South Carolina Books

First off, this book is excellent. I had the good fortune to be a student of Dr. Joyner and learn many things from him. The man is well read and learned and his writings prove that. This book, is well written and researched. It's accurate as possible and is without any personal bias or opinions.

As a free-lance writer living on the grounds of a former rice plantation in Pawleys Island, I think I have read every book on the subject on the SC slave communities and the great rice plantations. Joyner's book is the bible. It is easy and fun to read, concise, filled with fascinating statistics and extremely well written. It is not the usual s dusty book some local resident wrote back in the 1920s as a fund-raiser for the historical society or local women's group. It is a skillfully written book from cover to cover and I urge anyone interested in the history of this area not only to read Joyner's book, but to purchase his own copy. If you are like me, you will soon find that "Down By the Riverside'' will be a well-used, dog-eared favorite. I've sent several copies to friends and family, and it certainly makes the perfect housewarming gift to anyone moving to this part of SC. I have spent the past two years researching this area in preparation to begin writing my own book (a novel) and Charles Joyner will be right at the top of those I thank for making my efforts possible.

While Joyner's book is certainly worth reading and highly recommended for the casual reader, Joyner's methodology is questionable. The preponderance of his primary evidence comes from 10 notoriously questionable slave narratives collected in the early 20th century. Furthermore, Joyner's use of endotes is ridiculously deceptive. He uses a variety of confusing techniques, and very flagrantly confuses the researcher trying to find his sources. To complicate this problem further, Joyner includes no bibliography. Joyner's assesment of the task system falls short of its initial promise. Joyner does an excepitional job of emphasizing the change and continuity in the process of change from African culture to African-American culture. For this reason, and this reason only, I recommend this book.

I have the pleasure of adding Charles Joyner to the list of my personal educators, and he is definitely one of the most informed writers of Southern-oriented literature. This book was assigned to me as required reading, and turned out to be one of the most interesting books I've ever read. A wonderful book by a wonderful soul.

As a free-lance writer living on the grounds of a former rice plantation in Pawleys Island, I think I have read every book on the subject on the SC slave communities and the great rice plantations. Joyner's book is the bible. It is easy and fun to read, concise, filled with fascinating statistics and extremely well written. It is not the usual s dusty book some local resident wrote back in the 1920s as a fund-raiser for the historical society or local women's group. It is a skillfully written book from cover to cover and I urge anyone interested in the history of this area not only to read Joyner's book, but to purchase his own copy. If you are like me, you will soon find that "Down By the Riverside'' will be a well-used, dog-eared favorite. I've sent several copies to friends and family, and it certainly makes the perfect housewarming gift to anyone moving to this part of SC. I have spent the past two years researching this area in preparation to begin writing my own book (a novel) and Charles Joyner will be right at the top of those I thank for making my efforts possible.

With only rare exceptions like Pearl Harbor, American military disasters are generally ignored - not commemorated and not studied. Before reading this book, I didn't know how little that I knew about this campaign. After a short re-cap of the war, the author briefly discusses a previous advance on Charleston from Georgia, which had been bluffed into retreat by an advance on the British rear. With hopes of loyalist support in the South, for 1780 Sir Henry Clinton mounted a major amphibious expedition from New York to the fourth largest city in the colonies, Charleston. The British landed in an unexpected area south of the city, in difficult terrain, but their advance was not contested. The naval aspect of the campaign was new to me, but vitally important. A substantial portion of the Continental Navy under Commodore Whipple was sent to defend Charleston, but Whipple failed to defend the bar at the harbor entrance, and unlike in 1776, the British then safely passed Ft Moultrie as they did not stop to engage the fort. With naval access to the harbor, the British could continue the land advance, despite the handicap of having almost no cavalry. After crossing the Ashley River, Clinton opened up siege lines opposite a formidable American line. Even then, additional American troops arrived by crossing the Cooper River. Although the Royal Navy never closed off the American retreat across the Cooper River, Clinton sent a detachment across which eventually captured the area north of the harbor, sealing the fate of the American garrison. Because of civilian influence, Benjamin Lincoln, the American commander had remained in the city until it was too late. The surrender was the greatest American disaster of the war and could easily have lost them the South. But British treatment of civilians, combined with a rumored smallpox epidemic which had kept militia out of Charleston, kept American hopes alive.

I have a good working knowledge of the Civil War in Charleston but knew next to nothing about the Rev War and Charleston. This book is an excellent account of the fighting around and for that city.
I particularly enjoyed the personal stories of individuals involved. The author also gives the present day locations of key events, as a frequent visitor to Charleston I found this very valuable.
Suffice to say I strongly recommend this book, you will not be disappointed!

Borick provides a great understanding the siege of Charleston. The importance of this battle has often gone unacknowledged by major historians. We hear lots about Valley Forge and the engagements in the North but most forget that the final two-thirds of the Revolution were fought in the South. Also we forget that Charleston was the equivalent of New York City or Philadelphia for the southern colonies.

While Borick's writing is not the most exciting there is certain energy in his description of the siege and battles leading up to it. Great descriptions of the engagements and style of combat help the reader see the difference between battles in the South from those in the North.

