Tennessee Books

This is a beautiful book with over 150 photos of Negro League Baseball players, each with a concise, informative, interesting synopsis of the picture and player. For any baseball fan, photography fan, and student of African American life, this is a wonderful book.

Reviwer: Bob Kellemen is the author of Beyond the Suffering: Embracing the Legacy of African American Soul Care and Spiritual Direction , Spiritual Friends, and Soul Physicians.

Facinating insight into this era of Baseball . The marvellous photographs effectively communicate many aspects of the time . Accompanying essay very informative and has wet my appetite to learn more about the history of the Negro League.

I was one of the lucky ones that got to view this book before it went to print. I'm a professional sports writer and was impressed with not only the text that goes with this book, but some of the pictures that are within its covers. Baseball is my passion and there are certainly plenty of great images in baseball history ("The Catch", Maz's home run, Fisk's HR, etc.), but this provides a different light to both professional baseball and the Negro Leagues. Withers provides a perspective and view on the lifestyle, mannerisms and actions of the Negro Leagues that I've never seen before. I highly reccomend this book to anyone who's interested in baseball history.

The foreward in this book is particularly touching, as it comes straight from the source, Willie Mays, a Negro League and MLB legend. It is a perfect complement to the wonderful photos of this great era from Mr. Withers.

In this book we once again have the obligatory emotionally tortured characters which are repeated in Tennessee William's works ad infinitum and ad nauseum. In this book the reader is introduced to Reverend T. Lawrence Shannon who seeks refuge in a run down Mexican Hotel.From there on we have the usual hysteria which was a signature of Mr. William's works. It seems that all of his plays and books were about desperate, needy , pathetic people who couldn't "make it through the dark night.My favourite line in this book is "Oh God can we please stop now?" which is exactly what I suggest Mr. Williams should have done with his typewriter.My new Email address is now available although you might have to hunt for a couple of hours on the Internet to find it!!!

The review under mine is ridiculous. This person obviously knows nothing about Tennessee Williams. And incidentally, I have no interest in his email address which he egomaniacally implies one should look for. The characters in this play are not hysterical (except Shannon once when he goes off the deep end, and that's not hysteria come to think of it). This is a beautiful, moving, perceptive and exceptional play. I won't give away the plot in case anyone wants to read it. Williams wrote lots of good and some great plays. This is a great one. I came upon this review (and the one under it which is just inaccurate, the reviewer apparently has a hard time grasping what he reads, if he read it) because I just saw the movie of this play and want to reread it again. I've read it many times, and I love it. I think (though I'm not sure) that Bette Davis played Maxine in the original production, and unlike Ava Gardner's (who was perfect in the part), her "Ha!" was (as is described in the stage directions) an explosion, and occurred frequently. One scene I will give away. Shannon tells Hannah about a place where the animals go to deficate. The place is so poor and the people are so hungry, that the people go through the dung looking for and eating bits of undigested food. Hannah goes behind a tree and throws up. That was left out of the movie. This is a very kind and gentle play. And emotionally (all the Williams' plays I've read are, he used to be a hero of mine, I've outgrown him, except for this gem) and intellectually (not so customary) deep. (That word "deep" will I hope turn you on, not off.) Oh. My email address isn't listed.

"Night of the Iguana" is a Tennessee Williams play unlike any other. Set at a Mexican hotel in the early 1940's, the drama presents several character portraits of searing intensity. The minister Shannon -- tortured with self-loathing over his inability to control his sexual appetite -- has abandoned a tour bus he has been leading and has come to stay with an old friend, Maxine. Shannon is suffering a nervous breakdown, and it is only through the near-angelic presence of Hannah Jelkes, a visitor at Maxine's, that he is able to understand himself and the actions which have brought him to this state. While so many of Williams' characters (including Shannon) feel shamefully about love and sex, in Hannah Jelkes he has created a character entirely without shame. Hannah is Williams' ideal -- a person living living free of societal mores, who (like Blanche DuBois) is offended only by deliberate cruelty and unkindness. The third act, in particular, is transfiguring; had Williams written nothing else, this act alone would guarantee him his place among the greats.

