Alabama Books

This comprehensive work is certainly not light reading, but it offers a degree of detail about the history of Mobile that is unavailable in other histories of the area. The author is careful to cite original documents, where available, to verify the information. The reader is reassured of the authoratative nature of the work. It is particularly helpful in substantiating information in less extensive narratives.

i decided to read this book after reading about it in black issues book review. I twas a great story and well ahead of its time. Main character is a farm girl who decides that single parenthood is the route for her. It is interesting to note the attitudes then about this issue vs ours today. This book is hard to find and you may have to special order but it is worth it

It always amazes me how someone can collect so much information about a culture without a written language or about anything that has no prior documentation, for that matter. I commend Mr. Burns for his efforts to capture this information in print before it was lost. The only reason I did not give five stars was because I thought perhaps more effort could be put into organizing the information to make it easier to find things. Also, there seemed to be some confusion about the gender used to address to some of the celestial objects/deities, but I understand that the various tribes did not necessarily agree on all that.

Read this book to really know the Cracker South. If you are interested in organizing people you will learn first hand about the unionization of the Cuban cigar workers.

This is Dixie in all its rawness! Learn of the real South. Nobody is exempt from its biting edge.

Party Organization and Activsim in the American South attempts to identify Democratic and Republican party-building activities in eleven Southern states. These activities include recruiting party activists, recruiting candidates, understanding the orientations of Southern partisans by religon, moralistic positions, and includes information on the roles played by county chairs and county committee persons.

The book is short on specifics on individual states, other than Mississippi and Alabama, that could be helpful to a partisan using this book as an objective guidepost on how to persue winning strategies.

A good buy, it allows partisans to better understand activist behavior from emperical data, rather than from conjecture.

This is an interesting book if you want to learn more about modern society and the importance and value we place upon popular culture. Anyone who is a fan of Dilbert should be especially interested in this book's perspective on the relationship between Dilert and its followers. As a university student studying communications and its relationship to our society, I found this book to be a useful and relevant resource to further my understanding of these areas. I would recomend this book to anyone interested in pop-culture and related fields.

This book's use of the technical terminology and classical and contemporary scholarship of the science of rhetoric might intimidate some readers. However, the author presents a well thought-out argument for the consistency of thought of an historic religious leader, one who has by no means always been regarded as consistent even among the various branches of his own followers. A good addition to the literature of the Stone-Campbell Movement.

I read this book in preparation for sharing in an adult Sunday School class on the issues of the ministry of mercy. As such it was a good and welcomed addition to my knowledge not just of the period but of a community (Baptists) with which i am not familiar.It is not technical but is full of facts and details from the pen of a professional historian. He has several interesting principles apparent in the book: individual conversion precedes and is foundational to any social or institutional change, and that they were actually relatively successful in their confrontation with the problems in society during these crucial years.

I'd pick up the book and read the conclusion, chapter 7, Reassessing a Legacy: Southern Baptists, Social Christianity and Regional context, a short chapter. And then read chapter 4, Southern Baptists, Social Christianity, and Orphanages, which is the central chapter of the book and certainly long enough and detailed to give the reader a good idea if they will finish the book. Then if you get the book, just read it from the beginning to see the way that the author's arguments unfold as he supports and illustrates them from history. It is history, it is not theology, but i think that the author is sympathetic towards the people he is studying and presents them fairly. Reading just chapters 7 then 4 will get you the main points of the book, however not the supporting data and how several fields of missionary and social ministry tied together and changed over these years.

i liked the book and recommend it. It is not a difficult read and interesting enough to hold most people's attention.

This book covers N MS, N AL, and Middle TN from 5 Sept. 1864 though 6 Oct. 1864. Events preparing the attack of CS General Hood on Franklin and Nashville, TN in late 1864. In great detail you will understand the feats of CS General Forrest's, "The Wizard of the Saddle", conquest of Union forces with only 4500 men (3500+ Union troops captured). You will discover why US General Grant and Sherman moved 30,000 troops into this area to stop Forrest's success over an area of 200 sq. miles. This well written book also explains several acts of bravery by USCT (Black Troops) along US General Sherman's supply lines and the avenue for advertising the 600 captured Black troops return to slavery. The reader will understand why US Generals Grant and Sherman offered rewards for this Confederate General's capture either dead or alive. General Sherman preferred "devil Forrest" dead. The history is written in an exciting and concise manner with unit actions and commanders view points given from both sides of the conflict. Several individual accounts of escape, daring, and determination by both Union and Rebel soldiers are told in a honest and honorable manner. The book is very interesting reading for the Civil War history reader.

I loved this book at the end. At the first of it, I was becoming tired of the author claiming Semmes was a 'rasict'. ( give me a break, during the 1800's 99% of all white people were, even Lincoln)

The author, Warren Spencer quite obviously admires Semmes, and does a great historical job.

This is a short version of Semmes own book, which is a little over 800 pages.

Semmes was a very intelligent person, and an astute lawyer. His prowess upon the seas, still holds records to this day.

The Germans were ordered to study the tactics of Raphael Semmes with their U-boats.

I deduct one star from what could be a 5 star book, due to the aforementioned 'racist' nonsense. And secondly, the rareity of footnotes and primary sources.

The author uses quotation markes, where he quotes Semmes; BUT, there should be a footnote, with the primary source, preferably on the bottom of the page. There are some of us Civil War buffs, that stive for accuracy, and demands primary sources. I know Mr. Spencer used them; but footnotes, previously mentioned would have been as asset.

I wish to quote two very good lines from this book--

--"Our Southern movement, in the eyes of Spain, was a mere political revolution, and like all absolute governments, she had no sympathy with revolutionists. It was on this principle that the Czar of Russia has fraternized so warmly with the Federal President." [from Semmes journal]
[ authors note-'this is an insight into the diplomacy of the Civil War that has to date escaped the notice of authorities on the subject.]....If you're a Civil War buff, ( or a sailor) you should have a book, on Raphael Semmes, this book would be a good choice.