North Carolina Books

This book is really great. Read it!

Mandie and her best friend are going up to visit their friend Jonathan in New York. Of course Mandie finds a mystery and they get invloved in many mysterious things. Mandie and Jonathan get trapped on a roof, Mandie is sick, they're late for dinner and they see snowball(mandies cat) below about to fall and die! What will they do? read it and find out!

It's Christmas time, and Mandie is having everyone come over for the holiday. But she is unsure about Jonathan and Joe getting along, and she is quite sure that this is going to be a very interesting vacation!
But then a mysterious package arrives on Mandie's doorstep, and upon opening it turns out to be a box of dirt with strange pathways etched out in it.
Mandie thinks it's a treasure map, and Joe thinks it's a practical joke. Who is right? And who sent the mysterious gift? Find out in 'Mandie and the Unwanted Gift!'

This book is one of my favorites. I thought it was funny how when Polly saw Jonathan, she quickly turned her attentions from Joe to him. Jonathan's coming was actually a blessing in disguise!

Mandie is going home for christmas holidays and is very excited. But she has one problem or make it two. She needs to talk to her grandmother before the Guyers come, so she won't be mad when they just show up. Mandie doesn't know what's wrong with Mrs. Taft and Mr. Guyer. There's also Joe. She hasn't told him that Jonathan is coming. Will he get mad at her, because the boys haven't exactly gotten along around Mandie?

Then one night before everyone arrives a package for Mandie comes. It's just a "mess" of holly, dirt and ribbins. Joe is sorry that he suggests it is a treasure map because then Joe, Jonathan, Polly and Mandie go on treasure hunts. Who sent Mandie the present. Read to find out the funny ending, how the boys get along with the fact that they're not the only boys in Mandie's life and how Mrs. Taft reacts with the Guyers arrival.

I just love Mandie books. I can read more than one in a day! I can't wait until "Mandie and the night thief" comes out. Are there any others after that one? I want to read how Mandie's life wraps up when she is older. Will she really marry Joe or maybe Tommy?

this book was good, no really good. Anyways.. mandie gets all frustrated thinking that everyone will be mad at her for inviting the guyers over for christmas. Mandie still doesn't know why grandmother doesn't like mr. guyer or if joe and jonathan will try to out-do each other. But she's in for a big surprise when someone leaves a present on the door step that is nothing but holy and dirt but is it a treasure map?? i really enjoyed this book and thought it was really nice of jonathan to do what he did knowing how much mandie likes mysteries

These stories are too good to consume all at once. I only allow myself to read one per day, in order to thoroughly enjoy and savor each one. And they are wonderful. Rural appalachia comes alive - here is a fragment of true Americana. I highly recommend this book. I'm ordering a copy for my parents for Christmas. They're "impossible to buy for", but I can't imagine anyone not loving thse incredibly well-written, funny, and poignant tales of the 40's and 50's. In the character and style of "To Kill a Mockingbird", Gary Cardin has captured a time and place in our history that reflects the innocence and sometimes the tragedy in all our lives.

Gary Carden describes himself as a storyteller. He says he never tells a tale the same way twice, because his elaborations depend on how he is doing with a particular audience. So putting his tales to paper was a formidable task. He was up to it.

The collection is roughly autobiographical. The same essential details, names, incidents, come up again and again, and in spite of Carden's admittance to his tendency to stretch the truth, we know the essence is true both historically and emotionally. In this way, it differs from the writings of some others, like Mark Twain and Garrison Keilor, to whom he will be inevitably compared. Somehow Carden is more "the real thing" than these others. He is speaking from his own life, one that he continues to live.

Mason Jars generally follows a sequential path. The hero of most of these stories is Harley Teester, his name steeped in North Carolina rhythms. His adventures - more the adventures of others in which he somehow becomes involved, really - start when he is eight or nine years old and continue, on a bumpy path, to his present age. They take us from the simple naivete of a child who can make no sense of the odd reference to such things as "the trouser worm" to the sophisticated and wise understanding of the older man.

While the first several stories read like chapters in Harley's biography, others diverge. There are the "grandmother stories", in which Carden creates grandmothers who are not quite socially correct, who will fill a child's head with gruesome tales and revel in the effect. It's easy to imagine Carden giving wing to this primary character in front of an audience.