The best play of Tennessee's late period, The Night of the Iguana features one of his best characters, in the shape of Reverend T. Lawrence Shannon, a self-hating, sexually angst ridden, anti-reverend, for whom life is now breaking down, again.

Into the hidden Mexican hotel run by the America ex-pat Maxine comes Shannon, again to reconcile his life, where he meets the vagabond painter Hannah and her 97-years-young poet grandfather.

Shannon has been leading tours throughout the world over the years since his explosion at the pulpit propelled him out of the church's favor, and now he has abandoned a busload of Texas women who are fed up with his philandering and his off-the-beaten-path tactics.

All of the drama and trauma of classic Tennessee Williams is here. The tortured Reverend, at odds with God in such a cruel world. A man whose sexuality has been more detrimental than pleasurable. As well, there is Maxine, a middle aged widower, stuck or something like it in Mexico, running a cheap, rough and tumble hotel, far away from the nonsense of cities and America. Then, the spirited Hannah, who takes to Shannon as he to her, in a feeling out of hard hearts, and lonelinesses.

Better than most of his plays, The Night of the Iguana succeeds in it's treatment of lost souls, and the meeting of two people destined for loneliness and disappointment.

Recently, while shopping in Chattanooga, I ran across a new book tilted Pardon Me Is That The Chattanooga Choo Choo? After opening the book expecting a typical Children's tale, I was delighted to find out I was wrong. While Harry the Hopping Mouse is lost in Chattanooga the reader finds himself lost in the City's Fascinating history. Chattanooga is one of the most interesting places I have visited, and this book highlights nearly twenty of it's many attractions for tourist's and the city's locals. In addition to a fabulous history lesson, Ellen Eady entertains the reader with the most precious story of a hopping mouse in search for his family. This book will make a wonderful gift for any child. Harry's story is a great book for a family or a teacher. I can only hope the Author will go on to write more books about Harry and his explorations.

I teach second grade and my students just loved reading about Harry and his adventures. They were sad when he got in the wrong taxi but laughed and laughed as he made his way around Chattanooga. They loved the ending! My own daughter loves the book and thinks it's really funny! She likes the repetitious nature of Harry's search for the Chattanooga Choo Choo and is anxious to visit Rock City. I would recommend this book whether you've been to Chattanooga or not, though it probably will make you want to visit it!

Recently, while shopping in Chattanooga, I ran across a newbook tilted Pardon Me Is That The Chattanooga Choo Choo? After opening the book expecting a typical Children's tale, I was delighted to find out I was wrong. While Harry the Hopping Mouse is lost in Chattanooga the reader finds himself lost in the City's Fascinating history. Chattanooga is one of the most interesting places I have visited, and this book highlights nearly twenty of it's many attractions for tourist's and the city's locals. In addition to a fabulous history lesson, Ellen Eady entertains the reader with the most precious story of a hopping mouse.... This book will make a wonderful gift for any child. Harry's story is a great book for a family or a teacher. I can only hope the Author will go on to write more books about Harry and his explorations. END

I think that this is the VERY best book for kids I have ever read although,(she is my Aunt so I would get in trouble for saying that I didn't like the book) but I still LOVE IT! I was reading all of the rough drafts all through the process of her book and even at the beginning I knew so many people would love it.She describes all of the sites very well and I know this because I have been to visit her up in Chattanooga 3 times and have been to all but 2 sites. I can see why Harry loved playing in the fountains because those are a lot of fun! mY OVERALL OPINION OF THIS BOOK IS THAT IT IS A 5 star, 2 thumbs up book and that this is an ideal book for kids to read if they are going to Chattanooga and I can not wait to go see my Favorite Aunt again up in Chattanooga, Tennessee. (By the way, did I mention that I, Meghan Taylor, is Ellen Eady, my favorite aunt's, favorite niece!)

I have been a big fan of Williams' work for years, and have been waiting for someone to champion the later plays. While Saddik's argument acknowledges that not all of Williams' later plays were as sophisticated as the earlier ones, she acknowledges his right to experiment and very intelligently analyzes the form of some of his best later work. Bravo!

This book presents Williams' later works in a completely different light, for they are seen as a progression of a genius, not as a stifling of one. It is only unfortunate that Williams himself is not around to read this deeply insightful piece of work.