Overall, this book is a great historical work. It provides the reader with a good understanding of how the battle unfolded and the situation leading up the battle. Borick provides good descriptions of the major players as well. Finally, Charleston is a really great city with lots of great history, culture and architecture. Also Marion Square Park (it's down the block from the Charleston Museum on Meeting Street) is a lot of fun in the spring and summer months.

This book is an excellent recounting of the campaign leading up to and including the siege of Charleston and all the operations that were related to or took place during it.

He also gives excellent details of the important people involved on a need to know basis. His style reminds me of Peter Cozzins, the noted Civil WAR author, back when my interest was that conflict.

His order of battle that breaks down the combatants to a regimental level is outstanding and something most revolutionary war campaign books do not have and should be ashamed to not have them.

If i could make one complaint about this fairly told history it would be that there is just not enough flash in it. Some more humor or something to spruce up the researched details would be appreciated. However, this is nitpicking. The book is excellent and is the best about this turning point of the war.

Given the lack of anything else in print on this subject, Mr. Borick is to be commended for attempting to tell the story, but his writing is so dull and there are so many unfortunate repetitions of earlier stated statistics and trivial events, presumably employed to flesh out the dryness of the text with an illusion of detail, that the reader is left with the impression that the author would have been well served had a competent editor taken the author in hand. This is the driest of thesis work. The author's utter failure to organize the material in a detailed chronological sequence, rather than in the most general terms, is profoundly irksome, given the profusion of journals, diaries, orderly books, pension and state records available to scholars. Especially annoying, given the author's proximity to the study area, is the lack of adequate topologic information. There is nothing here to help a modern visitor ascertain the precise location of any of the sites mentioned, not even the locations of important river crossings or the HQs of the primary commanders. In the end the reader has the impression that Borick employed already published primary sources contained in Uhlendorf's 'Siege of Charles Town,' the Clinton and Lincoln papers, and then relied on secondary sources - there is very little else to be found here. The reader suffers from the lack of a mise-en-scene. We learn nothing about fire-fighting methods, the soil conditions, the source of the bricks that lined the key American redoubt, or the fact that the south end of the town was extremely heavily fortified. How were the Americans supplied. What did troops eat? Where did the officers sleep? Unforgiveable is the lack of an order of battle listing at the participating regimental units and commanders. There is little shift given to civilian perspectives (apart from Gadsden). Borick fails to provide any insights into the milieu of the general staffs and government officials or background biographical info. He pays little or no attention to the plight of the American prisoners after the capture of the city & their sufferings in the prison ships into which they were consigned. The bibliography is spotty. This is a flawed military history little better than other recent potted histories of the Southern theatre of operations, such as Pancake's 'This Destructive War.' It is a pity that this book constitutes the sole recounting of the only successful British siege operation undertaken in America, receives such lackluster treatment. Presumably the author's duties at the Charleston Museum limited his ability to dig deeper. But worse than the limitations of the history as such, is the banality of Mr. Borick's prose - no sense of apprehension or excitement is generated - it surely isn't to be derived from the dull repetition of facts. The largest military operation ever undertaken in the Carolinas save for Sherman's march upcountry in 1865 is worthy of a better recounting. It's a Charles Town tale that has yet to find a talented story-teller -

I find myself going back to this book for reference so often while I'm researching plants to consider for planting our garden of around 1860.
I just love to read the discriptions of the plants and where they originated.

Not much more than you would get out of a seed catalog, should have been cheaper.

This is a great book. I got it for my mom the advid gardener who loves local/organic gardening. The pictures are beautiful and there is ample knowledge for the advanced gardener.

This is a book that should be in everyone's collection. Not only does it tell you what you need to know about heirloom seeds it has some of the most beautiful and real pictures of flowers, fruits and vegetables. The section on where to find seeds is most helpful.

Vintage, antique, old-timey. Use your own choice of words to apply to collecting venerable items. Antique automobiles, vintage clothing, and heirloom seeds. All have their unique charm and attraction to certain aficionados.

Numerous authoritative books have been written about antique automobiles and vintage clothing to informally educate the reader in those subjects. Now, I'm pleased to see a book written that performs the same function for home gardeners.

My wife and I prize our ginger, brought from Hawaii in 1960 by her mother. Each fall its incredibly aromatic blooms transform our front entrance into a perfumery envied and enjoyed by all. While the ginger is a bulb rather than a seed, it is heirloom and extremely valuable to us.

Through the years, my wife and I have often stopped at old homesteads and gotten cuttings and seeds from their generous owners. These people, proud of their plants, many times have regaled us with the history of their unique plants.

Even so, I never really thought of documenting the history behind many of these rare finds that I wanted for their color, overall structure, or scent. Indeed, I had never considered many aspects of heirloom seeds, per se, until I read this wonderfully researched and informative book. I am very grateful that Lynn Coulter has taken the time and made the effort to document this information.

