West Virginia Books

This is by far the most complete work I have ever used concerning the Confederates from West Virginia. A complete and accurate compilation of those that served.

"Perry's chronicle of the West Virginia hills is more than a dramatic, moving and often entertaining unfolding of events. It is a valuable record of the remarkable efforts to help the poor set up and run programs of their own in the early days of the Office of Economic Opportunity activity in Appalachia. "

Having been born and reared in the same area of West Virginia as the subjects and author of this book; interrelated to the Hudnall family through several marriages between members of their family and mine; myself a Civil War buff and sympathizer of the Confederate cause; and having a personal knowledge of the years of arduous effort that went into the documentation of the historical facts set forth in this work, I naturally looked forward to its publication with almost as much anxiety and anticipation as its author. The wait was worth it. Mr. Hudnall has superbly chronicled in an easy to read style, the trials endured by certain of his family members as they followed the course of their personal convictions throughout one of the most tumultuous periods of this nation's history.... convictions which happened to be contrary to the tide of public opinion of those amid whom they not only were related by blood but by close personal acquaintance. Three Confederates From Kanawha County, West Virginia should, hopefully, soon find a well-deserved place in the private and public libraries of not only historians and government institutions, but in those of anyone having an interest in, and appreciation for, the individual sacrifices which were required in making America become the superpower nation of the world she ultimately became.

The so-called rivers of the Chesapeake Bay are really tidal by nature until they are blocked by falls of the highlands beyond. Paul Wilstach describes each starting with the first colony on the James and ending with Geo. Washington, and the nations new Capital on the Potomac. The cover provides the best description of the text that refers to the History of the area, its romantic Plantation Mansions, and the celebrated personages who gave it galmour. Five of the first seven presidents were born, raised to the level of prominence from Virginia so much of which comprises the tidewater. But that is just the beginning. Other famous beings owe their heritege to the wetlands of Tidewater Virginia, folks who left their mark either on the soil or "in it" since many were buried in the yards of the Plantations they developed. As a geography of such an important area, it is superb. Inside its cover is a map of Virginia that locates the major households and speaks of their importance and the contributions of the residents. I would consider it a must read for anyone captivated by the Revolutionary and Civil Wars because it gives such a great lay of the land, and description of the vicisitudes of the wars in that area. I was unfamiliar with it before, but the knowledge the book provides opened my eyes to the significance of the times and places of the Tidewater. Highly recommended, even to locals who may lack a sufficient knowledge of its importance to the American Nation.

Thank you Chad. America should know this "awful truth". By the way, we in Appalachia are still holding the same protest signs that these brave people held up in this book 30 years ago.
Help us America.

"To the Front and Back" is a must-read for anyone who
wants the perspective of the everyday soldier in time
of war. It's also a must-read for those seeking the
perspective of young men and women who volunteer for the armed
forces knowing they will go abroad to fight for the
freedom of others.

If you've read Elisha Hunt Rhodes' Civil War journal,
Tom Brokaw's "The Greatest Generation", or Stephen
Ambrose's "Citizen Soldiers", then you should add this
World War I memoir to your collection of perspectives
of foot soldiers who lived and breathed war day in
and day out. Grand histories of battles and wars are
one thing, but reading such close-in, first-hand
accounts helps us to understand how war and death and
occupation effect the thousands of "little people"
involved in the process.

When you read how the book was written (over a decade
after the end of the war, using his notes and
postcards), you'll appreciate that the level of detail
that McQuain remembered was the direct result of what
a searing experience the trauma of war was for him.
As is the case with many soldiers years and even
decades after the fact, McQuain was able to remember
the minutest detail with only a small reminder of the
facts. McQuain's daughter explains the process, and
(as Ken Burns did so well in the case of Elisha Hunt
Rhodes and others in "The Civil War" documentary)
tells the reader briefly about the rest of her
father's life and a bit about the family he raised.

The view of McQuain's life after the war is the one
known all too well by families of veterans. But too
often vets are reluctant to share with their families
the horrors they experienced abroad. "To the Front
and Back" will give the reader a new perspective on
that grandfather who wouldn't talk about his
experiences in World War I or World War II, or on
what's currently being experienced by a son, daughter,
husband, or wife who is currently in Iraq or
Afghanistan.

It's easy to feel a bit disturbed about the surface features of this most recent popularization of Tolkien's work. Consider this month's launch of "Lord of the Rings, the Musical" (I am not making this up) and the tendency brought on by Jackson's film version of the same to set the story as -- mostly -- a series of all-out battles expertly supported by the merchandising of action figures, fight-oriented video games and the rest and there's plenty of reasons to think that a large number of people who claim they love Tolkien's work might actually have very little familiarity with it. These tendencies to trade language, ideas and emotion for Action, to over-simplify and dumb down the nature of this collection of works -- or any works -- which offer meaning on a saturated scale, is not unusual in pop culture. But it remains deeply unfortunate. After all, set aside the basics and the world we actually inhabit is pretty much of our invention, too. Perhaps it would be better to fill it with a few ideas more profound than making vast sums of cash off of molded plastic.