Informative piece of writing giving a whole new and different outlook on Tennessee Williams' later works. Dr. Saddik is able to give a in depth perspective on the later works of the playwright. Often misunderstood by critics and never quite reaching the acclaim of his earlier works, this book is able to show the reader just what was happening throughout this famous playwright's life. An excellent read!

This was an exceptionally interesting book about both Tennessee William's life and work and the theater world at the time. It provides an insightful discussion of how expectation shaped the career of a great author, as well as fascinating autobiographical details. A fun read!

This coffeetable book contains 280 portraits of soldiers from Tennessee during the Civil War. Tennesseans ralled to both sides, joining armies from the North and the South, which invaded out state. Words are important, but everyone knows the old cliche about a picture. The three distinct parts of this state were represented by William G. Cannon from Pulaski in Middle Tennessee, January 1859 with an office in the old post office building on the public square. In East Tennessee, G. W. Weeks of Greenville in September 1851; and in Jonesborough in 1854. West Tennessee had W. T. Brooks of Bolivar among others.

The pictures were copied from tintypes popular in 1856 and cartes des visite which had four photos on one card in 1866. Those were still around in Knoxville in the 1950s. Some Battles in our state included Shiloh, Chicamauga, Franklin, Murfreesboro, Straw Plains and Lookout Mountain. This book is a collection which silently convey a moving perspective on Tennnesseans Civil War experience.

A few of my favorites with a bit of history: Sam Davis, the boy spy, is my number one. From Smyrna, he was in Colelman's Scouts in 1863 after seeing action across the state for two years. In six years he'd be dead and was the first Tennessean to be chosen for the Confederate Medal of Honor. He was caught in a field in Minor Hill and taken to Pulaski's jail on the Square. Refusing to identify the source of the info he was carrying (Shaw, his superior also was incarcerated in the Giles County jail), he subsequently was hanged on November 17, 1863. A museum with his name was erected on the hill where he was executed. A stone Statue showing him as a young boy is still at the Southern edge of the courthouse property. In 1909, a bronze statue was erected on the SE corner of the state capital in Nashville.

Others include George W. Gordon of Pulaski is reputedly one of the founders of the klan. Born in 1836 in Giles County, he worked his way to brigadier general during the battle in Atlanta (see 'Gone With the Wind'). Wounded at Murfreesboro, fought at Chicamauga, Missionary Ridge and Franklin. He was an attorney in Pulaski and Memphis for twenty years and became Tennessee's railroad commissioner in 1883.

John C. Brown, the first ex-Confederate to be governor of Tennessee, became Major General after the Battle of Atlanta. He also fought at Fort Doneldson, Perryville, Franklin and Chicamauga. After the war, he practice law in Pulaski and was prominent in the klan. His home still stands on West Madison, now a part of Martin Methodist College, my alma mater.

Nathan Bedford Forrest of Chapel Hill, Tennessee, the Grand Wizard: enlisted in 1861 and became major general in 1864; lieutenant general in February, 1865, the only man in the war to rise from private to that rank. He was born in Chapel Hill and settled in Memphis, TN after the War. He is associated with reincarnation of the klan in 1869 and the disbanding of same.

William M. Forrest, only son of NBF, enlisted as private (just like his dad) at age 15 and attended his father in every battle. He was wounded at Spring Hill in November 1864. William "blended" the cool courage and active service of his father with the modesty and gentleness of his refined and beautiful mother." She spent as much time as she could near her husband's headquarters to watch over her son.

John B. Kennedy of Pulaski suggested the name and devises the latter form the Greek word for "circle." Born in Pulaski, he was one of the six founders of klan and posed with the flag which draped his coffin.

Parson Brownlow of Knoxville, a notorious mayor of Knoxville, went on to become Governor. He had enemies who tried to downplay his actions and intelligence, like I do with some folks who don't know what they are doing on something which is none of their business in this game of reviewing (do they get paid?) Do they know anything about what they criticize? They need to be denied access to other people's reviews.