Most people today are familiar with Angel Trumpet (moonflower) vine, a night bloomer that is unique in its own right. But we have moonflower shrubs that came many years ago from an old homestead in Stamps, Arkansas. Their history can be traced back generations. It is the importance of these types of seeds that makes Gardening With Heirloom Seeds such a valuable, informative, and interesting book to read.

Knowing the history and availability of heirloom seeds will once again send me to my planning template as I search for just the right location to put `one more gem'. I strongly urge anyone interested in bringing a touch of the past to their modern gardens to get a copy of this book for their use and reference. It is one volume every serious gardener should have.

Gilmore gives a voice to an otherwise obscure - not to mention forgotten- group that set the pace for the civil rights movements of the 1950's and 1960's. Countless women contributed tirelessly in the struggle against racism, illiteracy, disease and most notably, suffrage. Gilmore does justice to those who have gone unrecognized.

The influence of sex on gender is often mistakenly emphasized to the extent where sex and gender are seen as synonyms. Historian Glenda Gilmore challenges this aberration by re-examining the formative years of Jim Crow in North Carolina through the lens of middle-class African American Women. Her reconstruction of this assumed history demonstrates acute gender construction divergences based on race, class, and political circumstance. Gilmore discloses the dynamics of marriage, education, and above all hope in shaping the differences between gender construction between African Americans and whites.
The racial progressive momentum of Reconstruction shaped educated African American women to uplift their race in an effort to improve living standards for their families, to open up opportunities for their sex for both races, and to change white attitudes toward African Americans. By accenting the life of Sarah Dudley Petty, Gilmore reveals that her activism as a "feminist" and as an African American was in contrast to white women because black women were responding not just to patriarchy but to racial oppression as well.
A famous example of how African American women hoped to uplift their race was through their work in the Women's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU). This organization provided North Carolina's black women "their best hope for building strong communities and securing interracial cooperation" (32). The WCTU became a point of mutually for both whites and blacks to improve community and gender equality. When black men voted, white women welcomed and sought out the activism of black women. Political circumstance for both groups of women afforded a glimmer of hope that racial equality was possible, however, as the political circumstance changed under the swagger of Jim Crow, white WCTU members got behind white supremacist leaders.
Gilmore explains the gender construction of whites was molded by the downturn of the economy. As hard times hit the North Carolina agrarian economy, a reconsideration of racial parity was in quick demand and an explicit white supremacy movement formed to deny blacks all their gains from Reconstruction. The "New White Men" sought to reconstruct racial interaction, and in particular sexual interaction between the "races." Gilmore reveals that the White New Man effectively created a social norm where it was no longer a demonstration of strength to have sex with a black woman but a sign of weakness. New White Men now expected white women, across class boundaries, to be wholesome and chaste in order to maintain racial purity. In turn, white women began to hold the White New Men culpable for the previous generation that allowed for racial miscegenation transgressions. Such feminine pressure as expressed by the Waddell women, Gilmore argues, supplied the once ineffectual Alfred Waddell to lead the Wilmington slaughter and take the office of mayor of Wilmington.
In the dismal days after the successful drive of disenfranchisement, when black men were pushed out of the political and civic circles, Gilmore fruitfully uncovers how black women advanced the condition of African Americans. African American women took charge amidst the Progressive Era in women's missionary societies and volunteer organizations. Gilmore demonstrates how Black women were instrumental in the rise of the welfare state and how they shrewdly created political ties with white women in un-seemingly apolitical fashion.
Gilmore's reconstruction of a microcosm of race relations in North Carolina has revealed the larger aggregate on America's shameful history of racism and misogyny. Her emphasis on social influences of gender construction affords an effective analysis of the vibrancy of agency within the seemingly impregnable shadow of structure.

Gilmore breaks new ground on many fronts that will interest social historians of race and political historians. She uncovers the myriad arenas in which black women and white women pursued "politics" outside the formal arenas of electoral institutions. She also reveals the surprising coalitions formed across racial lines and the mindset of an upper-South State on the eve of disenfranchisement. Gilmore's writing flows smoothly, as other reviewers have noted, but at times becomes overwrought and sentimentalized in a way that makes it sometimes tedious and sometimes aggravating to stay with the text. She's become captured a bit by her characters and sources. But this is a small criticism in the context of an overwise pathbreaking study that's well worth the read.

This book is a mind-blower. It reveals the history of white supremacy as an overt political campaign in the South in the early 20th century, and more importantly the roles that middle-class black women self-consciously assumed in this very dangerous cultural arena. Historins talks a lot about ideology and race and agency, but this is the most skillful and convincing account that I've read: by examining how people - men, women, poor, rich, black, white - understood and tried to shape their worlds, Gilmore recasts a significant portion of American history, and made me re-examine my assumptions about racism and gender and politics. I'm working towards my graduate degree in history, so I've had to read scores of books that cover similar ground - and this is the by far the best treatment that I've read. Also very important: Gilmore is an excellent writer - this text reads as smoothly and as compellingly as a novel. Can't recommend it highly enough.

