West Virginia Books

This is a must read book for anyone interested in the 1864 Overland Campaign. Our Civil War history is limited to the VMI Cadets at New Market and the invasion of 1864 by Early. We now have a book that fills in the gaps telling us the why, where and how. Reading this book explains why a hard-pressed Lee would detach Jubal Early to The Valley on more than a desperate gamble. All of this sets up the reasoning behind Sheridan's return to The Valley and his actions.

This is a very well written book presenting the 1864 campaign in Western Virginia in a logical sequence allowing the reader to follow the events with few problems. How events in one place influence another area is well detailed giving the reader a clear picture of the overall campaign. The author manages to place events within the 1864 Overland Campaign without detracting from the story. This is one of the strong points of the book, giving us a full and clear understand of the war. The only problem is maps. There are not enough of them and the ones we have are poor and badly placed.

Basically well written and excellently researched , this book offers insights on the critical battles of the Civil War in western Virginia during the Spring of 1864, a subject usually not covered in detail. The details provided and the sequence presented on military operations give a very useful overview of strategy and tactics in this area in 1864. Richard Duncan, the author, details the unsuccessful attempts by General Hunter's army to live off the land which contrasts with Sherman's success in Georgia. While Sherman's effect on the civilian population is well known, the harsh treatment of civilians in the Shenandoah Valley is not as widely covered in print; and Richard Duncan's account provides much useful information and references on the subject of the Union Army's relationship with the area's civilians. The importance of the campaigns in the Shenandoah Valley during the Spring of 1894 should not be ignored. Had General Hunter been successful, the Civil War

may have ended six months earlier. This book well describes Grant's strategy, Lee and Davis responses and the numerous mistakes made by both armies. Making this account enjoyable, is the inclusion of brief biographical sketches of the field officers involved before discussing each operation.

The book suffers from a lack of good and sufficient maps. The maps provided do little to support the text. Critically needed are maps on individual battles. This is especially true of Chapter 2, The Dublin Raid, where maps are provided only on Crook's and Averell's routes to and from Dublin; however, maps on some of the raid's engagements/battles would greatly enhance the text. In addition, maps are badly needed for the engagements fought near Lynchburg. However, both the professional historian and the Civil War buff, would do well to read this work.

Charles Royster is one of the premier historians on the period of the American Revolution. He has done excellent work on the Continental Army and he knows his business.

This volume is no different. Lee is one of the celebrated personalities of the Revolution, especially for his excellent service in the southern theater under Nathaniel Greene. Commanding a green-uniformed legion of infantry and cavalry, he performed superbly with the main army and working happily with Francis Marion and his partisans harrying the British and Tories in the South Carolina back country.

The first part of the book covers this portion of Lee's life. To me it was the most interesting, the Revolution in general and the Continental Army in particular being two of my favorite subjects. however, the rest of the book covers Lee's later life, which steadily went downhill after the Revolution's ending, with bouts of debt, sickness, failure, and an early death. Lee, the father of Robert E., is an interesting, sad figure, egotistical, patriotic, more than competent, and somewhat politically naive.

Royster presents Lee as a whole person, and deftly intertwines his tale with Revolutionary exploits, first hand accounts, family and financial problems, and brings the legend into line with the man's humanity, frailties, and strengths.

This book is a must for all interested in the Revolution and one of the most fascinating personalities to grace the American stage in the 18th century.

I was hoping for basically a biography of Lee's war time exploits but this book goes a lot further. The author does devote a good portion of the book to Lee's Revolutionary War time but also to his life after the war. Much research and commentary goes into this period of Lee's life to include his flawed business practices, which ultimately lead to his imprisonment for not being able to pay his debts. Overall a good biography of the father of Robert E. Lee but it is slow in some areas. RECOMMENDED.

It is a good book with great illustrations. Can be for younger children or older children (captions on the sides of each page offer more detail for older children). I love books about West Virginia and love to share these with my son (age 2). My only complaint is I thought the rhyming was a bit cheesy and a bit stretched. I kept getting tongue tied because the rhymes did not flow well. But overall, a must have for any West Virginia child.

I purchased this book for my grandsons. We are from and proud of the mountain state and this book showcases West Virginia. The illustrations are beautiful too!

I love this book as it opened my eyes to the beauty and rarity of Morgantown Glass (Economy Glass, Old Morgantown Glassworks, Morgantown Guild also included as this company went through huge changes trying to survive the Depression.) The pictures are exceptional, the information relevent and well-researched. The only problem I have with this reference tool is that it is hard to navigate for specific items. The Glossary is wonderful, but a bit murky as to which name or number goes with which item. Regardless, it is a stunning addition for any American glass collector.