The photo of Royan Linn atop the Umbrella Rock at Lookout Mountain in 1875 was dramatic. It was similar to one in Harper's Ferry, West Virginia. The best known Unionist from Tennessee was David Farragut, for whom that town was named, born July, 1801, near Knoxville and relocated to New Orleans in 1806. He was adopted in 1808 after his mother died by David Porter. He became America's first rear admiral in August 1862. His legacy was "Damn the Torpedoes," a typical Knoxville attitude. Tigers every one.

More than 20,000 Union and Confederate troops died at the Battle of Murfressboro in Tennessee. To commemorate this bloody episode of the American Civil War, "Portraits Of Conflict: A Photographic History Of Tennessee In The Civil War" by Richard M. McCaslin (Associate Professor of History at the University of North Texas) is a 430-page compendium of historic portraiture photographs of participants accompanied by their individual stories of men (and some women) who fought and lost their lives in defense of what they believed in. Among these 250 stories is that of a widow who worked as a Union spy to support herself and her children. A father emerged from his house to find his Confederate soldier son dying at his feet. The nine-year-old boy who attached himself to a Union regiment after his mother died. Historian Richard McCaslin drew upon recovered letters and diaries, as well as other sources of information to make this volume of the 'Portraits Of Conflict' series (of which this volume is the eighth) of immense interest to Civil War historians, students, and enthusiasts, and a necessary addition to academic and community library Civil War Studies and American Photography reference collections. This outstanding series includes two other titles by Professor McCaslin: "Portraits of Conflict: A Photographic History of South Carolina in the Civil War" (9781557283634) and "Portraits of Conflict: A Photographic History of North Carolina in the Civil War" (9781557284549), as well as "Portraits of Conflict: A Photographic History of Georgia in the Civile War (9781557284211) by Anne J. Bailey and Walter J. Fraser Jr.; and three volumes by the team of by Bobby Roberts and Carl Moneyhon: "Portraits of Conflict: A Photographic History of Mississippi in the Civil War (9781557282606) ; "Portraits of Conflict: A Photographic History of Louisiana in the Civil War" (9781557281593); and "Portraits of Conflict: A Photographic History of Texas in the Civil War". Also very highly recommended by Professor McCaslin are two of his earlier histories: "Lee in the Shadow of Washington" and "Tainted Breeze: The Great Hanging at Gainesville, Texas".

Those interested in Civil War images are quite familiar with the "Confederate Faces" volumes. They are a great source for seeing a lot of Confederate images in one place, but if you are like me, they leave you with a great big empty spot, wondering the history behind those peering eyes. Well, the "Portraits of Conflicts" state series, and author McCaslin's authorship on this volume in particular, has resolved this issue nicely. The pictures are a nice variety and in ample numbers, with the history of each man included. McCaslin has done a fine job of research and editing of the history of each soldier, as well as weaving them into the history and battles of the Civil War in Tennessee. The definitive history of Tennessee in the Civil War it is not, nor was intended to be, but a visual feast with fascinating vignettes that take you through Tennessee's war, it is. A large book with a fine printing job and crisp pictures, it is well worth the issue price, unlike so many you see these days, and Amazon's discount makes it a very nice value for your money. You might want to check out McCaslin's North Carolina volume in this series as well, I know that I will.

Sadly, I was unfamiliar with the works of Richard McCaslin when he contacted me about using my great grandfather's image and war record in this latest book. Since our first contact, I have been impressed by the author's attention to photographic detail and the scope of his knowledge of the War Between the States. My family has long had Captain George Moore's war record, but by recounting it within the context of the entire Tennessee conflict, Richard McCaslin has brought my great grandfathers service out of the pages of the War Department and made it a living and breathing thing. The entire book reads this way and whether you are a student of history or not, prepare to be transported by word and by the eyes of his subjects, into another era and into the greatest conflict a nation can endure. I will be transporting myself back in time with McCaslin's other works as soon as possible.

Dear Doctor,
I wish you could read this. I am your loving student Hammood. Currently I am out of Syria but I wish I could get a copy of this book. Please write to me.

Dear Huda,

I liked your way of expressing your ideas. I may be the only one who had the chance to see you recently and talk to you about your life, history, your dreams, aspirations and first of all Marc Kennedy. I was lucky to sit with you and have a croissant at Al Dimashki in Damascus. I wish you all luck in your future endevours and I hope that your next book " A Flower in the Cold" will be your step towards success.

