Virginia Books

This book was of special interest to me because an ancestor of mine was captured at Limestone Station with the 100th OVI and imprisoned at Belle Isle during the time period in which Coburn wrote his diary.

J. Osborn Coburn's diary is especially well-written, and gives detailed accounts of activities at the prison camp, as well as describing the suffering that occurred in that place. By comparing my ancestor's record with Coburn's account of an exchange of 600 prisoners, I learned that my ancestor was almost certainly one of the fortunate 600.

Unfortunately, Coburn found release from his suffering only in death, but his journal somehow survived. Now it is available to us through Don Allison's book, which skillfully combines bits of narration and illustrations,with the thoughts of Coburn. There is also a good index.

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in Civil War prisons.

On October 18, 1863, while serving with Co. I of the 6th Michigan Cavalry in Charles Town, West Virginia, J. Osborn Coburn became a prisoner of war. A fairly large Confederate force under Brig. Gen. John Imboden attacked and captured the town that Sunday, and over 400 Union soldiers, including Coburn and 25 other enlisted men of Co. I, were marched to Belle Isle, the Southern prison camp located on the island of that name in the James River in Richmond. A lawyer from Big Rapids, Michigan, Coburn began keeping a diary of his experiences almost from the moment the men were marched south. This is that diary, and it's a powerful and saddening testament of man's cruelty to his fellow man.

Expecting to be paroled or exchanged at first, Coburn and the others were in good spirits. His early entries comment upon the beautiful fall weather, of playing cards and checkers, and only a little of the hunger they feel when rations are cut. But release from the prison doesn't come, and as winter sets in, conditions worsen dramatically. Shelter is scarce, the men are freezing; disease is more prevalent, especially diarrhea, which begins to take lives. Basic animal instincts begin to take over: bribes and barter are used to get additional rations, the sight of men dying becomes second nature. Coburn is often ill, and much of the diary tracks his condition. Before the end, shear desperation and despair set in, entries become single sentence cries: "Same as yesterday, why encumber the pages with more ..." Coburn dies on March 8, 1864, of chronic diarrhea and is buried in Richmond National Cemetery. Of the other 25 Co. I prisoners, 17 died on Belle Isle.

Interspersed with Coburn's entries, editor Don Allison has included other pertinent information regarding Coburn's history and what life was like for POWs in the Civil War. Closer to Belle Isle, he also relates some of Confederate Maj. Isaac Carrington's Nov. 1863 inspection report of Belle Isle prison where conditions are described as "comfortable," and "healthy." Something like 40,000 men died in prison camps, North and South, during the war; reading Coburn's account of his experiences puts a human touch on what might otherwise be just an appalling statistic.

This is a great book. I just finished reading. The language used is good even for someone who doesn't speak English very well. I loved to listen to my grandpa talking about WWII. This is simply listening to other grandpas. Their lives are examples for us to follow and strengthen us by showing that mankind was able to deal with bigger problems than we have today.

History Next Door is stories of World War 2 Veterans in the Hampton Roads area. Even if your not into history, you'll definitely like it. I am only 16 years old and I read the book and really enjoyed it. It opened up my eyes and made me realize how special these war veterans really are and what they went through just for our country. They are the true heroes of America! The stories of these 18 veterans and increbible! I hope that you will go get this book. The author of the book is David Parker and he did a great job writing it. The way he described it and the words he used were really great. He got to interview and talk to these 18 veterans so he could put it all together and write the book. Go get it today!!!

Long overdue, and written by people I respect as glass scholars, this is an important volume on a serious glass shelf. As usual many attributions are expalined / illustrated with period info so we know why the authors tell us as they do. Sadly out of print but not always that hard to find yet if seeking through various sources. A major company with a pivotal role in the next generation of glass makers at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century. Good stuff inside this book, nicely illustrated and well organized.