As Gilmore writes (p. 1) in Gender and Jim Crow, "since historians enter a story at its end, they sometimes forget that what is past to them was future to their subjects." And with regard to black optimism, potential and opportunities during Reconstruction, African American "subjects" looked forward to a future of encouraging possibilities, as African American males had real political power and influence within the Republican and populist parties, which courted their votes. These men and women believed that race as a social classification would decline in importance in favor of class. Yet just as the hopes of Agrarian radicals were thwarted by the harsh the realities of the two-party system, so too were the dreams of Reconstruction-era blacks crushed by the resurgence of white supremacy and the systematic attempts by whites to disenfranchise the Negro. Gilmore presents this tale of high hopes and shattered dreams in her first chapter, "Place and Possibility."
Gilmore's story is one of perseverance among the increasingly subjugated blacks of North Carolina after Reconstruction ended, in particular, the struggle of middle class black women to maintain power, dignity and to some degree control over their lives and communities. By the 1890s, the ugly image of white supremacy showed its face, as white men fought a successful battle to disenfranchise black men through the instrument of fear, that is to say, fear for the safety of white women from the ravenous clutches of Negro rapists. As Gilmore details, this sexually based contrivance branded black men as beasts and drove them from the political realm. Articulate black women, she argues, stepped in to this cultural and political vacuum to coordinate with whites (especially white women and Northern reformers) to get social services and to work for "racial uplift," especially through church and voluntary associations such as the Women's Christian Temperance Union. Gilmore notes that these types of activities were not as exposed to white restrictions or ire as overt political action, and thus helped to assure some success by these middle-class black females. It seems that black women could travel within certain community and political circles that were no longer open to their male counterparts.
Gender and Jim Crow is an innovative look at post-Reconstruction race relations, in that the chief actors in Gilmore's tale are women. It nicely dovetails with Kantrowitz's Ben Tillman and the Reconstruction of White Supremacy, in that we see similar examples of the creation of Jim Crow and the use of sexual fears to bolster notions of white supremacy as well as white political solidarity. While Kantrowitz shows that Ben Tillman was representative of many of white Southerners of his day, I am unconvinced that Gilmore's subjects are as representative. Her geographic realm is limited to one state of the Upper South, North Carolina; did black women carve out a similar role for themselves in the Deep South as well? Additionally, her cast of characters is quite small, and perhaps we are drawn to these women and their story because of its very exceptionalsim and not its typicality. Nevertheless, Gilmore's new and nuance perspective is groundbreaking and valuable in that we see the era of Jim Crow from a viewpoint previously unexplored.

I heard Neal Petersen speak and by the time I got to the table to by his book, he was sold out. I finally orderd on line and it is every bit at moving as his presentation. It truly made me realize that if he can overcome all of the obsticules placed before him, than I don't have any excuses to not overcome my own.

"In life there are no barriers - only solutions." Call this positive statement a credo, a code, a slogan or a mantra. It is the one rule that dominates the life of its author, Neal Petersen.

I had the pleasure of being in an audience where Mr. Petersen happened to be the keynote speaker. An author and motivational presenter, he held the attention of all attendees, especially me.

Neal Petersen was born with a physical disability in South Africa during its apartheid years. As a child he was determined to overcome all adversities, a trait that not only guided him through life but also helped him stake his claim as the first black man to race a homemade boat single-handedly around the world.

In his book, "Journey of a Hope Merchant" and recipient of the 2005 National Outdoor Book Award, Mr. Petersen has the reader join him on his journey through life and particularly on this solo journey in the 1998-99 "Around Alone" yacht race. Throughout the book, the reader is gripped with the determination of Mr. Petersen as well as his endurance, ingenuity and particularly his sense of survival.

Right from the book's prologue by his wife, Darlene Kristi-Petersen, one becomes immediately tuned into the reality that Mr. Petersen is a man driven by his dreams. From an impoverished youth to achieving world recognition, two university degrees and author and coauthor of ten books, one can only picture Mr. Petersen as a consummate achiever.

As I write this review, I refrain from telling the story of Mr. Petersen's challenges at sea. That I'll save for the reader, as I will the many other chapters in his life where he continues to tell us the importance of dreaming. The importance he teaches us is that dreams are not simply for dreamers but are the roadmaps to be followed, challenged and achieved.

I would not call this a sailing book. Rather it is a story of a crippled boy from Capetown, who found freedom in swimming, diving, and sailing, and had a dream to sail around the world alone in the greatest of all races, inspired by these yachts and racing sailors who visited this port. The Author, who grew up in a middle class neighborhood in South Africa had to endure racism in his struggle to achieve his dream. Along the way, he found many sailors willing to help, and many other people who contributed to his life journey. It will melt you heart to read about the many wonderful people who helped Neal Accomplish this seemingly impoosible goal. It renewed my faith in the best of human nature.

This is the sort of book I'd give a young child for inspiration. It is proof that man can overcome most obstacles with only the most basic of tools--literacy. This is a lesson that should be taught to all children.

Neal makes his living as a motivational speaker. I finished the book, wanting to hear him speak. And I'd like to sail with him.

