White Books

I became interested in this book after watching the 1950s movie with Tyrone Power. The movie was so-so, but the story got my attention. It is a fantastic tale of the times, pageantry, personalities, and politics of medieval Italy when Europe was in the process of nation forming. The vocabulary and flow of the story are elegant without being the least overdone or tedious. You are transported to a different time, yet find that you may already know some of these people.

Exceptional novel written by a master of the historical-epic genre. The book follows the life and loves of Andrea Orsini, an erstwhile impoverished Italian nobleman, as he strives to find his destiny in the byzantine politics of Renaissance Italy. The Prince of Foxes was one of several Rafael Sabatini novels made into major motion pictures -- all starring Tyrone Power.

A master of deception and disguise, Andea Orsini plays his hand well, rising from the place of a simple peasant blacksmith, first to General and then to Lord! He thwarts the venemous Ceasar Borgia on every turn, befriends a man with the look of Judas, and serves as the protector of a true lady - all the while fighting his own physical and spiritual battles and growing in character along the way.

A clever and decidedly well written story of both heroic deeds and great deceptions, true love and the pride of men. You won't be wasting your time on this book, it's five-star material.

I heartily agree with other readers who have given Prince of Foxes 5 stars. This novel is fast-paced, informative, believeable, beautifully written and a fantastic blend of history and fiction. Mr. Shellabarger manages to educate the reader about the warring Italian city states of the period while holding their attention with a wholly credible depiction of people and places of the time. The characters in these pages are not the stick figure cartoons of so many bodice-rippers, but display actual psychological development and manage to engage the reader into caring about them - a rare occurrence in much of what passes these days as historical fiction. Once I got past about the first two chapters, I couldn't put this one down. There are no contrived coincidences to spoil the plot development, none of the artificial saving of the day that too often destroys believability. This has to rate as one of the most enjoyable reads I have had in a long time, not to mention, has captured my attention to the extent that I now want to learn more about the Borgias and the times they lived in. Highly recommended. (As an aside, I was disappointed to find that the Tyrone Power/ Orson Welles Hollywood film based on the book is not available on any of the DVD sites I checked. Maybe just as welll, as my own mental images of the characters remain unspoiled.)

Set in Renaissance Italy, this classic of American popular fiction is the story of Andrea Orsini, a peasant boy who rises to perform delicate political, military, and romantic missions for Cesare Borgia. Schellabarger tells a sly, cunning story filled with double dealing, plots, seductions, political overthrow, murder, and a cold blooded assassin that still follows a code of honor... what's not to like?

Let me start by saying that I'm a 13 year old boy and that Reggie White is my hero. I bought this book looking to learn more about my hero's life and I really struck gold.

Reggie White tells you about his entire life in this autobiography. He starts with an Introduction called "Promise Kept", which I particularly enjoyed. He then tells about his childhood, College days with the University of Tennessee, his Memphis Showboat Days, the USFL's fold and his move to the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles (my favorite team), and then his move to the Packers.

In between that though he tells stories of God and his miracles on the football field and about Buddy Ryan and the players he would go into the trenches with any day.

He also writes about the death of Jerome Brown, stories of God, how he didnt want to leave his teammates of the Eagles but had to because of the ignorance of Norman Braman, and much much more.

This is perhaps my favorite book I've read so far, and I enjoy reading.
I strongly recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of the NFL in general. Reggie White is a true NFL Legend and my hero.

I don't know where I'd be today without the witness of the late Reggie White. I suppose the answer is that God would have used someone or something else to crack open my hard heart, but I will still be eternally grateful to Reggie - not only for writing this excellent football book, but more important for always wearing his heart for the Lord on his sleeve, in plain sight for any observant fan.

THIS IS THE STORY OF REGGIE WHITE FORMER NFL GREAT. THIS IS A GOOD READ FOR EVERYONE, NOT JUST FOOTBALL FANS. REGGIE TELLS US OF HIS LIFE AND CAREER WITH THE EAGLES AND PACKERS, ALONG THE WAY HE HAS SOME GREAT STORIES ABOUT FORMER COACHES AND TEAMATES. BUT THE MOST IMPORTANT MESSAGE IN THIS BOOK IS HOW TO LIVE A CHRISTIAN LIFE. REGGIE WAS A DEVOUT CHRISTIAN AND SPREAD THE WORD. HE NOT ONLY TALKED THE TALK BUT WALKED THE WALK. THE LESSONS AND MESSAGES IN THIS BOOK ARE WELL WORTH READING AND USING IN EVERYDAY LIFE. I WAS VERY SHOCKED TO LEARN OF REGGIE'S DEATH. HE WAS A GREAT ROLE MODEL FOR EVERYONE. I RECOMMEND THIS ANYONE AND EVERYONE TO READ. THERE ARE NOT ENOUGH REGGIE WHITES IN THIS WORLD.