Very well done reference book. Many well done pictures and large variety of product. I highly recommend this book.

If you enjoy the game of golf, you owe it to yourself to buy this book and then visit Oakhurst Links. Oakhurst is America's first golf course. At Oakhurst in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia you are given hickory shafted clubs and gutta-percha balls to play golf as it was played in the 19th century.
This book is well written and interesting. The golf experience is unlike any you have ever enjoyed.

I ordered two copies of this book for golfing buddies but opened up a copy out of curiosity and couldn't put it down until I got to the end. DiPerna's prose is beautiful to read and will entrap any reader who appreciates a well-constructed phrase with sharp language. Paragraph one, Chapter one, sucks you in.

A practical reference guide to the northern highlands of WV... Maps are good but are not ultra detailed... Info and tips are outstanding!!!

There are many good trails within the book, but sometimes the maps are quite as good as they could be. Most of the trails are in VA, not really close to DC. It is a good book to have on the shelf!

THIS BOOK IS A MUST HAVE FOR ALL COLLECTORS OF FIESTA. THE PICTURES ARE ABSOLUTELY THE BEST AND CLEAREST I HAVE EVER COME ACROSS. I HAVE READ ALMOST EVERY BOOK OUT THERE AND THIS ONE IS THE MOST PRECISE. SEE ONE OF THE LARGEST COLLECTIONS IN THE US. EXPERIENCE THE JOY OF BEING ABLE TO IDENTIFY AND PRICE ANY FIESTA WARE YOU COULD EVER FIND. YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED WITH THIS BOOK

THIS IS A GREAT BOOK FOR IDENTIFYING ITEMS THEMSELVES. THE COLORS ARE NOT THE BEST IN THAT IF YOU ARE TRYING TO IDENTIFY MEDIUM GREEN, IT SHOWS UP DIFFERENT ON DIFFERENT PAGES. SAME FOR OTHER COLORS. BUT IT HAS BEEN GREAT HELP IN IDENTIFYING ITEMS THAT I HAVE. I RECOMMEND HAVING THIS BOOK ALONG WITH MAYBE ONE OTHER ONE TO HAVE A COMPLETE UNDERSTANDING OF FIESTA WARE.

Very interesting book,I would have given it a five but I was disappointed there was not more information about the logging camps themselves. My father was a logger there for twenty five years. Very little info about what he would have done, only about the locomotives, tracks and the mill.

This book is a gotta have if you are into logging railroad history! Loaded with pictures and personal accounts from locamotive engineers. Easy reading and a full tackage map to follow the sequence of logging areas with. A must for the railroad buff.

I picked this book up on a whim from my local library, intrigued by the promise the library synopsis gave of a scary read and authored by a native West Virginian (whom I am always happy to support). Many people in these reviews want to condemn her for her "less than rosy" depiction of West Virginian society. I too live in WV, have for many years, and while I have certainly never heard of anything described in this fictional book transpiring in real life, I can't deny that the author paints a picture which seems plausible. To the other critics of this book who scorn it, I merely think they are upset because it does, indeed, perpetuate the negative stereotype of the incestuous, backward mountain man. Such readers might be advised to understand that this is a work of /fiction/. and should be regarded only as such.

The basic plot is that a man from the mountains keeps a cabin full of "wives" to produce children for him to sell. He makes a decent profit from this and has an apartment in the city, where he lives in relative comfort. Our heroine, Tuesday, is unfortunate enough to meet this man, who later takes a liking to her and decides to kidnap her and take her to the cabin, where he intends to make her one of his wives.

I have both good and bad things to say of this book. First, the bad, because that's how I roll. Essentially, the plot makes it way to the predictable conclusion through a series of really dumb blunders on the part of our heroine. Although these happenings are reflected upon later by her as she considers her poor judgment, they are all too frequent to be ignored and wind up being downright irritating. There are only so many times a reader can put up with the old "the search missed them by a few seconds" routine.

Also, the dialouge within the book was a bit stiff sometimes and unreal seeming, not to mention there are frequent occurances of the "one person monologue" as a character contemplates things right out loud to themselves. Had these things been conveyed by the characters in thought process, it would have been a lot less disconcerting.