Dear Huda,

I liked your way of expressing your ideas. I may be the only one who had the chance to see you recently and talk to you about your life, history, your dreams, aspirations and first of all Marc Kennedy. I was lucky to sit with you and have a croissant at Al Dimashki in Damascus. I wish you all luck in your future endevours and I hope that your next book " A Flower in the Cold" will be your step towards success.

Dear Huda,

I liked your way of expressing your ideas. I may be the only one who had the chance to see you recently and talk to you about your life, history, your dreams, aspirations and first of all Marc Kennedy. I was lucky to sit with you and have a croissant at Al Dimashki in Damascus. I wish you all luck in your future endevours and I hope that your next book " A Flower in the Cold" will be your step towards success.

Wow, really touching and creative. This story is interesting, informative, and from a serious and yet fun perspective. The main character is both unique and just like that girl from English or art class you sat next to in college. Now I finally have an idea of what she might have been thinking. I definitely wish I read this before I left home to live at college. It would have really helped me understand and benefit from that new environment. This book makes me want to enroll at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. I have since visited the campus. THIS IS A MUST READ. It would make a great edition to any high school reading list. Another good addition for a high school reading list is Road To Grandma's, also by Kathryn L. Krueger.

This is the perfect joy-filled book for the recent high school graduate to let them know that college can be one big party, but sex and alcohol don't have to be a part of it. Katy shows that life is about how you choose to live it and not about all of the crap that so many college kids get lost in. Her lessons are sweet and full of heart and every kid on their way to college could benefit from reading her upbeat take on what campus life can be like.

Katherine's book is an amazing depiction of life at an SEC college! I would recommend it to anyone going to college. This book is a fabulous treat....funny, witty and sparkly! I would love to meet the author because I am sure that she embodies just those characteristics!

If your daughter is planning on going to college soon, this book is for her. Even though every teenager out there already knows the dangers of life... drugs, alcohol, sex, and cigarettes (just to name a few), it won't hurt to remind them of these important subjects. Statistics show that the freshmen year of college is the toughest. This is when the highest number of students die from illness, binge drinking, and suicide.

I am the author of this book and each story is taken from my own personal experiences at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. I saw the drugs, I saw the alcohol, I experienced the peer pressures of campus life and I survived. My book shows how your child can say "no," like I did. It also shows that if you make positive choices in life you will graduate and live a healthy, happy, productive life.

An added bonus is at the back of the book, a toll-free number that parents and teens can call for help/counseling.

Enjoy the book and remember...you can do it! Believe in yourself!

If and when you go to Shiloh, they have a marked battlefield tour that includes 14 stops, but all they do is catch the highlights of the battle. They do not have chronology in mind. But this book does. It presents the action according to day, because it was a two day battle, as well as according to time. Then it divided the battle into its east and west campaigns, which successfully portrays the battle in its entirety. Without this book, I would not have known what I had missed out on. I am extremely happy I used this book and highly recommend it. Also, check out this series on Chickamauga (I bet it is good also).

I have walked much ground that was fought over by the men who fought the Civil War, but one field I have yet to reach rests in southwestern Tennessee, in the countryside near a little chapel called Shiloh Church. There one of the Confederacy's stars, Albert Sydney Johnston, fell like a hawk on the unsuspecting army of Ulysses S. Grant on the morning of April 6, 1862. What followed was the first massive struggle of the war. Dead and wounded were counted in the tens of thousands rather than in the hundreds. There Grant's quality of coolness under fire first showed itself, as on that first day it appeared that Johnston's men might push the Federals back into the Tennessee River. Instead, Johnston suffered a mortal wound, Don Carlos Buell landed with a huge reserve of additional Union soldiers, and on the next day Grant swept back across all the ground he had lost.
The University of Nebraska Press has undertaken the publication of a series of excellent battlefield guides, of which the two noted authors of this volume are editors. Each has contributed to at least one other book in what is now a five volume series.
When I get to Shiloh, I will have this guide at my side. It provides an excellent overview of the battle and a very logical plan to see and understand the events of both days. The maps, prepared by Christopher Brest, are numerous and clear. The illustrations, nearly all taken directly from the original four-volume printing of Battles and Leaders of the Civil War are both nostalgic and crisp. They use both battlefield sketches and portraits of many of the principal actors. Only William Tecumseh Sherman, whose Battles and Leaders image was one of him long after the war, festooned with medals and sash, seems a little out of place.
According to the authors, if I use this guide, and if I take all the time I need to take at all the stops they plan, I will spend most of a day on the field. I know it will be a day well spent for everyone who picks up this book before setting off on that tour.