"I've never seen any conflict between Christianity and football. I don't see football as a violent sport; I see it as aggressive. And I see Christianity as an aggressive faith." (pg. 189).

IN THE TRENCHES spends tons of time talking about what made Reggie White famous, FOOTBALL, and what he thinks is most important for him to do with his football success, use it to promote JESUS!

"...three words--IN THE TRENCHES--sum it all up for me. I live my life in the trenches. I do my work in the trenches. I serve my God in the trenches. I go to war against evil, poverty, racism, and injustice in the trenches." (pg. 22)

Reggie talks about how he grew up. He was the second son of a teenage mother, who seldom saw his father. He was always much larger than other kids his age, and they called him names like "Bigfoot" and "Land of the Giants." He got saved when he was 13, and he would point out what the Bible said to bad kids who were doing things like always telling lies.

He claims O.J. Simpson as his childhood inspiration and main reason that he wanted to play football, even though this book was written after the famous murders?

He toughened himself up for football, to prove wrong the folks who said he couldn't handle it because he's a Christian!

He talks about playing in the USFL and the NFL, for the Showboats, Eagles and Packers. This book was written before he won the Super Bowl with the Packers. He spends plenty of pages giving many details about many different games. Sometimes it gets a little too long for me, so if you are interested in hearing about his football career, then this is the book for you! "Sacks are fun, man. There's nothing like throwing a quarterback down for a big loss." (pg. 83). He also talks about being one of the first really big stars to go into Free Agency, which was not popular with the team owners of the time! "The owners who screamed the loudest about free agency were the owners of the notoriously tightwad teams--the Eagles, the Bengals, the Steelers." (pg. 127).

He details the times when God pulled off public miracles to heal him to play. He also discusses how God used his football fame to bring to the public eye the problem of church arsons in the South, by having Reggie's church get burned down, which brought national media attention, and plenty of extra love and support from Green Bay fans, and from across the nation.

There are many b/w photos in the middle of the book, so you get to see many of the family and friends discussed.

This book is better than Reggie White's later book, BROKEN PROMISES, BLINDED DREAMS, which is mostly about his thoughts concerning African-Americans in the USA. BROKEN PROMISES focuses mainly on what's wrong with the immoral US culture, these days, so you should read BROKEN PROMISES if you are interested in social activism and the African-American experience, from Reggie White's perspective.

He only briefly touches on the culture wars in this book, IN THE TRENCHES, "Nobody's preaching abstinence today because nobody's figured out how to get rich off of other people's abstinence--but there's plenty of money to be made from other people's sexual activity...[...]..sexually transmitted diseases...aborting unwanted babies...Much of the money spent on various aspects of people's sexual behavior is TAX money--money you and I shell out to the government, money that is spent without our say-so!" (pg. 217).

At the end of the book he give tips on how to be a good role model.

I am a Reggie White fan, because I like what he did with his football fame, using it to promote Christianity throughout his entire career, and way before and after his pro football days, as well!

I think this is the best Reggie White book that I have read, though I can also recommend BROKEN PROMISES for anybody who is intrigued by the activist aspect of Reggie White's life.

There is also a pretty decent book of photos called REGGIE WHITE: A CELEBRATION OF LIFE, 1961-2004. This is slim on text, but has many interesting photos of his pro football years.

"When I face the final judgment, God isn't going to ask me how many Pro Bowls I played in or ask me to recite my stats. He's going to ask me if I knew Jesus, and if I helped to bind up the wounds of people." (pg. 195, IN THE TRENCHES).