One other note was the progression of the story seemed very unnatural to me. In parts it seemed to move forward very quickly, and the author jumps to a new perspective in every chapter, leaving only just enough time to re-immerse yourself in one story before being chucked right into another.

Other than that, however, I have to say I did enjoy reading this book. The plot had a lot of potential and I believe the author pulled it off, if just barely. One thing I do really want to commend her on was the character development. The different characters really shine through in their distinctness, which for me really made the novel.

So in short, through the clunky progression of the story, sometimes unrealistic dialouge and memorable characters, it made for an entertaining if short read. With another free afternoon, I might even consider picking up the next one.

I was born, raised and educated in West Virginia and know its hills and its people from Wheeling to Welch. Not a shred of anything written in this book rings true. The sad thing is that readers from out-of-state may accept the dialect and the content as an accurate depiction of a state already excessively stereotyped and always negatively. Of course, there are accents and idioms in WV, but the speech of Aunt Aggie, in itself, was so totally, ridiculously fabricated that I appropriately garbaged Cabin very quickly, never to know the outcome of the incestuous relationships and baby-selling mill that Jacob had going. I agree wholeheartedly with the customer who decribed the book as the "most horrific piece of trash I've ever read."

I met C.J. at our local mall. I ended up buying the first autographed novel of the Cabin; I could not put it down and wished I had bought the entire series. I immediately went to Amazon and ordered the rest of the series. I thoroughly enjoyed the books (sent her an e-mail and told her so), something very different then books I've read in the past. She is writing (2) more books in this series and I for one can't wait to get them.
Thanks C.J. and keep writing because I will keep reading

What garbage. My friend that gave it to me told me it was stupid and the half was not told. Pure trash from beginning to end.

I've never felt strongly enough about a book to write an online review about it this book however deserves a comment. I'm an English major and for my senior thesis I'm actually writing about this novel. I'm a proud West Virginian and I'd like to say that this book is complete trash. As another reviewer stated there are numerous beautifully written novels about West Virginia that are based on facts that reflect the people that live here. I was shocked and appalled after i read it to see that the writer was actually from West Virginia. She should be truly ashamed not only for producing this piece of trash but for so horribly slandering her homestate. Breece D.J. Pancake, Pickney Benedict, Jayne Anne Phillips those are true West Virginia writers. Lee Smith or "The Dollmaker" if you like the Appalachian feel.

The story is quite unique in the way that it combines illness with business. Really quite scary stuff if it ever comes to any sort fruition. Thankfully for us all we can get by just fine by reading this fun book, all the plot twists make this definately worth the time and investment.

"Maybe he can order some sort of toxicology on the tissue. 'I'm still certain the mine is at the bottom of all this.'" These words were spoken by the brilliant doctor, Dr. Matt Rutledge in Dr. Palmer's book. The other reviewers have captured the essence of this book admirably...it is an exciting read. But...a line like that? I searched the page to see if it was spoken tongue-in-cheek. Without a wink, this groaner had me wondering about the editor!

Thread through a medical thriller is an intriguing romance and the side story of Rambo hillbillies with heart. It's this latter aspect that adds depth to an already interesting story about the dangers of vaccinations, and the politics that push them through to the public without proper testing. The slow unravelling of the protagonists (a man and a woman, both doctors) demonstrates the considerable writing chops Palmer has developed. The twists aren't quit as shocking as they could have been, I think (not enough red herrings or plants along the way), but still, this is a great read. Well done, Dr. Palmer!

As a mother who does not vaccinate her kids, I liked this book. It was a work of fiction, but for so many familes, it was very real.

This better-than-most medical thriller by the creative Michael Palmer is elevated to the heights of a "can't-afford-to-miss" WOW of a book by the very enjoyable writing style of Palmer.

Interesting plot, likeable characters, believeable dialogue if you know anyone from the mountains of West Virginia - all these elements make for a great story.

Add in the gut-wrenching situations the characters find themselves involved in and the realistic narrative created by Palmer and it becomes a GREAT story. The wiggle-producing ending is the stuff all thrillers should be made of. "Fatal" provides it all in the nail-biting, adrenoline-rush genre. You simply cannot wait until the end arrives, then it is too soon for you because the pleasure is over.

If you listen to this book on audio, which is read wonderfully, One word of warning; if you are the LEAST BIT claustrophobic, DO NOT attempt to listen to tape #8 while in rush-hour traffic. It could prove extremely hazardous to your insurance rates. Palmer's detailed, realistic description of Matt's wild ride could cause the listener to embark on one of his own.

Highly recommend this awesome book!