I used the "Battlefield Guide" May 18-19 while touring Shiloh, and could not have been more pleased with it. I re-read Sword, Daniel, and McDonough first, and used the Guide in conjunction with the Trailhead Graphics map of the battlefield. The tour stops were aptly detailed and quick & easy to read. I strongly recommend the Guide for anyone planning a walking tour of the Shiloh park.

I've been a fan of _Gettysburg: A Battlefield Guide_ since its publication in 1999. When I saw that Mark Grimsley and Steven E. Woodworth had teamed to co-write a guide to Shiloh, I was excited. Grimsley and his co-author on the Gettysburg guide, Brooks Simpson, did a great job (see the several Amazon reviews, which give it 5 stars). Woodworth is one of the most knowledgeable historians of the western theater. His new book, _Nothing But Victory_, on the Union Army of the Tennessee, tells the story of an army that was more or less born at Shiloh.

I haven't yet had the chance to use the Shiloh guide on the battlefield, but it looks very promising. They had the Shiloh park historian vet the guide (the historian, Stacy D. Allen, is a well-regarded authority on the battle), and they created an ingenious two-axis tour, so that instead of constantly zig zagging back and forth to follow the action, you choose to follow the battle's progression first on the Confederate right or left flank, and then on the other. This keeps the action clear.

The narrative, analysis, and vignettes follow the pattern of earlier guides (Chickamauga as well as Gettysburg.) The discussion of the confused Confederate command arrangement is especially good. It is justifiably critical but never scornful and tries to be as understanding of the Confederate high command's predicment as possible.

I'm glad spring is here, because it's time for a road trip to Shiloh!

Lieutenant General Alexander P. Stewart may well be the least known high ranking officer of the Civil War. {? Sam Cooper ?} A native of Tennessee who graduated from West Point, he left the Army to become a college professor in order to provide more income , and stability, for his family. When war came, there was no hesitation; Stewart followed the South, soon earned General's stars, and served with distinction from the early days to Joe Johnston's final surrender in North Carolina.

Sam Elliott has given us a wonderful account of the campaigns of the Army of Tennessee, and General Stewart's part in them. Stewart remains unknown because he was a quiet man who did his job, and left the political infighting to others. During the Bragg debacle, he got along with both sides. Today, the E-Ring at the Pentagon is populated with men like Stewart, equally unknown, but indispensable. The Tennessee Campaign of fall, 1864, gets good coverage, including Stewart's participation at Spring Hill and Franklin.

When the war ended, General Stewart rejoined the Union, and encouraged his men to do the same. Returning to Education, he had a distinguished tenure as Chancellor at Ole Miss. Many today are unaware of the debt we owe to Stewart, and some other leaders from both sides [prominantly General Rosecrans].....the wonderful system of National Battlefield Parks was the result of their hard work. Begining with Chickmauga, the system has spread and become a priceless treasure.

This fine book closes with what is, for me, the most disturbing fate to befall any of the Confederacy's officers. I can not explain how a committed Christian, and a well grounded Calvinist, could do what he did. I have discussed this with the author, and he has no explanation, either. My own theory is that Stewart [a] wasn't really well grounded-I dismiss that, or, [b] became unhinged from his wife's death and/or the effects of old age. In any event, the close marrs an otherwise great book. That, however, is General Stewart's fault, not Sam Elliott's. Great book about a subject who, despite his tragic late life decision, deserves to be much better known.