The book is an easy read. I found myself reading until 3 am and finished it the next day. I give this book 4 stars because it is not the sort of book I would re-read. It is not the sort of book I need to inspire myself. However, a good book to read once and then pass on to your friends.

The was one point in the book where I found myself gravely disappointed. I was saddened to read in Neals account that Brad Van Liew, one of this competitors, accused him of cheating by using his engine. Any competitor has a right to face fair competition and ask for an inquiry. If he proved it false then he should let the matter drop instead of whining about it. He also complained that Van Liew stole his sponsors. Should American sponsors support a non-American? Sounds like sour grapes too me.

The bottom line is Neal's story is inspirational. I hope he continues his public speaking and his sailing. I'd like to meet him and sail with him.

This book is an easy, fun, adventurous read that will shift your attitude and belief in the most positive way. Neal has accomplished more most people would dream possible. Yet in reading his story you will start to believe that anything is possible. It has rejuvenated and refocused me. I'm sure it will do the same for you.

I read this book non-stop and I had to write a review. By way of full disclosure, I met Neal Petersen on November 3, 2005 and spent five days sailing with him on a passage from Connecticut to Bermuda. That time with him prompted the purchase and reading of this book. He is a fantastic guy with a truly inspiring story. The book recounts Neal's life story and struggle against the odds to reach his dream of racing a sail boat alone around the world. At every turn there are choices. Listen to the naysayers or pursue what appears to be an impossible dream. Throughout the story there are detractors and supporters. This book has drama, adventure, romance, and inspiration. This is a story not only about Neal's adventures sailing, but about how to live life to the fullest. I can't recommend this book highly enough!

This is the best book that I have ever read on black women,since it compared black women with black women. It's well-organised and very interesting with wonderful pictures. I really appreciated the many photos since it gave me a visual history of these women.

I was visiting with some friends in the South Carolina area when i first saw the author, Kibibi Voloria Mack, (now "Mack-Shelton"), being interviewed on the television show, "Inside Orangeburg". Her vivacious speaking style first caught my attention but after hearing her describe the contents of her book, I knew I had to read it for myself. I am not a history lover nor do I read many nonficition books, but I read "Parlor Ladies" and i must confess that I was pleasingly surprised! It is indeed the best darn book I have enjoyed in a long time!! The book is written in a fashion that makes it easy to follow but I was most impressed with the discourse she writes in that allows even an ordinary, nonscholarly person like myself to to read, understand, and appreciate a good peice of history. This book is a breath of fresh air when it comes to reading American history: it was never dull and is filled with information that I never would have known about southern black women or the black community had i not read this marvelous book. The photos were wonderful!

I first heard of PARLOR LADIES & EBONY DRUDGES when i saw the author, Dr. Kibibi V. Mack-Shelton, on C-SPAN BOOK TV in 1999; her vivacious speaking style and wonderful narration of her book aroused my curiosity. I read this book and must confess that this is the best book I have ever read on the history of southern African American women in the early 1900s. Mack-Shelton does an excellent job of not only comparing the upper classes of black women with their lower class peers, she provides some rather insightful information in her research that further explains the origins of modern day attitudes that some blacks still have in the black community in relations to how they still see light-skinned/straight hair blacks as being on a more superior level than those who are darker-skinned with non-straight hair. Her excellent use of oral history creates a picture of these women's daily life experiences in their own voices, bringing them to life. I am an avid reader of American history and am very impressed with Mack's style of writing. Her account of these women's historical lives is written in a discourse that both the trained, sophistocated scholar or an ordinary lay person (like myself) can follow easily. It's a breath of fresh air to read a history book that is never boring nor needs a dictionary to translate each word. It is a well-organized comparative study that is indeed an easy, interesting read that a person could actually read in a few days, if time permitted. This is a "must" read for everyone interested in American history, Women's history, or African American history must read this important book and add it to your personal library. Keep up the good writing and I can't wait to read your next book!!

I am an avid reader of women's history and this is, by far, one of the best books I have read on African American women. Mack's use of oral history to delve into these southern women's daily life experiences during the early 1900s was an excellent source for hearing these women's voices. I saw her on C-Span Book TV in 1999 talking about PARLOR LADIES; her presentation was so vibrant and interesting, I immediately purchased a copy of her book. Her comparison of black women with black women is unique within itself; she does a fine job of showing the diversity of these women and the subtle tensions that existed due to their class differences. I learned so much about the discrimination that some light-skinned women with straight-textured hair posited towards those with darker skin and non-straight hair. It made me better understand the subtle color discrimination that still exists within the African American community today. In terms of her writing style, this well-researched scholarly information is written in a language that is easily understood for those who are not trained scholars of history; it was nice to read a history book that was neither boring nor filled with words requiring a genius to decipher. Also, the organization of this book allows the reader to be able to compare the upper class African American women easily with her middle or working class peers; I could go on and on. Everyone who is interested in American history, Women's history, and African American history should have a copy of this book in their personal library. Once you start reading it, you won't stop until you reach the concluding chapter. I know I didn't! I hope Mack plans to write future books examining the African American women's life experiences. Thank you for this fine book!! Don't change your style!