I found this book very interesting I learned a lot about Reggie White. I wish that he was still with the Green Bay Packers. I am a huge Green Bay Packer fan. This book had a lot of interesting stuff in it. For example I never knew that one of his favorite players growing up was O.J. Simpson. Reggie said in the book that O.J. Simpson was like a moving target for defensive linemen; he said, that was one of the reasons that he wanted to play defensive end. I also learned that he really liked his coach Buddy Ryan when he played with the Philadelphia Eagles ,and when Buddy Ryan got fired Reggie couldn't figure out why he got fired; he said Buddy Ryan was a good coach. Reggie also talked about his church getting burned. He also talked about his friend and teammate Jerome Brown who was killed a car accident and he thought he was a really great person and he said he misses him. I learned a lot from reading this book. This book is one of my favorite books that I read. I would recommend this book to every Green Bay Packer fan.

SOX AND THE CITY IS WRITTEN BY RICHARD ROEPER WHO IS ALSO A MOVIE CRITIC ALONG WITH ROGER EBERT IN CHICAGO AND THEY HAVE A SYNDICATED TV SHOW. I REALLY LOVED THIS BOOK. I AM NOT A SOX FAN BUT AN INDIANS FAN AND I KNOW MANY MANY SEASONS HAVE PASSED SINCE A WORLD SERIES VICTORY. ROPER BRINGS BACK MUCH NOSTALGIA FROM BASEBALL IN THE 1960'S TO PRESENT DAY. I REALLY ENJOYED THE SEGMENTS ABOUT THE 1967 TEAM AND DICK ALLEN. I ESPECIALLY RECOMMEND THIS FOR ALL SOX FANS AND EVEN IF YOU ARE NOT, THIS IS AN EXCELLENT READ FOR ALL BASEBALL FANS. HE DOES A GREAT JOB DESCRIBING IN DETAIL HOW THE 2005 SEASON WENT WITH SOME GREAT BEHIND THE SCENES STORIES. I THINK THE ONE MAIN THING I ENJOYED MOST WAS HIS EXPERIENCES FOLLOWING THE SOX AS A CHILD WHEN WE ARE YOUNG AND NAIVE AND HOPE IS ETERNAL. A MUST READ.

Roeper writes very well for a journalist (ha-ha), and this book was both funny and captured the essence of being a White Sox fan. He takes you through his personal experience of being fan from his childhood in the 1960s to attending the World Series in 2005. The book would be a fun read even if you were not a White Sox fan as Roeper includes a lot of jokes about pop culture such as movies and music, and many of the stories of being a fan are universal regardless of the team.

Fantastic recap of decades of Sox lore! This book was a quick and interesting read, containing trivia, stats, and facts all interwoven with personal anecdotes and memories. Terrific for new or old fans - a must have for all who know and love the Sox!

"Sox and the City" is a great read for any baseball lover, but particularly White Sox fans. They say that as a baseball fan you are wedded to one team for life, and live and die with them each season. Or to paraphrase one of those east coast baseball fans, baseball is not life or death, but the [White] Sox are!

"Sox and the City" will most interest Chicagosns, of course. But all baseball fans might enjoy it. After all, being a White Sox fan in a city with more than one team, and an ancient generational rivalry (I won't name that OTHER team) is an experience few living baseball fans still know. the annual highs and lows (and finally triumph) that made the suffering all worth it. Only perhaps New Yorkers share the experience (and even the New York Mets are stand-ins for the old Yankees-Dodgers-Giants rivalry).

If you love baseball, pick this one up!

Thank goodness the White Sox have southside Chicago native Richard Roeper as a fan! The Cubs and other more popular MLB teams have a much longer roster of both author/fans (e.g. Stephen King and the Red Sox) and A-list celebrity/fans (of which the White Sox have none - sorry Jerry Springer, you're B-list). But the White Sox, with their long, interesting history and their amazing 2005 World Series run, needed someone to step up to the plate and deliver what the fan base needs: a book documenting what it means to be a White Sox fan in the four decades up to 2005. Roeper delivers a solid home run, albeit not a grand slam.

Roeper deftly interweaves three main storylines in "Sox and the City": the highlights of the past 40 years of Sox history; Roeper's own personal experiences as a fan attending more than 1000 Sox games; and the highlights of the 2005 season and World Series run. Along the way Roeper provides a personal, often humorous view of the main topics in Sox history: the different Sox teams that have been assembled over the years; what it means to be a Sox fan in what will always (unless the demographics of Chicago change radically) be a Cubs town, including especially the Sox/Cubs rivalry among the fans (which, because of geography is more passionate - at least on the Sox side - than any other intercity major league rivalry); Harry Caray's move from the Sox to the Cubs; Bill Veeck's attempts to generate excitement (and bring in paying fans) on the southside; Disco Demolition Night; the move from Comiskey to the Cell; and much more.