There are also tales of the supernatural, and his own versions of myths and legends. What overlays all in this diverse collection is a sense of hope, of good, of the essential goodness of man. It doesn't come from having been raised in a bed of roses or from having everything come easily to him. Perhaps the optimism is a result of the adversity he has weathered and survived. More, perhaps, from the pleasure of being able to capitalize on it in this way.

Like a good storyteller knowing he has done a good job, each of Gary Carden's storywritin's, ends with a sense of satisfaction. Not just for the reader, but the character as well. At the end of each story, the reader's satisfaction is in the character's triumph. Quotes are often taken from the beginning or the middle of a story. To illustrate what I mean about how Gary's stories finish, here are a few end lines. -"No town sounds out there, just wind and rain and running water." -In a few minutes, Happy and me were in a Mexican cantina drinking Grapettes and playing Chinese checkers. -I walked faster, eager to get home. -There was smoke coming from the chimney, and I was glad that I had left a fire. -Momma adjusts the mirror so she can see Granny and me in the back seat, and we smile back at her. -Laying under the feather tick, I watched firelight flicker on the ceiling. I wasn't very sleepy, to tell the truth. From a boy listening to rain on an attic roof, to a man who wouldn't listen, Carden's stories take us across the spectrum of an Appalachian soul. His characters are heard and seen, not just read about. From the smallest triumphs to the greatest satisfactions, they have not lost the life Gary first breathed into them in his oral tellings. My favorite story is "The Thing with Feathers." Is it an angel or not? Tell me after you read the story. Gary Carden's new book, "Mason Jars In The Flood and Other Stories" is a major milestone in his writing career. This book should bring him added respect.

Many of the chapters in Gary N. Carden's MASON JARS IN THE FLOOD AND OTHER STORIES explores the life of a young boy raised by grandparents after the death of his father and abandonment by his mother. As Harley Teester grows, he comes to understand--no, to feel--the traditions, ties, and assumptions that have shaped his family's way of life. As we watch him mature, we see him incorporate his new experiences away from home with his former learning. Harley successfully defines himself not by rebelling against his past but by applying it and adapting it.

MASON JARS won the Appalachian Book of the Year Award for books published in 2000 from the Appalachian Writers Association. As a poet and a playwright, Carden has a master's sense of how voices should sound, and the autobiographical elements of MASON JARS coupled with the polish of his telling and re-telling these stories give his prose the ring of authenticity. Enjoy it privately, but read it aloud to friends if you get a chance. MASON JARS is poignant, bracing, and honest.

We first contacted him after seeing his film "Blow the Tannery Whistle." He graciously agreed to share a few stories with us and told us that "Mason Jars in the Flood" would be out soon.

We were anxious to read the book after seeing his masterful storytelling in the film, and when "Mason Jars" hit the press, we were not disappointed. This collection of Appalachian stories is Gary Carden at his best. Full of humor and nostalgia, this is the type of reading that can be enjoyed by relaxing on the front porch with your feet propped up.

Take a journey with one of the finest of all storytellers as he shares with us tales of growing up in the Southern Appalachian Mountains.

This book takes you interchangably through emotions of laughter, fear, love, pain etc. All Tilly and Meredith ever wanted to do was get to see each other again. But because of the patriarchal and racist society they lived in they were unable to do so. But their love for each other and belief in a colorblind God continued their friendship via the pony express. They lived separate lives, but were always a part of each others life. This book is a reflection of the role God played in the lives of the slave and the slave owner--a contradiction in itself but a connection nonetheless. If you allow yourself to experience the lives of Tilly and Meredith, you will realize what a blessing it is to live your own life today.

Also recommended: 'This Present Darkness'by Frank Peretti and 'Secrets' by Robin Jones Gunn

what a wonderful story! i had a hard time putting this one down!
the story is about two young girls, one a slave and the other is the master's daughter. they share a wonderful friendship that spans their years. Meri is instrumental in Tillys's escape to freedom. They maintain contact with each other, hoping someday to see each other again. Tilly and Meri marry and have families,happiness and heartache. thru this all they still have each others support and encouragement.
i heartily recomend this heartwarming story

This book is a great find. My friend had recomended it to me and I'm glad I read it. It is a book about friendship. It has it's twists and turns, things you wouldn't think would happen, do. It was heart warming, and a tear jerker (well for me that is). I recomend this book to all my friends! Read and enjoy!

This is one of the best christian fictions I've read. You will want to read it in one sitting because its a page turner. The story is more about love and friendship than about slavery. Anyone who has been searching for their childhood best friend will love this novel.