I enjoyed reading this book a lot. Very much an eye opener for me, not knowing a great deal about that area of American history. I was attracted to the book by the title. It then turn out to be a real enjoyable learning experience.

Nice work.

As an avid popcorn fan, I must say this is an indispensable volume--the complete history of popcorn, with so many good recipes (some I've never even heard of!), etc. It takes some reading, but is highly enjoyable--the history told is similar to The Popcorn Book, with many, many details that are interesting to read.

Popcorn lovers--get this book!

"Popcorn is America's gift to the world, and what a wonderful, fun-filled bequest it is."

Such is the very last line in the narrative section of POPPED CULTURE: A SOCIAL HISTORY OF POPCORN IN AMERICA. This very informative volume by Andrew Smith describes every aspect of this snack food, from its evolution on the cob in pre-historical Central and South America to 20th century "gourmet popcorn" in microwave bags.

While the book's title states this is a "social history", it seemed to me more a chronicle of the popcorn industry, especially in the United States, where popcorn was "invented", i.e. reached the citizenry's mass consciousness, in the first half of the 19th century. Smith has extensively researched every element of the saga: growers, processors, vendors, entrepreneurs, popping devices, packaging, flavoring, advertising, and target markets (both children and adults, at home and at the "movies").

Because so much of this book is a detailed narrative of the biz, it's not particularly fun, but rather like popcorn without butter and salt. There are too many passages like the following:

"... Wyandot (Popcorn Company) was sold to Vogel Popcorn, a division of Golden Valley. Golden Valley is now owned by ConAgra. ConAgra had previously purchased Orville Redenbacher's Gourmet Popping Corn during the mid 1970s. Jiffy Pop was sold in 1962 to American Home Products. In 1996 American Home Products was acquired by Hick, Muse, Tate and Furst, an investment firm, and it food industry management affiliate, C. Dean Metropoulos. Today Jiffy Pop and Franklin Crunch `N' Munch are part of International Home Foods, Inc., of Parsippany , New Jersey."

Why would any but the most obsessive of popcorn lovers, or business students, care?

POPPED CULTURE includes a small section of illustrations, and extensive sections dedicated to Notes and Bibliography/Resources. It also incorporates a 48-page chapter on historical recipes. Anyone for macaroni and popcorn, prune and popcorn pudding, popcorn omelet, popcorn macaroons, popcorn stuffed dates, popcorn soup, popcorn scrapple, popcorn and parsnips, popcorn and bacon, popcorn hash, popcorn with ice cream, or popcorn trifle? Uh, no. I think I'll just have the large tub ... with extra butter.

If you think that popcorn has always been at the local multiplexes, think again. In Popped Culutre you will learn the history behind popcorn and its very history as that American of snack foods. When it arrived in the movie houses and how it all came to be. But not only do you get the complete history of popcorn, but you get some neat ways to make popcorn a fascinating snack.

Expand your horizons and bring some excitement into your culinary life with popcorn recipes in salads, vegetables and omelets. Broaden your candy eating base with Smiths' "Popped Culture" suggestions. Andrew Smith writes well and illustrates how much popcorn is a part of our everday lives either watching movies in a theatre or at home on TV.Reading about the mania of TV popcorn in the 1950's or going back to its beginnings in the mid-19th Century is a study in American culture at its best.

This book is an entertaining addition to culinary history, debunking myths about popcorn and contributing much to the reader's knowledge with meticulously documented research. (Was popcorn served at the first Thanksgiving, or is that just popcorn lore?) It is interesting to follow the rise in the popularity of popcorn in the larger context of American social history to become a movie staple, TV companion, and microwave gourmet food. Though not intended as a cookbook, a particularly interesting section contains over 160 popcorn recipes published before 1924, including some for biscuits, bricks, stuffing, sandwiches, and more than 25 for popcorn balls alone. Anyone for a bowl of popcorn soup? Other popcorn related products are included in the history, including a significant amount of Cracker Jack coverage. It seems that Mr. Smith has left no kernel of popcorn information unpopped. Warning: It would be difficult to read this book cover to cover without stopping more than a few times to pop up a batch of popcorn; but salt and butter are optional, so enjoy devouring it in good health.

this little book is full of details of Elizabethan life and personality as well as the story of the Roanoke colony. It's not possible to learn everything there is to know from one book, but Karen Kupperman has packed a lot of information and food for thought into a logical and easy to read volume.
You might also like to read "Roanoke, Solving the Mystery of the Lost Colony". The two books compliment each other.

The prose is dry, and the book didn't provide any insights you couldn't get from just asking someone on the street -- no new material, no interesting conclusions.

This is an excellent review of all topics related to the preparations, settlement, and ultimate failure of America's first English colony. The egotistical players (Ralegh, Greenville, Lane) are studied along with the realistic forward thinkers (both Richard Hakluyts, White, Harriot) and the Indians who were encroached upon to result in a fair and balanced account of the political, social, religious and cultural reasons for the failure of the "Lost Colony".