There is so much White Sox history that it is impossible to capture it all in a single volume, but Roeper hits all the highlights. His prose is very accessible, humorous, and direct. "Sox and the City" is likely to become the definitive guide to what it means to be a White Sox fan in the present day.

Why only four stars? Roeper's done an admirable job in all areas of the book except two: explaining precisely what made the 2005 team different than all other White Sox teams, and capturing the excitement and impact of the Sox's 2005 World Series victory on the city of Chicago. Perhaps the latter is an impossible task to translate into words - you had to be there.

All literate White Sox fans should read this book.

My husband introduced me to this cookbook over 30 years ago and it has been a favorite ever since. The recipes are flavorful and easy to make. The section on spices is very informative and helpful. The only thing I do differently than spelled out in the recipes is to use fresh onions instead of dried.

This book is favorite of my mother's and was given to me. I am now sending a copy to my daughter. The recipies are outstanding.

I have had to replace this cookbook, because I have used it so much...I enjoy the artwork.
I am reminded of how at one time, food might have been very bland without spices.
I cherish this book and hope I will not have to replace it again...
If you find one, buy it...at ANY PRICE!

This cookbook was a gift from my mother. I have always used it for over 34 years to find unusual or special recipes. After I made several recipes that caused my mother (a wonderful cook) to rave, she said that she wished she had kept it for herself, instead of giving it to me. Recently, I found 5 used copies of the book that I bought for my two daughters, my daughter-in-law, two nieces, and my sister-in-law. It is the best cookbook. Too bad it is out-of-print! I wish the binding were made of steel, because I have had to mend mine several times--it is loved and cooked to pieces.

My mother and her two sisters each received this cookbook in the sixties for a Christmas present, and I was lucky enough to end up with one. This has been my "flagship" cookbook...the one I turn to again and again. The stories about spices are interesting, and every recipe I have tried I have used over and over for company as well as everyday meals. There is enough basic cookery information for even very new cooks. I want to give a copy to my daughter so this can be a legacy cookbook.

After reading the first in this series, I could not wait to get Wedgewood Gray--It was well worth the wait. It is one of the best books I have read in a long time.

Book is well written, I particularly enjoyed since I am from the South,
actually Mississippi...

I highly recommend this 2nd book in the trilogy of The Black or White Chronicles. Get the first book, Black or White (or Abiding Darkness-same book). It is the best of the three, but all are good. If you like Southern-country settings and dialouge, this is great. The jist of the story is this: down-to-earth, real Christian people battling against the evils of the devil in suspenseful, interesting writing.

Wedgewood Gray by John Aubrey Anderson (remember that name, if it is not familiar to you yet, I guarantee it will be) has got to be one of the richest novels I have had the pleasure of reading in quite some time.

(Mr. Andersen, I hope you get to read this, because I'm gushing. This is fan mail).

I was not very far into the book when the realization struck me that I was not reading the work of merely a good writer, but I was reading the work of, what I am not ashamed to describe as, a great writer.

The man does not waste a word. He brilliantly breaks rules (at least some of the ones I was taught by Writer's Digest columnists), and before I knew it, I was emotionally involved with his characters (both major and minor), his setting and, of course, his plot.

I am almost at a loss for words in attempting to describe the richness and texture of this novel. I didn't simply read it, I savored it, I lived it--I was there.

All I can say is... get the book! Woman Submit! Christians & Domestic Violence

First, let me say this and get it out of the way. John Aubrey Anderson has in a matter of a few months become one of my favorite authors. His books are among those that will always remain in my possession. I couldn't possibly think of parting with them. They're too important for what they teach and how they entertain. Entertaining while teaching valuable truths is one of those things I want to learn to do in my own writing. With the help of novels like Wedgewood Grey and it's predecessor, Abiding Darkness, I feel it is a doable task.