I could not put this book down it is one of the best books I have ever read. It was really heartwarming. The two girls stayed friends even though they lived very different lives and could only communicate through letters. This is definitely worth reading.

Like another reviewer, I also have the pleasure of knowing Joe Martin. And while I knew of some of his remarkable achievements, I was astounded to read of many more. Like Joe, I have ALS, Lou Gehrig's disease. He, and his book, have inspired me to live life with joy, love, purpose, hope and faith notwithstanding the ravages of this disease. His book, like Tuesdays With Morrie, should inspire anyone and everyone. But while Morrie spoke as a dying man, Joe, with the same terminal illness, speaks with the vitality of a man truly living life to the fullest.

Laura Murphy Atlanta, Ga.

Mr. Martin's book is an inspirational and moving work for anyone to read, regardless of your position in life. If you've ever faced adversity, there is something to be learned about courage and optimism from this book. His candor, humor, and vision will inspire you and give you a sense of appreciation for this life we have. My mother is suffering from a degenerative disease, and this book gave me a new sense of perpective on what she and many others face as they battle each step of their disease. As a North Carolinian, I am proud that this brilliant writer and powerful soul is a leader for our community, and has been able to reach out and touch so many other lives. This book will make you cry, make you laugh, and most importantly, give you inspiration and appreciation for what you have.

I found this first person account co-authored by Joe Martin, who has ALS, very inspirational. Joe allows the reader to share his feelings of frustration as well as to grasp the depth of his convictions that life should be celebrated and cherished. Ross Yocke's commentary throughout the book provides an additional source of information which is helpful for the reader to gain perspective about Joe Martin's life with ALS. This short 178 page book pulls the reader into Joe Martin's reality, and allows the reader to share his religious and moral convictions, as well as to revel in his wonderful anecdots. This book reminds me of Tuesdays with Morrie. I hope others will enjoy reading On Any Given Day as much as I have.

Joe Martin and his family (family, friends and bank colleagues) are the greatest support system. Joe's life inspires, challenges and motivates all to do more. His will to live is refreshing, unbelievable given the impact of ALS on his body but not on his mind or spirit. For anyone facing disease, stress or looking for meaning, this is a must read.

It's a quick read and doesn't leave you down -- but instead deals with a tough subject -- living with a terminal disease -- with reality and purpose. You will learn how "you can live like this"

I cannot add much to the previous reviews-- all of with which I agree-- except this: Mr. Martin is, first and foremost, a writer. Indeed, he has ALS, and that is much of what he writes about here. But his lean, athletic style, keen observation and outstanding sense of humor would entice me to read router bit catalog copy, if Mr. Martin wrote it. I'm in search of his short story published in the Crescent Review (malcolm@walkaboutpress.org-- if anyone finds it first) and am hopeful he is at work on something else for us to enjoy and think about.

Before reading the personal memoir of an historical figure, I always make an effort to first read a scholarly biography of that person if one is available. Since Richard Taylor's memoir "Destruction and Reconstruction" is often highly ranked among the suggested reading lists for the Civil War, I planned to read it, so I set out to first find a bio. That's when I found Parrish's "Soldier Prince of Dixie."

Through Parrish's depiction of Taylor's life we are given a front row seat first into the making of an aristocratic, Yale educated, slave-holding planter, and a son of a president no less. By following Taylor we see in microcosm the story of the late antebellum South and its destruction.

He became a planter by inheritance when his father died. He went from being an elitist Whig to being swept into the torrent by fire-eating democrats. With no prior military training he became an outstanding field commander for the C.S.A.; among talented amateurs he was surpassed only by Forrest and perhaps Cleburne. Early on he served in the east in the Valley with Stonewall. Later he returned to the Trans-Mississippi and eventually reached the pinnacle of his achievements by stopping Banks in the Red River campaign.

As a result of the war his plantation was destroyed, and he endured the death of his young son. Still, he retained some national influence. He advised President Johnson on cabinet appointments and was a personal acquaintance of Henry Adams, author of "The Education of Henry Adams."

For anyone planning on reading "Destruction and Reconstruction," Parrish's work is valuable for its maps, especially the ones that show the Trans-Mississippi areas like the Red River Valley and the Lafourche and Teche bayou regions.