The subtitle, "The Abandoned Colony" is remarkably insightful and appropriate and the book explains in clear and specific terms why this attempt at colonization was destined for failure from the outset. The author is clear in her logic and in her explanations of what took place. Each chapter leads the reader from the back-story toward the ultimate reasons for the deserted colony.

This capitalist effort was a corporate subsidized suicide mission and the facts supporting such a thesis are, regrettably for those who history will now vilify, all to clear.

The book reads surprisingly like a work of fiction; the story of the people, their interactions, motivations and personalities, all laid out like a strange tale resulting in a Steven King like disaster (King did reference the "Lost Colony" in his screenplay "The Storm of the Century"). The fact that this colony resulted in failure is no shock looking back. But Karen Ordahl Kupperman gives great detail to the climate of the times which resulted in such a seemingly obvious disaster waiting to happen. Obviously, the colonists and the leaders did not forsee disaster, but the book reads like a thriller in which we know the outcome but not how the final chapter is reached.

What is most interesting about this book is the depth of study devoted to the Carolina Algonquians, the Indians that were most commonly in contact with the failed colony. As stated by the author, there is probably no greater study of 16th century Indian life than that which was provided by the colonists of Roanoke Island. We are given in a concise and easy read, what was drawn from a large pool of non-fiction and personal interviews, a view of Indian life both before and after English contact.

The fact that the Roanoke Colony remains a question today is astounding considering that historians and archaeologists are able to piece together so much with modern scientific tools. This only further adds to the incredible mystery of the colony.

There are now, in the area of the colony (no one knows precisely where the colonists settled) studies involving DNA that may point to a possible solution to the riddle of the "Lost Colony". Until we have that solution, this book is an excellent source of all information available and it is presented by one of America's best authorities on early Indian interaction with European settlers.

A must read for anyone that is interested in the history of America. This is the first attempt by the English to settle the "New World" and this was a major stepping stone which led to the settlement of Jamestown, North America's first permanent colony.

There are some flaws in the text that are justified by the fact that this work was published in 1984; somwehat confusing is the fact that this work is a second edition and, therefore, update should have included omission of outdated information, but the majority of this is not on the topic of the colony, rather on the origins of the Indian population of North America and thus easily overlooked.

A highly recommended resource.

Well written, researched and documented. A fascinating mystery told in a great way.

I'm not certain why, but books on the "lost" colony of Roanoke seemed to catch my eye, so I added several to my wish list. I selected Karen O. Kupperman's volume as the first to read and found it interesting and insightful.

Roanoke, the Abandoned Colony is a little old and reflects it's 1984 vintage. Settlement of the North and South American continents is described as having occurred by way of a "land bridge" during the glacial epic 10,000 to 40,000 years ago. Native people are depicted as having followed their game animals across the Bering Strait into the Americas. Today this is considered somewhat less likely than it was prior to the 1990s, and alternative possibilities are usually given in more recent works on the topic.

Once beyond the background history of the native population, however, the author is on firmer ground. The ample documentation of early English settlement provides her with evidence for a thorough discussion of the period. Much of her background information, however, is taken from secondary rather than primary sources. The notes to the edition contain references to works written in the 1960s, 70s, and 80's about Roanoke, Raleigh, the Southeastern Indians, and so on, rather than documents by early explorers, although she consults those doing original research with primary sources or with archaeological field data.

I had rather expected a more sensational approach to the topic; most of us who know anything at all about Roanoke simply know of the mysterious disappearance of its colonists and the name Virginia Dare. Neglected beyond that introduction by most high school American history courses-in fact many college courses-the average reader is left with a lacuna in his/her understanding of the colonial era.

Ms Kupperman ably fills that breach. Her discussion of Indian culture and politics during the age is very insightful. When I studied American colonial history years ago, the Indian people were hardly considered at all, and then mostly as "background noise," sort of part of the flora and fauna of the continent. That they had political acumen, let alone a political agenda, was not even considered, a lapse that made the history of the period lopsided and confusing. The academic perspective at the time-prior to the establishment of American Indian Studies programs in colleges and universities-was no doubt an outgrowth of the European point of view. Historians and like minded individuals in US society saw the expression of expansionism and the displacement and even extermination of native peoples as part of its "manifest destiny." So integral is this perspective to society's concept of itself even now, that it requires works like Roanoke to remove the cultural blinders. Through it all, though, the author neither blames nor excuses. Like a good journalist, she describes and explains what occurred, giving cultural background information on all parties that helps clarify interactions. Her discussion of 16th century English policy with respect to Ireland is especially relevant.

One of the most interesting facets of the book, but definitely one that took me a while to appreciate, was the degree to which it involved the history of Elizabethan England and the life of Sir Walter Raliegh and other English explorers. In fact this period of North American history from the perspective of its European heritage is pretty much about England and its relations with others: its international fortune, its social structure and social outlook, and so on.

While the story of Roanoke is part of US history, understanding its experience and demise only makes sense when placed in the context of what was going on world wide at the time. In fact, it's possible that the history of no specific place on the globe ever makes complete sense without referring to world context.

Overall the book gives a very detailed and informative account of early English experience in North America. With the above caveats, it would make an excellent source book for high school history and a good addition to a school library.