I was so pleased to find this book. I have collected Hobbs glass for many years and have searched for information. Finally, this book is the only resource devoted entirely to Hobbs. The authors have included well documented facts and information about the glass and its history, along with beautiful photographs. There is a value guide if the collector is interested in pricing or selling their glass. All in all this book is essential and long overdue.

For all true oyster lovers this is a must have book. Excellent recipes and well presented.
Any one who has access to fresh oysters will find this book invaluable.

Ms. Pomo has hit the nail on the head. I've tried several recipes, they all were winners! What a suprize!

Driven by greed, a small handfull of businessmen and executives, boosting the formation of Shenandoah National Park, lied about the quality and nature of the land they proposed to include into the NPS system. Based on those lies, and in the face of much opposition that they managed to stifle, they got a Park approved by congress. Pressed to cover their tracks and eliminate all traces of the inhabitants of the mountains, they were at their wit's end to flush out all forms of civilization to prove their prior claims of primeval forests. Policy-makers, including, C. L. Wirth, professor at the University of Chicago and Miriam Sizer, social worker, met for two days at George Freeman Pollack's Skyland to decide the best course to take. They needed to justify funding to move the inhabitants off of their land, and concluded that a two-month census of such people would be conducted. Data, so-called, was collected from sites that had experienced the worst degradation so as to portray the mountain people as a sorry lot of senseless, immoral, filthy, deviant, poverty-stricken primitives. Arno Camerer instructed that ". . .the hollow folk were not to interfere with full speed ahead for the park; the conference saw them as nuisances and obstacles." [Darwin Lambert, SNP Administrative History, p. 94] The information collected supported the "SNP Evacuation and Subsistence Homesteads Survey," which former realtor, L. Ferdinand Zerkel said, "would justify a thesis or report of large booklet. . .or book length." To anyone who knows the decendants of the families who were portrayed, this book is a prime example of academia at it's worst and the reform movement at its peak; a smear campaign designed with the specific goal of eliminating all traces of the mountain heritage and its worth. Any member of any minority could relate to the tactics and massive contradictions embodied in the Hollow Folk text. Having eliminated nearly every authentic trace of this prescious heritage, the National Park Service, aided by it's own select authors, has been freed to "interpret" its version of the mountain culture, a beast that's "right different" from reality. Hollow Folk can be hailed as a sampling of the power and partnering of special interests, media, government and academia are capable of, absent an educated electorate. The same special interests in the form of foundations, associations and well-healed private partners boost the Park today, and vilify the same people in much the same, but more refined, fashion.

The rating I gave this book is for the purpose of recommending it to others and not for accuracy of content. It is definitely an interesting read and its content will really shock you -- especially if you are a decendant of one of the park's 400+ displaced families, or a frequent visitor to Shenandoah National Park.

In recent years, the Park has acknowledged the "true story" of the mountain families and their hardships surrounding the creation of the park and no longer sells the "Hollow Folk" book. This book is full of misinformation, prejudice against "mountain folk" and damaging (so called) "expert" research and opinions.

Amazon[.com] does not allow reviewers to give a book a rating in the NEGATIVE numbers on historical accuracy, so I am unable to give a number on how the mountain people were depicted in this book. However, as I feel its a must-read for anyone interested in the families of Shenandoah National Park.

This book will make you look at your Appalachian surroundings like you never have before. With some information about the broad mountain vistas(forest canopy, common large animal species, etc), this book specializes on intimate looks at the amazing flora and fauna details of the woods (Jack in the Pulpits, wild Orchids, Salamanders, Fireflies, etc.) It is an interesting and itriguing study of Appalachian ecology. This isn't a textbook, but it does involve a bit of scientific jargon, some detailed scientific concepts, and a rather impressive vocabulary. However, each chapter is a short vinette and the author is careful to summarize major themes in the final paragraph of each story. You are gaureeted to take away some new concept and to look at the world around you a bit more carefully.

After reading this book, I had a new appreciation for the Appalachian ecosystem. Every tree, every bird, every insect holds secrets of its adaptation within this ecosystem. Every chapter of this book summarizes studies pertaining to a topic, such as the politics of mixed-species bird flocks or the demographics of box turtles. Everyone who lives in, visits, or conducts business in the Appalachian system should read this book.