It is hard to believe that other people have not written about Richard Taylor, but they need not bother now that Parrish has written this book. This book on Taylor is engaging and interesting, but also very scholarly. Although Parrish's writing style can be dry at times, his topic does not allow the book to get mired in details or become boring. Instead, Taylor's life jumps off the pages and Taylor led such a life that we, the reader, get a great overview of pre-Civil War politics, the war in the Trans-Mississippi, and the Reconstruction Era. Normally, I find the pages on the time before and after the war somewhat boring, but this was not the case with this book. The whole book really kept my attention and was very interesting. Thinking back, I really cannot think of any criticisms of this work. Just a good, solid history book.

In my humble opinion, Parrish's is one of the best biographies I have ever read. Admittingly, the book is about a fascinating person: the son of a US President and Mexican War Hero who continues his family's military heritage by becoming a Lieutenant General in the Confederate Army without the benefit of a West Point education and becomes power in pre and post Civil War Louisiana. Writing a book about such a person should result in an interesting read!

Throughout the book, Parrish maintains an excellent balance in presenting Taylor's life, including: early life and pressures as the son of a famous hero, early indifference to formal education, success as a wealthy plantation owner, relationships with slaves, views of slavery, entrance into Louisiana politics, CSA military service eventually leading to the rank of lieutenant general, post Civil War years, and later years. Parrish does an excellent job of covering each area and as a result, the reader learns the many sides of a fascinating character.

Particularly interesting to me were the descriptions of Taylor's relationships with several noted Civil War personalities: Lee, Davis, Beauregard, Johnston, Jackson, Grant, Sibley, Smith, Forrest, Bragg, and others. With few exceptions, Taylor was able to get along with most of the people he encountered during the war - a rare accomplishment indeed. Parrish does an excellent job or summarizing Taylor's valuable service to the CSA and the book contains excellent maps of the battles Taylor participated in.

All in all, an excellent and highly recommended read of one of the Civil War's most fascinating personalities!

This is a highly readable yet scholarly treatment of an important nineteenth century Southerner. Dick Taylor, son of President Zachary Taylor, was a Yale-educated aristocrat and Louisiana sugar plantation owner when the Civil War broke out. By war's end he was a Lieutenant General. Although he had no pre-war military training, he became one of the Confederacy's most able commanders. Parrish expertly covers Taylor's entire life, but naturally focuses on the Civil War exploits. In addition to being an excellent strategist and tactician, Taylor was colorful, self-confident, oblivious to what others thought of him, and a lifelong practitioner of noblesse oblige. Parrish is clearly enamored of his subject, but this does not stop him from critically examining the contradictions and hypocrisies inherent in Taylor's worldview. The book is free of the anachronisms and politically correct jargon which mar so much recent American historical scholarship.

This is the best bio I have read to date of General Taylor, although sometimes one must wonder if Mr. Parrish had much sympathy for his subject, with his sometimes disparaging remarks about Southern patriarchy. Perhaps he was simply trying to be PC on the slavery issue, but this didn't add much to the book for me. Still, serious students of General Taylor's exploits and the Western theater of the war will find this book an excellent resource

Shuffletown was a Southern rural community, dating from the mid-1800s, that fell prey to progress and developers, a town edged out of reality into the Neverland of memory. Fortunately, the memories have been saved thanks to author Judy Rozzelle, a Shuffletonian born and bred, who has compiled a verbal scrapbook of people and events, heavily tinged with Southern wit and eccentricity. To read this "multi-voice memoir" is to experience Southern hospitality at its finest--that hospitality that invites you up on the front porch, sits you down in a comfortable rocker with a tall glass of lemonade (or possibly something stronger) and invites you to listen as relatives and friends swap stories of marriages, murders, practical jokes and just plain crazy goin's on. One can't help but delight in the people, but the book has a deeper purpose than to merely entertain. As Rozzelle says, "Stories are the torch, the eternal flame we pass from one generation to the next. . . . Without giving constant voice to the past, we condemn those who lived here to an eternity of silence in a forgotten graveyard." Thanks to her, Shuffletown and its ghosts will never die.

In Shuffletown, Judy Rozzelle has crafted both a paean and a historical timepiece. On one level, it is a collection of memories of interesting personalties, hilarious events and local tragedies that marked a community over several generations. These are the kind of stories that we would reminisce with our long-time friends. Yet, Shuffletown also is a symbol for a small-town America that has been all but swallowed by urban sprawl with its attendant roads, commercial developments and chain stores. Ultimately, Shuffletown should become required reading for future generations and serve as a reminder of the richness of a life in quieter towns where people know everyone and care for each other.