Yet because of their intricacy and the striving towards a representation of a world made complete with history, ideas, events, beings and ways of being, thinking about Tolkien's works can be as rewarding an experience as the pleasure of reading the works themselves. With the breadth of concepts set forth in this book and Volume I, those rewards only multiply.

The essays in this and the first volume tend to avoid the tactical -- calendars, phases of the moon, etc. -- and go instead after the inferences, the references and the meanings. Volume II includes 12 essays and comprehensive notes. Unlike the uniformly excellent critical works of Shippey, Flieger and others, these volumes contain multiple views across diverse topics (in this case Modernism; World Creation and Colonization; the Medieval myth of the Restoration of the Roman Empire and many others) which expose the reader to a profoundly rich array of paths within and around the works. The editorial board has done a great job: the writing is lively and uniformly accessible, laden with ideas that enhance comprehension of the works while, as part of a seemingly endless chain, leading to other readings as well.

As time carries us further and further from the origins of Tolkien's works, it is writing and thinking such as this that will help slow the rise of pure pop levels of comprehension, and prevent Tolkien's world from shrinking down to three, two, or even one dimension.

With Volume 4, the hard-working editorial troika of Drout, Anderson, and Flieger have done it again, producing another must-have issue of Tolkien Studies. This new volume is simply brimming over with fascinating material, but allow me to highlight a few special favorites:

Carl Hostetter's mammoth (almost 50pp.) survey of "Tolkienian Linguistics: The First Fifty Years" is an exhaustive, almost overwhelming, summary of its subject. It also concludes with a checkpoint of where we are now and where the work is headed for the future. The article, as well as the bibliography Hostetter provides, should be required reading for would be Tolkienian linguists (and even some who already identify themselves as such).

Another monster (and I mean that affectionately) is Michael Drout's 65pp. essay on "J.R.R. Tolkien's Medieval Scholarship and its Significance". The piece addresses an area of Tolkien studies too often ignored nowadays: just what impact did Tolkien have in his professional milieu, and why should we care? Drout's lengthy treatment is, in some ways, an update to Tom Shippey's 1989 essay, "Tolkien's Academic Reputation Now". Note that Shippey's essay has been recently reprinted (in "Roots and Branches", Walking Tree, 2007), for those would would compare the conclusions of their authors.

Other essays deserving special note are the contributions by Verlyn Flieger, Dimitra Fimi, and Thomas Honegger. In addition, many readers will be especially interested in Kelley Wickham-Crowley's review of The J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment (edited by Drout) and John Garth's review of The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide (edited by Christina Scull and Wayne Hammond).

And last but certainly not least, the issue reprints Tolkien's own essay, "The Name 'Nodens'", which has long been difficult to find. It's a very short, and very abstruse piece, one that will not necessarily interest all readers; however, it's great to have it in print again. Prior to this issue, the only way to get it was with the help of antiquarian book search, deep pockets, and a lot of luck.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone considering taking an assignment with a US-based country outside of the USA. I was assigned as an expatriate for 3 years in Germany. I wish I had read this boook. Maybe I could have minimized some of the culture shock especially for my family.

Chapters 1 and 2 provide excellent food for thought when deciding whether to accept the position. There are many pros and also many cons. Chapters 3 thru 11 provide outstanding recommendations for solutions to many of challenges of living in another culture.

Chapter 12 should be read before taking an overseas assignment as well as when nearing the end of assignment. Returning to the USA, especially professionally, is not easy. This chapter has some good advice on networking while assigned overseas.

Chapter 13 and 14 are also essential reading before accepting an assignment.

The investment in purchasing the book is sound. It will pay for itself many times over!

Tom Huegerich Sales Development Manager, International

Following the passage of the Confederate Ordinance of Secession in April 1861, pro-Union Virginians met in Wheeling and began the process that would lead to the formation of West Virginia as a separate state. Despite the new state's allegiance to the North, the population of West Virginia remained divided in its loyalties, as author John W. Shaffer has described in his other book, Barbour County, A Clash of Loyalties: A Border County in the Civil War. In his latest effort, Union and Confederate Soldiers and Sympathizers, Mr. Shaffer enumerates over 1,000 individuals who comprised the fractious community of Barbour County.

Using official military records, the 1860 U.S. federal census, and a variety of other primary and secondary sources, the author lists 718 Union and 528 Confederate soldiers and sympathizers from Barbour County. These individuals are arranged by army and thereunder alphabetically. For each we learn the military unit (except for sympathizers), dates of service, duties, date of birth, names of parents, postwar occupation and other activities, and date of death. Mr. Shaffer's Introduction describes the background of the Civil War in Barbour County, while the Appendices specify the Union and Confederate units and military engagements in which Barbour citizens fought.