Wedgewood Grey is book two in the Black Or White Chronicles. And it's the ongoing saga of the Washington family and the Parker family. This emphasis this time out is on Mose Washington, whose family went through so much and yet this man stood strong in his faith in book one, Abiding Darkness.

Fifteen years prior to this books story, Mose lost his young son to the evil that has taken root at Cat Lake. That was only the beginning. Now as you open the pages of Wedgewood Grey you'll find Mose in another predicament at the infamous lake. One that will cause him to run, while taking on the responsibility of raising a boy whose lost his mother despite Mose's best efforts to the stop the evil from taking her.

The one thing I found surprising about this second installment was the near absence of Missy Parker, who upon reading Abiding Darkness, one would conclude is the focal point of the series. She's there and she plays a most valuable part, but it's very late in the story. On the contrary the story really centers itself around Mose and an FBI agent named Jeff Wagner. Wagner is a man who, try as he might, can seem to draw no other conclusion concerning resent events than that it's the work of demons and the God they oppose. A shoe he finds, as an unbeliever in such ideas, very hard to fit.

With this novel, Anderson's second, I see growth as a writer and storyteller. His words are full of wisdom and charm, wit and grace. He is indeed among the best of today, and maybe even yesteryear's, southern fiction writers. If you enjoy stories of the old south or of the good ole days as many call them, you'll love this story. If spiritual warfare is your thing, you'll love this book. If you just love an engaging story that will take you to a place you've never gone, but would love to be, you'll love this story.

I can't wait for the next installment coming later this year. It's called And If I Die. I'm full of questions about what more will happen with Mose and what's to become of Missy.

I hope you'll join me in finding out.

Lee Kessler proves that she knows how to weave a captivating and enjoyable story through the characters in "White King and the Doctor". There are other big advantages to the book. You will be able to discern truths that will give you comfort as well as truths that will challenge you to act.

I have often felt out of touch with no way to get trusted information about sensitive issues. Many people think "terrorist!" only to feel fear and confusion about what has been happening since 9-11. How do you discover intrigue in the real world? It seems to me like a giant puzzle that is constantly changing. Ms. Kessler gives insight to fact through fiction. You're going to know that certain things she references in this book have to be true. That being the case, the puzzle pieces fall into place so we can get a glimpse of where we fit and what we can do to empower ourselves and others. Get the book and enjoy the ride.

I read lots of books of all different types, and this book is a great read! The story flows from begining to end. My understanding about how terrorists could be operating in this country and what kind of plans they could have was increased. Also knowing who the enemy really is prevents you from hurting the people on your own team. Some "fiction" stories hit closer to the truth than others. I recommend this book to everyone.

If you have ever wondered how or why some things are the way they are - you need to read White King and the Doctor. It is a powerful and exciting novel that brings the reader to a new level of understanding about the world we live in, the media's hand in how we "think", and the War on Terror.~ Eileen B.

An extraordinary, insightful, entertaining, suspenseful, hard-hitting and very important book. An intricate, well-written storyline. Highly recommended. This book will become a best-seller.

Author Lee Kessler presents new ideas about what is really going on regarding the war on terror and does it in a format that is gripping and entertaining. It's a true wake up call about the actual mastermind behind terrorist activities. It also gives readers more reality on the actions of "Big Pharma." Readers will probably think twice about taking prescription drugs. It's truly a MUST-READ book. Please read it and get everyone else you know to read it.

a heart warming story about loyalty in the face of unbearable pressure. A fast read; one in which the reader will laugh, cry, and well with pride.You will read it more than once.

A White Sport Coat and a Pink Carnation is a wonderful depiction of a day in the life of four high school seniors in the 1950's at the prime of their life who know the true meaning of friendship, loyalty, and honor. It journeys into the joys and the hardships a young man encounters while attending an all-male Catholic High School. Every page allows the reader of any age to remember what he or she experienced during last year of high school with the simple joys in life like sharing a keg of beer with friends and the worry of what was to happen the day they received their diploma. As the reader moves through the chapters, he or she is eager to discover how these four boy's lives turn out in the end... it can best be viewed as American Graffiti meets Ferris Buller's Day Off.