Great fun to read. Shows a side of the people and places of the south seldom recounted.

"Shuffletown USA" is far from being your ordinary reminiscence on days gone by. Instead, Judy Rozzelle uses a unique and interesting technique of stepping out of the storyteller role and bringing her characters forward. Although one's immediate reaction is to think of Thornton Wilder's "Our Town" in presentation, "Shuffletown USA" is, instead, not so much orchestrated by an on-stage interpreter/moderator but an off-stage, in the wings, facilitator. Suddenly, without the reader's conscious knowledge, the characters in the book are speaking directly to you in their own words rather than Judy reading their feelings and thoughts to you. For all of us who look back on our hometowns wistfully, this love letter masquerading as a memoir is touching, humorous and delightful in both content and presentation.

Ms. Rozzelle has assembled the voices of her past - family and friends - the parts of self that have made her who she is. The backdrop is Shuffletown, a dissappearing rural town in North Carolina. It is the dissappearance of this place that creates the contemplative tone that allows the reader to join Ms. Rozzelle in remembering what was, and what may still be. A wonderful reflection of how where we're from shapes who we become.

I first read this book in 1996, and have purchased 2 additional copies since then. It seems, I have taken this book to the beach and pool one too many times!! I love this book - the entire story inspires!! WOW!

I loved SUNSET BEACH-the first time I read it-and then again and again and again. The problem? I want another book by the same author. I found the book when I lived in South Carolina...could not put it down. Now I am back in the cold, cold, cold, and often reread SUNSET BEACH-just to remember.
Each trip to Myrtle Beach, I look for another book by this author. No luck so far. I check Internet (Amazon.com) regularly...no luck.
The story is intriguing...the days of long past...families went to the ocean for the summer...dad came when he could...I can't imagine getting to live like that-relaxing and having fun for weeks at a time. The love story or almost love story...well...I'll leave that to the reader.
If one enjoys the beach/ocean/has fond memories of Myrtle Beach and the surrounding beaches/vacation spots...this is a MUST READ...

Being from the area this book brought back many memories of my special times at the beach. The title caught me in the store and I picked it up. I read 4 chapters before I even bought it, and finished the next morning. Then passed it on to all my firends. Had the pleasure of meeting Trip and having him sign my copy. Now no one borrows it now! Am still waiting for his next book! If it is anything like this one he is sure to have a winner!

It has been about 15 years since I have sat down and read a book from start to finish! This was so good I finished it in a weekend at the Beach! It was wonderful and I am now looking for more books by this author! Just a Great Book for anyplace and any time!!

Sunset Beach is connected to the mainland by an old bridge. The marriage story is symbolized by this bridge which is affected over and over again by high and low tides. The low tide days are Laura's discovery that her husband was wealthy,giving up tennis to care for her husband and lieing about her SAT score. High tide was the awakeninga of desire, the nights of Bird Island,and "when they were the Spirit." Laura found the level place after the kindred spirit gave her confidence to speak her mind and to value her own needs.

Sunset Beach is an easy to read book which will be appreciated by women who are neglected and who continue their relationships with self-centered husbands. Women can improve their lives by making changes and voicing their needs. This book reminded me of the Bridges of Madison County. Both women characters stay in the safe passage of the matrimonial bonds. The difference is Laura in Sunset Beach takes action. She speaks her mind. She does not continue to exist in a simmering situation of past moments of passion. She wears the gold starfish earrings which were a gift of a spirit to survive and keeps her balance even though the bridge did adulterously sway at Sunset Beach.

Trip Purcell has written an easy to follow story. His word selection quickly brings to mind sand, surf and starfish with radiantly disposed arms. Some might have been destructive to the taciturn oyster-but not the one encasing a mother of pearl - the starshine gem.-- Ele Mae

Most of us grew up believing that the Civil War ended the moment Robert E. Lee surrendered to U.S. Grant at Appomatox Court House in Virginia. One can only assume that his came about as a part of the deification of Lee and the promotion of the 'Lost Cause' doctrine that was so popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Historically, most things regarding the Confederacy have always begun and ended with Lee. Thanks to the scholarship and hard work of Mark Bradley, we now have a much more accurate picture of how the war ended and the major roles played by Joseph Johnston and W. T. Sherman well after Lee's surrender.

