brooks Brothers, Du Pont, Tiffany, Borden Milk, Scientific American... none of these brands were made by the Civil War but they all certainly benefited and became greater for being forged in its fire. Well-written and well-illustrated, Lincoln's Labels is informative and thought-provoking while being thoroughly entertaining.

I review almost exclusively history books (with rare exceptions). I will eagerly review any book having to do with antiaircraft or air defense. I am also interested in books on Africa, but again, mostly the history of the continent, especially in the 20th Century. Get in touch with me for more information. Most of my book reviews are also on Goodreads and Amazon.

Worst Seat in the House (three stars)

While everyone almost everyone knows the circumstances of Lincoln's assassination at Ford's Theater, how he was killed, who the perpetrator was, etc., very few know that the Lincolns had company that fateful night. The story of Maj. Henry Rathbone and Clary Harrison only adds to the tragedy that was Lincoln's fate.






Maj. Rathbone was a New Yorker, a man of some means who nevertheless volunteered for duty during the Civil War and did not seek to use his political connections to get the command of a regiment as so many other affluent New Yorkers had done. He was satisfied with a captain's commission and took part in many of the battles fought by the Army of the Potomac. By the end of the war he was assigned to Washington D.C. and since his wife-to-be was a friend of Mary Todd Lincoln he and Clara were invited to join the Lincolns for a performance of Our American Cousin. When Booth shot the President it was Rathbone who attempted to capture the man, receiving a serious wound in the arm from a hunting knife that the assassin had with him. His efforts may, or may not, have resulted in Booth's own injury upon dropping to the stage.


The histories that even mention that much usually leaves Henry and Clara to disappear into history. However, for them the story didn't end there. In his efforts to release Booth's "bar" at the door and to remain close to the President as he lived the last hours of his life Rathbone neglected his own injury, which led to a serious blood loss. Clara rushed him to her father's nearby house where he would be physically incapacited for some time.






But what of his psychological injuries? Stephens pushes hard for a diagnosis of PTSD in Rathbone... a problem which would result in madness for the man with horrible results many years later. In fact, the author pushes a little TOO hard for his view of PTSD, letting it creep in throughout the book and making it hard to really get a feel for Rathbone as a man rather than a victim. This defect in the book is compounded by issues with the layout (no page numbers for the chapters) and some grammatical errors. There are photos and other illustrations in the book but they often seem misplaced or irrelevent. I did think that the discussion of where Rathbone was actually seated in the box and whether he could have stopped Booth before he shot Lincoln is relevent and worth further discussion but there are several explanations which would make allow for Rathbone's seating and his testimony that he was watching the play.






If you are interested in the Lincoln assassination I believe this book would make good reading for you. It certainly covers an aspect I have not seen elsewhere.