Romance, innocence and high-spirited fun are all fully captured in Joseph Murphy's book - A White Sport Coat and a Pink Carnation. Set in the 50's this story depicts the life of a mischievous teenager looking to make the most of his youth, while keeping in mind the goals and dreams he is determined to one day achieve. Mr. Murphy's creative story telling style allows the reader to feel as though he or she is a member of the "Keg Kids" as they dance the night away at the Senior Prom or are sneaking through the night for a birthday bash the gang will never forget. Yet mixed with the good is also the sorrow as Murphy recounts how all actions sometimes have surprising consequences.

For an inspirational read, pick up a copy of Joe Murphy's A White Sport Coat and a Pink Carnation.

In the book Joe Murphy links true events to capture the ideological, devilish, trusting, uncomplicated, lasting and always faithful friendships of high school seniors in the mid 50's. It was 45 years ago but it seems like yesterday. You will laugh and get misty. You will want to read it more than once.

Murphy's book is great! Makes for easy, relaxing reading.

This book will bring you back to a time when the most important event of the week was, who was going to be your date at the drive-in theatre on Saturday night. Everyone can relate to those carefree years.

I was reading "A White Spoort Coat and a Pink Carnation" while waiting for my wife in a department store, and burst out laughing at the ingenious use of an umbrella while riding an elevator. People must have thought that I was crazy, but I was having a great time.

Recommended for all!

I teach an ESL class to immigrants and use this book constantly. My students like this book becuz of the pictures, conversation ideas at the bottom and translations in several languages. I've had to order books (in Spanish, Chinese, Korean) for my students who want their own copies. We love this book!

I'm very lucky to find this book, because it will helps me to learn English. But I think it's good also for everybody because the book teach us the correct name of the things that we need day by day.
It's my second by at Amazon and I'm very happy
Cordially,
Luzia

This is the kind of dictionary I needed. When you want to know how to say a concrete concept you will understand better if you use this picture dictionary.

Please review the book I ordered its call word by word picture dictionary, second edition

I was lucky enough to be in a situation where my adult ESL classroom had enough in-classroom copies for all students to use during classtime. I used this almost everyday. It's a fantastic way to teach new vocabulary, especially when you combine its use with other teaching tools, such as acting out motions. I often had my students use the books to quiz each other. This is a good resource, and if you can get enough copies for everyone in your class to share, DO IT!

The Audio Dictionary has a reserved spot on my desk. I have had it only a few weeks and already it looks as if I have had it for five years. I find myself constantly refering to it for specification writing, white papers and design/bid documents. Gary and Glen have really outdone themselves in creating this masterful work.

This book is an excellent source for words used in the sound arts and audio recording industry that you need to know to go into the business. Trying to find accurate and consistent definitions is very hard but this book puts the definitions all in one place in a clear and understandable way.

Great item to have if your going to be working in the field of music.

When I first got into audio engineering there was no way of understanding some of the more technical concepts I was expected to know. This book makes it really easy to understand a lot of the terms, I still always keep this book handy when I'm reading an AES journal article, just to help me out if there is something I don't understand.

The Audio Dictionary is a great book for anyone who's looking for a concise, clear explanation of any audio-related term. It's not (and does not pretend to be) a complete treaty like the Handbook for Sound Engineers, but offers a quick and reliable solution for those questions for which you don't have an answer from the top of your head and don't want to spend 2 hours reading the complete scientific explanation.

I consider it a must-have for any Audio Engineer who takes his profession seriously and have at least one copy in the library of each school we operate in Spain.

I enjoyed Margaret Creighton's book. From far off Yarmouth, Maine, she has thrown her nets far and wide and hauled in a lot of historical flotsam and jetsam that might have escaped other scholars, in service of putting together another of her finely tuned historical studies of the underserved in American history. Here we find out more about the immigrant populations who comprised the Union Army, as well as the actual lives of the women of Gettysburg and the black citizens of the surrounding area. These are the shadow puppets of history, the folks who you might never have learned about by visiting the national park nor studying your social studies book.