As a companion to Bradley's earlier work on the Bentonville battle, 'Last Stand in the Carolinas', 'This Astounding Close' creates an extremely satisfying conclusion. But, as a stand alone work, 'This Astounding Close' is a tremendous asset in its own right.

If you want a comprehensive blow-by-blow description of the battles of Averasboro and Bentonville, read 'Last Stand in the Carolinas'. For a valuable capsule summary of the battles, combined with a complete historical account of the negotiations leading up to the surrender, 'This Astounding Close' fills the bill wonderfully!

Without doubt Bradley's book does justice to each side all the way from the Generals to local people in
Chapel Hill to Raleigh. It fails to note Bennett Place was in Orange County at the time. Durham county did not exsist
until 1868 when it was carved out of Orange Co. I had a 3 Great-grandfather, CSA Col, who was killed at Bentonville, NC
James Henry Neal.
His daughter lived until 1935 when she died in Atlanta Ga. She as a child of 6 living in Atlanta Ga.during the
"March To The Sea" Gen. Sherman set-up his HQ in her mother's kitchen, my gg-aunt Louise Neal, served Sherman biskets.
I have many hand-written letters by John White and his daughters Laura and Delia who discussed Chapel Hill
immediately after the war in 1865.John White eventually became U.S. Postmater in Chapel Hill for three years and later left that job to be Orange County Sheriff twice.
Bradley's book is a wealth of knowledge of events ocurring on the local scene.
Sherman conducted several military trials in Raleigh of civilians and soldiers alike. I have original documents and judgements of the
officer's tribunal. Each were charged with various offenses from plundering to murder.AT least 2 soldiers and 1 civilian were
sentenced to death,only to have Grant void the verdicts with Pres.Andrew Johnson's permission.

Mark Bradley has written a most excellent account of the last days of the Civil War in North Carolina between Joseph Johnston and William Sherman. Being a North Carolina native and having visited and traveled through many of the places in the book, I was particularly interested.

The book is not so much a detailed account of the last battles in North Carolina (Bentonville, Averasboro, Wyse Fork, Fort Fisher, etc.) as it is the military and political maneuvering between the two generals - Johnston in attempting to gain favorable surrender terms for his army and Sherman attempting to be lenient with the South at the end of the war. Indeed, aside from the aforementioned battles, most encounters between North and South during the last days in North Carolina were no more than brief skirmishes.

I particulary enjoyed reading the accounts of the Union occupation of Raleigh, Chapel Hill, Hillsborough, and Goldsboro. Having lived in Goldsboro and Raleigh earlier in my life, I enjoyed reading the accounts. Also interesting were the accounts of the Rebel occupation of Greensboro and Charlotte.

Throughout the book, Bradley manages to incorporate several interesting anecdotes: the unfortunate luck of Rebel Lietenant Walsh from Texas, the marriage of Northern General Atkins' courtship and marriage to a Chapel Hill lady, etc.

Bradley's writing style is interesting and maintains a fine balance between being a free-flowing read, just like his excellent Battle of Bentonville title.

Read and enjoy! Highly recommended.

The Civil War didn't officially end with General Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox. General Joe Johnston's Army of the South and General Kirby Smith's forces in the Trans-Mississippi still remained in the field.
This is the story of the situation in North Carolina facing Johnston and Union General William Sherman after the Battle of Bentonville. The author presents both sides of the story along with the political pressures from Richmond and Washington.
There is not an abundance of information about Johnston's eventual surrender of the Army of the South and other forces under his command. The author is a leading authority about the 1865 North Carolina Campaign and presents an entertaining, interesting and scholarly review of the events after Bentonville.

Mark Bradley has written an excellent companion book to his "Last Stand in the Carolinas," which has currently gone out of print. In this volume, Mr. Bradley picks up where he left off, following Johnston and Sherman from Bentonville to the surrender of the Army of Tennessee at Durham, North Carolina. Bradley's writing is, as in his other book, great!

But missing from "This Astounding Close," are the excellent maps created the very skilled cartographer Mark Moore. The maps provided are not bad--they are actually quite good--but they could have been better. The small numbers of maps left me wanting more, especially ones detailing the smaller skirmishes taking place during the maneuvering in North Carolina. If the maps had been better and mpre plentiful, I would have given the book five starts instead of four.

