I have to admit, I'm not as interested in the US Civil War as I ought to be, both as an American and as a "Southerner". Perhaps it's too far removed from my reality. I certainly haven't ever bought into the inanity that is "The South Shall Rise Again", so perhaps a measure of my apathy comes from living in a place that had its share of rednecked gits (multicultural insults anyone?).

Doesn't really matter - I wanted to start filling in the gaps of my ignorance about this era and I thought this book might be the way to do it. I found the British Museum's History of the World in 100 Objects to be brilliant, and I bought 50 Objects with enthusiasm.

Overall, my expectations were met; I learned a lot and I have a much better mind for the time frame and timeline of the Civil War. Through the objects and their descriptions, I gained a bit more connection to this part of America's history. I'm less apathetic than I was, although I'm safe from Civil War re-enactments for the foreseeable future. The majority of the objects chosen were slavery and emancipation related, which makes sense given it was the defining issue of the Civil War, but I think the single entry I found most fascinating was the newspaper published on the back of wallpaper. The story of paper and ink shortages, and how people 'made do' was compelling.

I found the writing a bit dry. Mr. Holzer did his research and overall the text is very readable, but his passion for the times (if he has any) wasn't evident in his narratives. What was very obvious was his passion for the New York Historical Society. I will go so far as to say that at times he was downright boastful about the Society and it's collections - pointing out that the object was very rare, but the society had multiple copies. I also noticed that every single object selected was in absolutely pristine condition. I don't know if that's just a coincidence, or if objects were chosen based on both historical significance and condition, in order to make them more appealing to the reader. It was a small thing, and makes no difference, but it did strike me as curious.

So, 4 stars with 1 star going by the wayside because the writing could have been - less dry? Moister??? Overall, I'd recommend the book to anyone wanting to learn more about the Civil War in America but would prefer to do it in small, manageable portions and with a minimum of battle statistics. I'm happy to have bought the hardcover edition and I imagine it's a book I'll pull of the shelves from time-to-time. ( )

This book takes a fascinating approach to civil war history, progressing generally chronologically but with each chapter focused on a particular artifact. As the goodreads description states, the objects include everything “from a soldier’s diary with the pencil still attached to John Brown’s pike, the Emancipation Proclamation, a Confederate Palmetto flag, and the leaves from Abraham Lincoln’s bier”. Each chapter talks about both broader themes and personal stories that the artifacts connect to.

At first, I was hesitant to pick this up for fear it would be a dry cataloguing of objects, but I heard about it from several people and decided it was worth a try. As you can tell from my rating, I was very glad I gave it a chance! I could tell from the moment I opened the book that it was going to be good. First of all, this is just a beautiful book. The paper felt and smelled nice; the pictures were gorgeous; and the font was large and easy to read. As I read my way to a deeper analysis, I was also impressed by the organization. Although broad themes relating to the entirety of the war were discussed for most objects, the flow still felt chronological. While a timeline of battles wasn’t the point of this book, I did end the book with a better feel for the order of the events of the civil war.

My favorite thing about this book was the combination of looking at the big picture and at individual stories. I’ve recently read some books that really capture the feel of an era (The Time Traveler’s Guide to Elizabethan England, An Elegant Madness: High Society in Regency England) and I love that. It’s amazing to feel (correctly or not!) that you’ve begun to understand what it would have been like to live in a particualr time period. This book gave me that feeling. I especially liked the revelation of the issues that would have been on people’s minds at the time. I also love non-fiction that focuses on the human element, since this is almost universily interesting no matter the official topic of a book. The stories attached to each object in this collection were touching and contributed a personal side to this story. Highly recommended.

This review first published Doing Dewey. ( )

As you can’t help but knowing lately, this very weekend is the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg, fought in Pennsylvania from July 1-3, 1863, and which was the inspiration for Lincoln’s famous “Gettysburg Address.”

A number of wonderful books have been created for this occasion, some of which take advantage of a similar idea: focusing on artifacts, documents and other materials as a way to retell the story in a fresh way.

The Civil War in 50 Objects by Harold Holzer and The New-York Historical Society is one of these (and yes, the hyphen belongs in the title of the museum!)

This beautifully produced book examines the Civil War via objects from that era housed in the New-York Historical Society. Essays are organized around materials illustrating a theme, such as a discussion of slavery that highlights a small pair of wrist shackles sized to fit an infant slave. (Holzer observes, “…the cruelty or fear that inspired these particular contraptions is almost incomprehensible.”)

Some of the other objects featured include a pike believed to have been used in John Brown’s attack on Harpers Ferry, Grant’s handwritten terms of surrender at Appomattox, framed leaves from Abraham Lincoln's funeral bier, and a number of woodcuts, paintings, flags, and pamphlets from the time.

There are great stories in this book, some of them little-known anecdotes, and all of them informative and evocative of a time we can’t seem to forget. In fact, as the superb historian Eric Foner notes in his amazingly pithy yet comprehensive introduction, many of the questions raised back then remain unanswered and controversial still today. “In that sense,” he says, “the Civil War is not yet over.”

So this book is important, since the Civil War remains relevant in many ways, even 150 years after the critical Battle of Gettysburg. It can even help put current events in perspective, as with the anecdote in the book about New York’s Trinity Church using Joel in a sermon to help with recruitment:

Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong.” Joel 3:10 King James Bible, Cambridge Edition)

instead of, e.g., Isaiah 2.4:

And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks…”

Religious texts always have something for every occasion! Perhaps that is why so many groups can use them to justify so many seemingly opposite beliefs.

Evaluation: This book would make a wonderful gift for the history buffs in your life. Even if you think you have already read a great deal about the Civil War, I can almost guarantee you will find stories in this book you didn’t know! While some details get a little glossed over, I don’t think in-depth coverage is the purpose of this book. Rather, it is a potpourri that you can pick up and put down as you will. It’s also beautifully bound. ( )