You probably heard more about Mamie Eisenhower's residence at Gettysburg than you did about the women who were drafted into battle, whether they were forced to nurse, to cook, to slave, or to fight. Why is this? Partially, as Professor Creighton explains, these women were told, and they believed it, that their sacrifices did not matter. And that, perhaps, there was even something a little bit shameful about what they did, particularly if they were required to assist the invading Confederate army. Of the ravishment and rape that undoubtedly occurred, we know little but can surmise much, thanks to Creighton's research and the guarded testimony of forty Gettysburg women, mostly farmwives. Creighton looks at the nuance behind every statement, searching out human reality wherever it crops it head. "A middle-aged woman on a farm opened her door to a soldier on July second. By the way he was dressed, she was sure that he was a Louisiana Tiger. He told her that `General Lee had said that they should ask for food and if they would not give it they should demand it and that was what he was going to do.' She fed him ham. He ate some of it and then insulted her. The bread, he complained, was not fit to eat, `Madam,' he said, `I can go into any cabin in Virginia, poor and desolate as it is, from Winchester to Richmond, with not a fence standing, and get a better dinner than this.'" Creighton returns to this anecdote to eke out perceptions on the nature of resistance, and the implacability of the bad ham (Gettysburg women had to be fine actresses, for otherwise the Tiger in question might have guessed that the farmwife had fine chickens hidden with their beaks taped.)

As Creighton acknowledges, the presence of women on the Gettysburg battlefield is currently a contested site for scholars, particular feminist scholars, and she acknowledges that a host of others are trawling the same fields. The material remains of interest, and does indeed widen our picture of what happened that summer long ago, but I wondered, after finishing the book, if perhaps she might have written three separate books, for there's a sense in which the struggles of the immigrant soldiers, the Gettysburg women, and the freed, escaped or citizen slaves are experiences of very different registers and don't mesh together especially well except under cloudy language of the deracinated and ignored, and although Creighton tries her best, she can only link them this vaguely for the first two hundred times, then after that her rhetoric grows tiresome.

A lesson that comes through in Margaret Creighton's excellent The Colors of Courage is one, you'd think, we wouldn't need to learn: that the courage displayed by soldiers on the battlefield doesn't exhaust the meaning of the word. Curiously, though, it's a point that our culture seems to resist. Although we use the word "courage" in a number of different contexts, the template for our thinking about what it means to be courageous almost always is the battlefield with all its conventional associations.

But as Creighton points out, using the battle of Gettysburg as her focus point, courage comes in many "colors," and when it comes to the Civil War, we're only now beginning to discover what some of them are. Certainly, men facing one another on the battlefield display courage (although, as Gerald Linderman pointed out in his Embattled Courage: The Experience of Combat in the American Civil War, what counted as courage changed as the war progressed). But other kinds of courage as documented in Creighton's book include

--the courage of the civilian women at Gburg who protected their families (many of the town's men being absent) during the battle, negotiated with Confederates to avoid trouble, and tended the thousands of wounded before and after the three days;

--the courage of the African American residents in Gburg and southern Pennsylvania who had to contend with slave catchers that accompanied Lee's invading army, federal authorities who refused to let them bear arms against the invaders, and the gradual romanticization of the Civil War as a conflict in which "both sides fought for what they thought was right" that minimized the horror of slavery;

--the courage of German-Americans (derogatorily referred to as "Dutch"), who were seen by native-born Americans who viewed them as cowardly soldiers, lazy civilians, and buffoons everywhere. The heavily German-American 11th Corps, which (largely through no fault of its own) had been routed at Chancellorsville by Stonewall Jackson's surprise flank slam, were derided for their entirely honorable actions at Gburg simply because they were "Dutch";

--and the courage of generals such as Oliver Otis Howard and Carl Schurz, who both refused to subordinate moral to physical courage, and recognized that the stakes involved in putting an end to slavery were much more important than those offered by "the vogue of rugged, tough, and secular masculinity" (p. 234) too often then and now identified as courage.

A masterful book that opens new vistas on both the battle of Gettysburg and the meaning of the Civil War.

Despite its colorless title, The Colors of Courage is an interesting and revealing book that's well worth the reading. One learns much about native (Yankee) prejudice against German immigrants (allegedly stupid, clownish and cowardly), what happened in the town of Gettysburg during the three days of battle, and the experience of northern blacks, especially those near the Mason-Dixon line (only 7 miles away). Much fascinating material has been uncovered by fruitful research. The style of cool appraisal of historical fact though often gives way to one in which the author's paternalistic bigheartedness is apparent. Refreshingly, the author rejects the usual attempts at evoking sympathy or a misguided evenhandedness for the Confederacy and its soldiers, and presents the rebel army in all the horrific racism that was its soul and raison d'etre.