Being from the South, I have always considered Sherman and his subordinates nothing short of the devil-incarnate. But from this book, I gained a new respect for these men and saw the softer side of them. Bradley depicts how John "Black Jack" Logan saved Raleigh from destruction at the hands of raged Federal troops intent on avenging Abraham Lincoln's assassination. Mr. Bradley also told of how lenient Sherman was toward the surrendering Confederate troops and toward the civilians of North Carolina, especially after the surrender. Sherman even offered Johnston and his troops much kinder terms than those given to Robert E. Lee at Appomattox! But Northern politicians saw these terms as too soft and evetually gave Johnston the same terms given to Lee.

This is a very good book; no doubt a great addition to my rapidly growing Civil War library. Before reading this volume, I knew next to nothing about Johnston's surrender at Durham, North Carolina, in the Bennet Farmhouse. If you are a Civil War buff get this book; if you are a military history buff, get this book! I got it, and am happy I did.

Lawrence Powell set out to write a book about the David Duke phenomenon, about how a KKK leader and Nazi could sit in the Louisiana legislature and run for the U.S. Senate as a Republican. But work on the book took him in another direction after he interviewed Anne Levy, a Holocaust survivor who confronted Duke in the state capital. Captivated by Levy's story, Powell has produced a terrifying, poignant and finally a triumphant book about the Holoaust as witnessed through the life of one of its survisors, Anne Levy.

Troubled Memory is a beautifully written and tender account of a personal story that stands as an intimate history of Hitler's final solution. Powell's prose will carry you into the Warsaw and Lodz ghettos and into the vegetable bin where 6-year-old Anne and her sister hid from the SS. This is a book that makes the Holocaust relevant to every reader. It will fill you with horror and wonder, and it will move you to tears.

Troubled Memory is the story of the Skorecki family, which survived the Hoocaust by escaping from the Warsaw Ghetto and going into hiding, intertwined with an accessible history of the Warsaw Ghetto. But is is also the story of Anne Skorecki Levy, 45 years later and transplanted to Louisiana, deciding that she doesn't want Klansman and Holocaust denier David Duke to become the governor of her state. On all three counts - as a tale of survival during the Holocaust, a history of that time and place and the story of little Anne Levy's dogged pursuit of the bigshot politician during his election campaign - the book reads like a taut thriller, a real page-turner from beginning to end.
In its linking of the Holocaust in Poland with the troubled racial history of the American South, Troubled Memory is reminiscent of Styron's Sophie's Choice - except that this is fact, not fiction. It's a compelling, genre-busting book that is not quite like anything you've read, and it leaves you both feeling good and with much to think about.

I am a student at Tulane University and have taken a seminar with Dr. Powell on the Holocaust. This book is the last book that he included on the syllabus for the course, and I understand fully how and why he wrote this book. At first I was a bit leery of his inclusion of his own work in the course, but the work is a great synthesis of traditional Holocaust study and how it pertains to American (particularly Southern) culture today.

The first half of the book largely provides a survey through a personal account of the sociopolitical landscape of World War II-era Eastern Europe: the reasons that the Holocaust occurred, bystanders, perpetrators and victims psychological profiles, as well as giving a very readable human interest story of the narrative of this one particular family. The second half picks up where most Holocaust narratives leave off: the post-war years, the family's emigration to America and the challenges that they faced in New Orleans as Holocaust Survivors, and finally, Anne Levy's battle against David Duke and the formation of the Louisiana Coalition against Nazism and Racism. The first half of the book is essential for understanding her drive in the second half of the book, and Dr. Powell does an excellent job in connecting traditional and new scholarship on just how frighteningly close Louisiana came to David Duke's authority and how important it is to be aware of the ideals that the Louisiana Coalition and Anne Levy espouse.

This book is written in a highly readable manner: the diction is not overly dense nor confusing and the personal story allows non-scholars to enjoy the material as much as a student of history or politics would. It is very obvious that Dr. Powell put an immense amount of personal effort and dedication into this account, and his contribution to the historical documentation of the Holocaust and its impact on contemporary society is a testimony to his skill as a historian.

This story chronicles the survival of small Jewish girls who were hidden in an armoire by their desperate parents in the closing days of the Warsaw ghetto. It easily matches the personal resonance and innocent terror of the far more famous Anne Frank Story.