Confederate General Alexander P. Stewart is revered by today's WATCHTOWER SOCIETY and its JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES members as the only U.S. Civil War General to convert to their belief system. Stewart joins President Dwight Eisenhower and U.S. Army General William P. Hall as the only three West Point educated American Generals who were either reared (Eisenhower) as JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES or converted later in life (Stewart and Hall).As documented in pages 297-9 of this book, the JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES Founder Charles Taze Russell absented himself for two days from the middle of the annual WatchTower Convention in 1908 so he could travel to St. Louis and preside over Stewart's Funeral, which was conducted with full Confederate honors and regalia by the Confederate Veterans. General Alexander P. Stewart's baptism into the JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES religion was reported in the October 1, 1905 issue of the WATCHTOWER magazine: "We had a warm welcome at St. Louis, too, and the attendance was excellent, notwithstanding the fact that we did not get the announcement into the WATCH TOWER, and hence but few came from nearby towns. The morning session was in the "Christian Church" edifice. The topic was "Consecration," and following it nine symbolized full consecration by water baptism. Among the number was Brother Alexander Stewart, well known throughout the South for the active and prominent part he took in the war of the Rebellion, as the leader of "Stewart's Cavalry." General Stewart is of advanced years, but clear of intellect. He has been a "soldier of the Cross" for some time, and deeply interested in "Present Truth" for several years. He expected to be symbolically baptized at the time of the Chattanooga Convention, but was prevented by ill health. After leaving the water Brother Stewart was heard to express great satisfaction at having thus outwardly confessed his blessed Lord and his full devotion to Him and His cause. Brother Stewart already had joined the army of the Lord, but by this act of public confession he, so to speak, donned his regimentals and joined the forces "on the firing line." May he loyal prove and true to the end of the way, and with all the faithful receive the crown of life which fadeth not away. How sectional lines, race and party prejudices and all the distinctions of wealth and fame gradually fade from the minds of those who become by God's grace and truth members prospective of the royal priesthood, the holy nation, the peculiar people, called for a purpose, even to show forth the praises of him who called us out of darkness into his marvellous light! With this erstwhile warrior, but more recently college president and later U.S. Commissioner, none others of the nine were of the same rank or education, yet they all were on the same level of divine mercy through Christ -- justified and sanctified through the grace of our Lord. The assorted company well illustrated the Apostle's words, "Not many great, not many wise, not many learned, hath God chosen." One of these nine was a child of twelve years, a very unusual sight with us. Child though she was she gave good evidence of a clear appreciation of what she did, so that we could not question her acceptability with the Lord. We could not help a mental reflection on how extremes meet in the family of God -- in the body of Christ. The tall man, full of years and ripe in the learning of this world, and the little girl, on the threshold of life every way, had both heard the voice of Jesus say, Come unto me and have your sins forgiven, and find rest for your souls and find eternal life. "All of the Lord's followers meet on this common level. "All ye are brethren," "One is your Master, even Christ." Some may have almost envied the great man, but we doubt not he almost envied the little child, who, starting thus early to follow the footsteps of Jesus, had apparently reached nearly the same point at the same time by the shorter journey. "They that seek me early shall find me" -- the more easily. Nevertheless, the General's learning and influence may be turned to the greater advantage if wisely used in the service of our King. May he, may we all, prove faithful to the cause of him who loved us and bought us with his precious blood."

It IS about time General Stewart gets some press. As stated in this wonderful book there are Colonels in Lee's army that are better known than this man who was one of the ranking generals in the Confederate army. At Franklin Stewart helped lead a far larger and more deadly charge than the famous July 4th, 1863 charge at Gettysburg, yet very few people know of him. As the campaigns of the Army of Tennessee begin to gain further study maybe this will change. This book should help a great deal.

From his birth in Rogersville, Tennessee until his death in St. Louis Stewart always remained at heart a Tennessean and his dedication to his state led him into all of the major battles of the Army of Tennessee. Nobody who studies that army can do so without a study of "Old Straight". This book does a wonderful job of exploring the life, war experences,and post-war work of this deeply religious man.

There are only two small problems with this work. First, Mr. Elliott sometimes goes a little far in defending Stewart. The picture he paints of the political strife in the Army of Tennessee is very clear but on occasion he goes a little out of his way to point out how little Stewart was involved in these political battles. It might be more to Stewart's credit if he had been a little more involved in trying to remove General Bragg before more damage could be done. The other problem is one faced by many writers dealing with war. Most readers get quickly lost as a writer begins to relate how this regiment was placed here and that regiment was placed there. Worse yet is the practice of describing an action in detail with terms like "Jones attacked on Smith's left which was countered by moving Brown......". Soon the reader who often has never heard of these regimental or division commanders becomes confused and is not sure who is fighting who or which side anybody is on. Can it be avoided? I don't know but it does weaken this fine work somewhat.