It is distressing though that much of the book is given over to a cloying gender self-promotion. Claims are made for the courageous self-sacrifice of Gettysburg womanhood, but little real courage is really described. The only incident that stands out in my mind is the fact that some Gettysburg women prepared meals for the Confederate soldiers who occupied the town during the battle, soldiers who, given the opportunity, would have killed their husbands, sons, brothers and fathers. These meals were prepared under some duress, of course, but when one woman courageously refuses she goes unpunished. But what could one expect from a gender that, in a 19th century rural backwater, suffered all the quasi-slavery and humiliations imposed by unchallenged male superiority -- not a fertile nursery for courage. The author notes many episodes of women's lives in Gettysburg, episodes that made me cringe with shame for these poor put-upon women. But amazingly these episodes are not presented as shameful at all, as if that would diminish these women as proud bearers of the title of womanhood. While chattel slavery is forthrightly despised, in this book gender slavery gets off scot-free! There is hardly a word that points the finger critically at the male superiority that so diminished the lives of these women. It's the elephant in the parlor -- overwhelmingly present, but unmentioned.

Despite this bizarre frame of reference, The Colors of Courage presents aspects of the war and the society that lived in its midst that are well worth discovering and whose uncovering justifies the obvious effort devoted to bringing these sidelights of the war to view.

Though Mrs. Creighton's text is well researched and factual, I believe it to be a bit extreme. I find that most claims made in the text are nothing more than generalizations. Yes, Lincoln passed the Emancipation Proclamation on 1 January 1863, however very few Union soldiers were fighting for this cause. Most Federal troops were fighting to preserve the Union, and quite a few were appaled over the idea of losing their lives to free the slaves. Additionaly, the majority of the Confederates namely Robert E. Lee and Thomas Jackson were not slave owners, and were simply fighting for state's rights. In fact, Lee asked Confederate President Jefferson Davis to incorporate black units into the Confederate Army. This was rejected, but by early 1865 the Confederate Army consisted of a few black units.
Secondly, although the citizens of Gettysburg suffered for a few weeks I tend to feel very little remorse. What Creighton believed to be major infractions against the Confederate Army was but mere childsplay to what Union General William T. Sherman dubbed "total war". In his infamous march to the sea(Atlanta to Savannah), his men robbed, killed, and humiliated southern citizens in an attempt to make the South lose it's fighting spirit. So please forgive me if I do not share in the citizen's of Pennsylvania's remorse for their two weeks of terror. Please do not get me wrong, I have nothing but the highest respect for those effected by the Civil War(fighting men and citizens alike). Yet, I believe it to be somewhat offensive to not even mention towns like Charleston, South Carolina and Vicksburg,Mississippi that were shelled and in the case of Vicksburg, starved into submission.
In summation, I believed Mrs. Creighton's book to be both informative and a good read. Please forgive me if I have offended anyone, and I will be more than happy to discuss this as well.

This book tells us, not about the battle, but what went on in the town of Gettysburg itself. Having lived there for 5 years, I was steeped in the folklore that the soldiers ran back and forth throught the streets of the town for three days, and with the exception of Jennie Wade (story: warned to go to the basement, courageously continued making bread) the townspeople were unscathed and John Burns (story: an irascible old coot), no townspeople participated. I had never heard of the Brian Family!

I was not without resources. I was the director of the public library. I met Michael Shaara, Bill Frassinito, Col. Sheads, Charlie Glatfelter, and a host of lesser and unknown historians, Park Service tested guides, civil war buffs and re-enacters. Perhaps I never asked Shaara (the one time I met him) and the others whom I saw more often, tacitly understanding that this battle was a white male thing, about these things. Maybe I accepted the script because the Gettysburg as I knew it was a quiet town, didn't get involved, and maybe didn't in 1863.

How could all that fighting occur in the town, without an effect, as defined by the local folklore surrounding the battle? Could the soldiers really be so courtly that they put aside their survival needs as not to disrupt to the town's civilians?

There are people who know this battle in great detail. They can recite (and argue about) the numbers of blue and gray who died in the wheat field, the peach orchard the round tops, etc. I never heard them talk about how the soldiers got fed (did they think they had were 3 squares at a mess hall?)

Creighton gives us not only the narrartive but also the answers as to how this history got burried.

Excellent work! Bravo Margaret Creighton!