Battle Cry of Freedom: Attempting to Understand America's Civil War

Here we are, at book three of the summer reading challenge!

Battle Cry of Freedom is part of the Oxford History of the United States series. The book was originally published in 1988, and earned McPherson a Pulitzer Prize. The New York Times reviewer called it "...the best one-volume treatment of its subject I have ever come across." It continues to be used in classrooms today to teach the history of the Civil War across high school and college curriculums.

The book covers the background and history of the American Civil War, starting in the 1830s and tracing the evolution of the slavery issue and ending in the aftermath of the Lincoln assassination and disarray before the Reconstruction era began. McPherson does an excellent job of portraying both sides equally, without any particular bias - a difficult feat, especially in one of the most divisive subjects in American history. Much of his efforts go towards understanding what each side was fighting for. Both sides fought for freedom - but McPherson explains that they understood the idea of freedom very differently. This differentiation of each side, while showing their similarities, is what makes McPherson's book so succinct and understandable. He helps to make the war more understandable to the modern reader, separated as we are by a little over 150 years from the actual events.

I've been wanting to read this book since I finished my Civil War class in undergrad. Somehow, I've become even more interested in the war, especially in light of current events. I started this year out reading Confederates in the Attic, Tony Horowitz's study of Southern memory and the Civil War and the books I've chosen to read this summer include three more on the subject (Battle Cry included). Something about this war continues to draw me in and pique my curiosity. What I most enjoyed about McPherson's book was his readability. I've read other pieces of his writing before (his essay collection This Mighty Scourge; For Cause and Comrades, a book on the soldiers fighting in the war; and Tried by War, his biography of Abraham Lincoln as commander-in-chief) and greatly enjoyed their flow. What I appreciated most from this particular work was the snarky sense of humor that popped in occasionally. Peppered throughout the text, it made reading the book even more enjoyable. My only disappointment was that McPherson completely skipped Lincoln's assassination, instead mentioning Booth's comment about killing the President and then jumping directly into the aftermath.

I really enjoyed reading this. I think it's definitely the best summary of the war I've read - but it is rather long, and if I ever wind up using it as a reading for students, I might assign specific portions of the book rather than the entire thing. I do think it's an important piece of Civil War historiography, and I'm glad I took the time to pick it up and read it.

Overall rating: 9.5/10 stars

Discovering Something New: Re-reading Donna Tartt's The Secret History

Second book of the summer reading challenge has been completed! To kick off my reread selections, we're starting with The Secret History.

The Secret History is Donna Tartt's first novel - you may recognize her from her most recent work, The Goldfinch, which won the Pulitzer Prize. Published in 1992, the novel is unique for its why-dun-it set up - a reversal of the mystery tradition.

The Secret History tells the story of a group of Classics students at a remote Vermont college: Henry Winter, the dark brooding intellectual, completely immersed in studying Greek; Bunny Corcoran, the all-American student, former football captain turned Classics student; Francis Abernathy, the delicate aesthete, a severe hypochondriac with a fondness for nice clothes and cigarettes; and Charles and Camilla Macaulay, identical twins whose personalities are anything but identical. Narrated by Richard Papen, a Californian attempting to reinvent himself, the novel is divided into two parts: before the murder, and after the murder. Along the way, the group is heavily influenced by their professor, Julian, who encourages them to engage completely with the ancient lifestyle.

The first time I read this book, I was a rising junior in undergrad. A friend of mine (who is a Classics major herself) recommended it to me, and told me that I absolutely had to read it. I couldn't put it down. I vaguely recall reading it at night, staying up to incredibly odd hours because the chapter hadn't ended, and not wanting to end my lunch breaks at work because I had just gotten to a good part. I think I read it in a day and a half, and didn't ever actually put it down (except for when I had to). There's something about this book that draws me in every time - the concept of beauty as terror, the lyrical form of the prose, the lives of the students... This time, I was drawn to Richard's descriptions of people and places, especially when talking about himself. Somehow, Richard manages to make himself an accessory, but never completely complicit in anything. He's so uncomfortable with himself and his situation that he would rather lie about his life than face the truth.

I also notice, every time I read this, that there are a ton of parallels to Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby. Whether these were intentional or are just me reading way too much into this, I don't know.

I love this book, and I recommend it to basically anyone who asks for a book rec. It's on my list of favorite books of all time, and re-reading it has only cemented its place. And if you like this one, you should check out M.L. Rio's novel If We Were Villains; it's a similar premise, but with Shakespearean actors instead of classicists (and I also love it to death).

Overall rating: 11/10 stars