I found Dr. Gordon's account of the South Carolina campaign to be well written and a pleasure to read (unlike some military histories). I've had an occasion to study military operational art under Dr. Gordon at the Marine Corps Command and Staff College this past year. He has an keen intellect and a command of military subjects that is rare these days. Not only a scholar, Colonel Gordon is a combat veteran who brings several decades of experience as a Marine Corps officer to the table.

Of course none of this would be particularly relevant if this book were the poorly written "breezy account" that a previous reviewer suggested it was. As a military officer I've read more than my fair share of military histories over the past few decades, and I can tell you this is one of the better books I've read.

I found Dr. Gordon's assertions that "South Carolina was more a civil war than the one formally called that eighty years later" and "it was fought also to settle old scores or to best rivals" to be of particular interest given our current involvement abroad (every generation likes to think it is facing unprecedented challenges.)

Dr. Gordon's account of the Cherokee involvement on the British side and the long term damage it did to the loyalist cause was especially informative. It showed the dangers of making common cause with the wrong allies and the importance of perception when waging a counter-insurgency.

My advice - if you are looking for an interesting book on the part played by South Carolina during the revolution...don't skip it.

This is a breezy, poorly-written account that over-emphasizes SC's importance during the late stages of the war, at the expense of Naval affairs and the Yorktown campaign. VERY little original research done for this book (if any) and author resorts to all sorts of fables and myths that have been debunked years ago.
Advice: skip it.

Despite having its' origin in Massachusetts, its first major victory in New York (along with numerous defeats), the many traipses across New Jersey, and its conclusion in Virginia, more Revolutionary combat actions occurred in South Carolina than in any other state. Often, when Americans think of the Revolution, visions of minute men at Lexington and Concord, Washington crossing the Delaware, or even the first victory at Saratoga come to mind. With his book, SOUTH CAROLINA AND THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION, John W. Gordon seeks to change all that and bring to the forefront, the importance of the campaigns and skirmishes that kept South Carolina in turmoil for nearly eight years.

Even in the southern campaign, knowledge is often limited to the major events such as Cowpens and the siege of Charleston. Gordon lends meticulous insight and detail to countless lesser known events of the south. Closely examined here are details concerning the three fronts of attack in South Carolina; British Naval forces in the east, Cherokee Indians in the west, and Tory loyalists throughout the state.

If you are a southern campaign enthusiast, I believe this book gives the best overall insight to the South Carolina battles of all the endless array of books previously written on the subject. Gordon writes with a fluidity often missing from battlefield narratives. The book flows extremely well and even learned students of the southern campaign will gain an abundance of information from this fine work.

This is far more than simply a reference guide to South Carolina battles, though it serves that purpose well also. Gordon goes on to present his arguments in rich detail and substantiate those arguments with well defined critical factual elements. As you would expect from a book of this magnitude, there is also a wonderful bibliography and footnotes for enhanced further study.

Monty Rainey
[...]

Five Star Plus Rating: This is a classic book about one of the most pivotal components of America's Revolutionary War victory. The author's style and knowledge of his subject and Carolina geography makes this one of those books you will find hard to put down before reading it from cover to cover
A "hard cover" book, beautifully stitched and bound with gold embossed spine.
The 16 illustrations, and 17 maps aid in making this a book you will want to have with you if and when you have an opportunity to visit and travel to Charleston or to the many other South Carolina Revolutionary battle sites. The 13 page Introduction delivers an insight into the mighty British Navy as well as the background and organization of our early militia. The author also provides excellent coverage and content of the naval and maritime operations which played such a key role in the British capture of Charleston by the British in 1780
This history moves in a fast-paced, flowing, linear time-line, pulling the reader forward in anticipation of the next page, or next battle-and there are many.
Mr. Gordon provides a wealth of interesting facts related to the many individual battles he so meticulously describes. One little known fact to look for is-- which field commander lost every battle he fought -- but won the war in South Carolina setting the stage for the British defeat and surrender at Yorktown. This is a Five Star Book. !

This book is an excellent source for anyone who likes to study the Revolution in general and the war in South Carolina in Specifics.

He covers all major and many smaller battles that occurred from 1775-1783. He also mentions loyalists and shows that they were more than a small force in the state. Which is gratifying for us who study Loyalists as the main focus.

If you like good military history, but do not mind several minor errors, this is a fine book for you. This book does not get much into the politics and stays on course with the soldiers who fought for and against Independence.

An excellent well documented and detailed history of the State of North Carolina; which makes this book an excellent read and resource book. If your historical interest and focus is on the State of North Carolina, this is a must read along with Dr.Milton Ready's book, "Remembering Asheville".

I am working towards getting my teaching license and this book was recommended for teaching NC history. It is an excellent book!

A well written, east to read History of N.C.. Ready provides enough detail, yet at the same time keeps the subject matter flowing.

Very little new here, esp. for the colonial period. Author repeats many stories or views that are inaccurate or myths.

Had to get this book for a class...packed full of info! (and it reads like a real book and not a "text book".