Even after their final liberation as perhaps the only intact nuclear family to survive that infamous ghetto, the Skorecki family was due one more date with history. Survival, it turns out, was the story within the story. Little Anne Skorecki Levi, the little girl who survived by staying silent inside that armoire struck a blow five decades later for Jewish survival by speaking out against Louisiana's Neo-Nazi gubernatorial candidate David Duke, and helping to engineer his electoral defeat.

This account of Anne's travel along the arc from victim to victor is an inspiration and a reminder that each of us can and must preserve our collective memory, however troubling.

I read books on the Holocaust to try to understand the times, the mileu, the horror, and the suffering. After more than 20 books, I realize that I can only scratch the surface. I will, however, never stop reading because of my fear that someday the deniers and the downgraders might get the upper hand.

Thank you to the the author and Anne Skorecki Levy for relating a story that is very, very moving as well as insightful and timely.

Any of Roy's books are awesome for woodworkers who know how to read. Oh sure, you love Norm and his $8000 drum sander, but if you truly want to learn how to work with wood with nothing more than the bare essentials, then pick up this book as well as all the other books Roy has written. Otherwise, just buy all the garbage books about "How to Master a Biscuit Joiner" or "Setting up a Leigh Dovetail Jig". Just make sure you add a box of 80 grit sandpaper for your random orbital sander to your order.

I bought this book for my husband for Christmas, as he loves this show and the shows are not out on DVD yet. He loves the book and can't put it down. He advised it is very easy to read and understand.

It's amazing how many books Rod Underhill has written. Woodcarving! Internet business! Music! He seems to be today's version of Issac Asimov, tackling books on every known subject. All of his books, especially this one, are very well written. Maybe he should stop writing books with his brother Roy, and move out on his own.

I first saw Roy Underhill on a local PBS station back in the early 1980s. Instantly, I knew that this was the kind of woodworking for me. Screaming routers, finger-chopping table saws and jointers, and multi-horsepower lathes seemed not just dangerous but downright obsolete after witnessing Roy's talents. Honestly, who needs modern woodworking technology when the old methods are clearly better in so many ways? Better for your health and the health of your bank account, and better for the environment. Roy's wonderful series of woodworking books tell you everything you need to get started. They will positively change your woodworking, and your life. Thanks to Roy's books, and others, like Dunbar's _Restoring, Tuning & Using Classic Woodworking Tools_, power tool woodworkers look at my woodworking projects in awe... those amazing and elegant hand-cut dovetails, those silky-smooth hand-planed surfaces, those sweet touches that set my work apart as obviously hand-made. Once you've mastered hand-tool woodworking, you see that the products of woodworking machines stand out as brutal and clumsy. Guys, do not hesitate to purchase the entire series of Roy's woodworking books!

This is one of the finest things ever written! I sincerely hope that a copy of this book lives on the shelf of everyone who has a love for tools and wood and what happens when the two come together. Underhill gives us a look into the world of real hand tool woodworking - no electricity, please. "Start with an axe and a tree and make first one thing and then another until you have a house and everything in it." It can be (almost) that simple, but you have to restore a fractured culture first, and also learn to speak the language of trees and wood and steel. This book will accomplish both those aims.

Underhill, former Master Housewright at Colonial Williamsburg, did the amazing hat trick of turning something as offbeat and esoteric as pre-industrial woodworking into a highly successful career, and became a beloved personality and celebrity in the process. When you read his books, you'll know how he did it. Instantly, you get the sense that his deep affection for his trade, and the trades that support it, illuminates his life. He "sees" things, he doesn't just look. Like ripples in a stream allude to rocks below the surface, he looks at the bark of a tree and understands what lies within - twisted firewood or beautiful furniture? Dissecting an old piece of furniture or part of a house tells you about the tools that made it, and the men who used the tools, and the community they lived in, and what their lives were like. But all of this could be ponderous and self absorbed if it weren't infused front to back with an infectious sense of humor and a Tom Sawyer/Peter Pan view of the world, where if we're lucky we'll all get to run away and be pirates together.

Poetic, lyrical, sad, happy, this book has it all. A true classic from an amazingly talented person. Maybe the 60's hippy culture did ONE thing right - it gave us Roy Underhill, boy genius, and set him loose upon a (hopefully) grateful world. His books, and the first two particularly, make a perfect gift for that tired, world weary person in your life who is thinking that there is something missing in his or her work, that their long days are filled with meaningless seeking, and who might like to turn their hands to something slower, calmer, more beautiful, and decidedly valuable for a change.