The sequel to "Promise & Honor", and the second volume of a riveting trilogy, Honor & Glory continues author Kim Murphy's Civil War saga. Set in the aftermath of the battle of Fredericksburg, two armies wait for the spring campaign on the Rappahannock River banks. Two sisters are drawn into the war, their loyalties split - one betrothed to a Union major, while the other cannot forgive the Northern army that levelled her home. A momentous, sweeping, and emotional novel.

Kim Murphy's second Civil War novel, HONOR & GLORY, takes a roller coaster ride of a journey through smuggling, war prisons, battle wounds, sickness, childbirth, and other tests of endurance--while at the same time depicting the joys and hopes of both Northerners and Southerners who lived and loved during the turbulent time period.

The novel opens after the bloody Battle of Fredericksburg in 1862 and focuses on two Virginian sisters, Amanda and Alice, the former of whom has experienced both widowhood and a new marriage since the war's start. Alice, the younger sister, finds difficulty in accepting her new brother-in-law's background and position in the war--and falls for a former love interest of Amanda's. Despite the familial tension, the two women's relationship grows stronger as they themselves gain strength, shedding Victorian morals and delicacies to do their part in helping ailing soldiers...and to protect their own lives and properties as the war stretches to 1865.

Each central character experiences dark depths of anguish at some point in the novel, yet Murphy also portrays supreme moments of joy that help them persevere and rise above their physical and/or emotional pain. Alice especially stands out as an exceptional character, transforming from a frivolous young lady to a multilayered, heroic woman. And the novel offers one of the most heart-stopping escape scenes ever written.

Either read with its predecessor, PROMISE & HONOR, or standing alone, HONOR & GLORY is an entertaining and emotional example of historical fiction at its finest.

I very much enjoyed "Honor Thy Sister." I thought the author developed the characters well and kept a level of suspense throughout the book.

The ending was a real surprise! I thought I had an idea of how things would turn out, but I was way off - and really wowed!

"Honor Thy Sister" was an excellent follow-up to the author's first book "False Witness." However, each book could easily stand on its own.

This book was just as good as the first one. It's got mystery and drama, romance and comedy. I read it every chance I got and found it was hard to have to close the book and stop reading. Larry Buttram is a great author. His books are easy to read and hard to put down. I'm looking forward to the next one.

An amazing book. I couldn't put it down. Travel into remote areas of Appalachia with a country doctor who responds to the needs of people lacking running water, sanitation and basic health care. This doctor is sensitive, perceptive and learns from his patients who suffer from an array of common and uncommon afflictions. We should all be lucky enough to have a doctor like James Banks.

Without a doubt one of the most connecting books on West Virginia I have read. I was born and raised in Beaver, often a patient of Dr. Banks. The names and locations in his book are so easily recalled, along with the faces and memories of them.
For anyone from that area east of Beckley along New River and the Flat Top mountain area..a plus reading. I have purchased 10 to pass to family and friends as well as to my children.

I was simply charmed by this book. It manages to be thought-provoking, interesting, highly useful and poetic all at the same time. The ceremonies themselves are surprisingly original and moving. My wife and I used one recently to commemorate the passing of my father-in-law a year ago. We were tearful at first, laughing soon thereafter, and somehow made a little more whole by the end. The personal stories the authors tell are also well worth reading. Their warmth and wisdom come across beautifully. Highly recommended.

I had a copy of Ms. Lang and Ms. Nayer's earlier edition of HOW TO BURY A GOLDFISH, but a friend borrowed it and never gave it back. So I eagerly bought a new copy when this new Skinner edition came out, and it's better than before. The authors give charming insights into their lives and advice about how to celebrate all occasions. Burying a goldfish is one kind of ceremony; welcoming a newly adopted child is another. You should order two copies of this helpful enchanting book, because you'll be lending it to someone who won't part with it!