Still, anyone who hopes to understand the "other" major Confederate army must read this book. Mr. Elliott has made a major contribution to the study of the Army of Tennessee and I thank him.

Sam Elliott has brought to life an overlooked general from the Confederacy. As the highest ranking officer to serve the South from Tennessee, General Alexander P. Stewart was one of the few and lucky individuals to survive the entire western campaign. Soldier of Tennessee gives the reader a wonderful cronological look at the war in Tennessee and intoduces us to one of the most respected men in the Southern army. Not only does Elliott present a thorough description of most of the western campaigns, but he is also able to capture the human struggle of a battered Confederate army. This is a must for any Civil War enthusiast.

Someone gave me this book 14 years ago, and I just got around to reading it because there was nothing else on my bookshelf that I hadn't read. I'm glad I picked it up! The book deals with music and violence and family, and the prose itself is musical at times. There is one chapter devoted to a relatively minor character's death that is heartbreakingly beautiful. And no, not a "typical" Vietnam story at all. I, an avid Jane Austin fan, loved it.

A great book that sneaks up on you over time. The relatively slow beginning is a wonderful evocation of the rural south and of the healing power of music and nature. However, violence is not that easy to tame. As someone who grew up after the Vietnam War (born 1969), I've often wondered why so many veterans ended up training in some form of martial arts. This book goes a long way towards explaining that need. The violence from the war bleeds through the lives of the vets in this novel as both a liberating and a destructive force; they can't shake it and they aren't sure if they really want to.

Laidlaw and Redmon were raised together in the Tennessee hills on the horse farm owned by Laidlaw's father; the black Redmon family living in one of the out-buildings and Redmon, Sr. working for Laidlaw, Sr. The boys are friends, a friendship complicated less by their different races than by young Redmon's perception that his father prefers Laidlaw to him. The boys, as boys will, grow to manhood, enter the army and are shipped to fight in Vietnam, where terrible things happen. They return, independent of each other, and spend much time alone-Laidlaw living in the Redmon's old home (Laidlaw's father died when the main house burned down) and Redmon in prison as the fall-guy in a real estate scam. Laidlaw had used his solitary year, surrounded by nothing more than a motley of farm animals, a stray dog, and a runaway peacock, to become proficient enough with a banjo that he can attract a following playing with a blue-grass band. Redmon seeks him out at a performance and the friendship is renewed.

In "Soldier's Joy", Madison Smartt Bell has much to say about tragedy, loss, solitude, betrayal, fathers and sons and the psychological devastation that can be wrought upon young men who have spent a year up to their elbows in gore. This is a book rich in both description and nuance. The Tennessee countryside is vivid and the musical imagery-and there is a lot of it-doesn't come across as forced or cloying but instead reads like a soundtrack. The writing is so fine, so "writerly" that it is easy to overlook the fact that the plot is almost an afterthought and is full of holes. This is not to say that Mr. Bell can't tell a story-he can. There are several scenes of firefights that are gripping and exciting and rank with the best of the breed. However, the basic plot (introduced well into the novel) about the Klan being somehow offended by the interracial friendship of Laidlaw and Redmon and by the interracial following of a local evangelist and trying to end both by violence, is thin. There are also two characters-Laidlaw's musician girlfriend and the ex-Green Beret leader of the Klan-who deserved better development. These are quibbles. "Soldier's Joy" is post-Vietnam fiction that is well worth reading.

This is a wonderful book, the kind that you start to read slower when you get close to the end because you don't want to say goodbye to the characters.

the story itself is engaging and interesting, but the subtly crafted dialog, revealing so much about the characters so naturally is what astonished me.

This is a book that celebrates the extraordinary in ordinary people, and made me feel better about humanity (be warned, I don't think you'd call it a 'feel good' book though!).

I loved this book, and will be seeking out more by the author.