Tennessee Books

Being so near the Smokies, I just always went there, but now I have branched out in my tent camping endeavors, checking out such places as Turkey Foot campground in Kentuckys' Daniel Boone National Forest. Mammoth Cave National Park also has a great tent campground, Houchins Ford.
My own state of Tennessee has cool destinations like Meriwether Lewis Memorial on the Natchez Trace. I always disdained west Tennessee but was surprised to find Fort Pillow State Park on the bluffs of the Misissippi River. Buy this book if you want to expand your tent camping horizons in Tennessee and Kentucky.
I highly recommend this book -- Molloy makes the information so engaging and interesting as well.

Sure enough it's a winner.

Johnny covered all the highlights of Tennessee -- from the bluffs of the mighty Mississippi River at Fort Pillow to the wild shoreline of the Nolichucky River in East Tennessee.

I have taken him up on his recommmendation to hit Land Between The Lakes National Recreation Area, which Tennessee shares with Kentucky -- that place will surprise. Check it out. Johnny's got 4 campgrounds from LBL detailed in the book, among 60 total campgrounds.

I haven't yet explored Kentucky yet, but am planning a trip to Mammoth Cave and the Daniel Boone National Forest. Actually, I have the feeling Johnny is going to lead me to a lot of places I've never been!

McDonough provides an engaging narative of the battle. He tells of the friction between Bragg and his generals and how it affected Confederate efforts on the battlefield. He gives a detailed and thorough analysis of the battle for Missionary Ridge, explaining why the Union's assault was successful when Pickett's Charge at Gettysburgh, a similar assault, was not.

There are many maps - more than I expected in a book this length. However, in my opinion, there cannot be too many maps.

James Lee McDonough comes through with flying colors. Chattanooga -- A Death Grip on the Confederacy depicts the Union and Confederate struggle for the strategic city in the fall of 1863. McDonough begins his book with the climax of the Battle of Chickamauga Creek, a Union defeat that leads to a retreat to Chattanooga and the removal of General Rosecrans. The next chapters depict the Union and Confederte operations, including the arrival of Generals Grant and Sherman for the North and the bickering within the Confederate camp.

McDonough's depiction of the troop movements and battles are insightful and supported with several maps. The details of the battle are drawn from diaries and official records of both Union and Confederate sources. It is a plus that McDonough manages to keep a neutral tone throughout the book, analyzing both the reasons for Union success and Confederate failure.

Strategy and tactics are not the only point McDonough is trying to make. He does and excellent job of bringing to life the feelings and emotions of some of the common soldiers involved on both sides. The narrative flows well and is entertaining. Chattanooga is an easy read for both the scholar and the layman.

I was particularly interested in the description and pictures of the Smoky Mountain Railroad which came right into downtown Knoxville from up in the mountains of Sevier County. As a student at the University of Tennessee in the late 1970s I can still recall seeing its rails poking out from underneath the gravel commuter parking lot which then covered the old yard, wondering what railroad they must've belonged to.

The only thing I would like to have seen is a chapter or appendix with new material bringing the book up-to-date to the present time from the 1970s where it essentially ends as was done with the recent reprinting of William Middleton's book on the South Shore Line interurban.

Buy it now before you regret missing this opportunity!

Given that Ellen White is considered by most Adventists as second only the Bible with regards to literal inspiration, this book by Ron Numbers is seen as nothing short of blasphemy. The General Conference of Seventh Day Adventists allowed Numbers access to their vault of unpublished materials, only to find themselves "betrayed" by his ultimate conclusions. How dare he suggest that many of White's "visions" were actually copied word-for-word from some of the books in her personal library! And how dare he suggest she was used as a "pawn" in the hands of the all-male leaders of the original SDA church in trying to establish their legitimacy! In my own view, whatever the truth in these things, Numbers diminishes White a bit more than she deserves. Yet, it's hard to argue with the evidence he presents. The problem (perpetrated by the SDAs themselves) is that we're trying to interpret events of a hundred or more years ago in the light of our current "values." This is, after all, the era of "zero tolerance." Am I right, or am I right?

In this book, Ron Numbers presents a fascinating history of the Seventh Day Adventist church. From their earliest origins following the "Great Disappointment" of 1844, Numbers follows the difficult development of a new religion. They faced more than a few crises along the way. Far from the least of these was the powerful personality of John Harvey Kellogg. Yes, this is the Kellogg of the Kellogg's cereal company. Yes, he was an early Seventh Day Adventist. But Kellogg's was rather different in those days. His company was first started in an effort to produce natural health foods, as promoted by Mrs. White. (There's even an interesting anecdote in which some guy named Post toured Kellogg's factory, and Kellogg's stance that he was unconcerned that Post would copy what he was doing, as this would further the health message he so strongly believed in.) Yet, Kellogg became a "problem" to those early Adventists. He wanted more power than they were willing to grant him. Needless to say, he's now considered an "apostate" by contemporary Adventists. This is just one of several episodes that Numbers chronicles with revealing accuracy. No wonder this book was found so alarming by "the powers that be" in the 1970s SDA church!

I'm not an Adventist, in case you're wondering. But, I find these kinds of histories more than a little fascinating. Given the context, Numbers was a brave man to put this in print when he did. I'm also rather proud, in a way, that Numbers wrote this book when he was an Assistant Professor of the History of Medicine and the History of Science at the University of Wisconsin...right here in Madison! This is probably a book you'll have no interest in at all, if the history of religion is a lost topic for you. But, if you've read this far in my review, you just might discover a few items here that will reward your searching. If your goal is hostile anti-Adventism...forget it! You'll find what you want here, but what a petty argument you're pursuing. Take a broader view. See this in the context of the whole of history. What a fascinating development!

Newly widowed, the over-indulged and aging socialite Mrs. Stone travels to Rome where, amongst her circle of charmed and wealthy peers, she discovers truths about her own inner life as well as the seedy underbelly of the society in which she'd til now played a prominent and sneering role.

A developing, doomed relationship with a young Italian call-boy (controlled by an equally memorable female pimp) uncovers Mrs. Stone's latent passion and lonliness, leading ultimately to a melodramatic submission to the nihilism of anonymous sex.

The depth of Mrs. Stone's passion combined with her reserved dignity represent (to me) the singular beauty and subtle power increasingly inherent in women as we grow older. A beauty and power that are still tragically devalued and discouraged by our society today, more than 30 years after this timeless prose was written.

Read this book for yourself, and for all of the women in your life.

This is a wonderfully written book that pulls no punches and points no fingers. It's a book about the joy, sadness, courage, pain, forgiveness, learning, laughter and great love that made a young boy become a proud and productive son, husband, father, and member of the community.

Anyone who reads this book will be better-off for the experience. The last book I read that gave me such a warm feeling was Will Campbell's "Brother to A Dragonfly".

This is a book that will make a great gift, especially for baby boomers' parents who can really identify with Herron's soul stories, or for anyone who likes stories of how character develops. Herron has allowed us a glimpse of his own character formation. Consequently, more than his own sons benefit from the effort.