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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Remember that at three stars I am still saying I liked the book. My main issue is that the writing was a bit disjointed, jumping from character to character. I understand the necessity of this, and it wouldn't have been such an issue except that just as we were caught up in a specific narrative about one of the ladies, we would switch to another person's story entirely. This meant that, instead of having the traditional feel of a "cliffhanger" which pulls you deeper into the flow of the story, it felt disjointed and any dramatic effect was lost. I think the book would have been better served by completing one story before moving onto a narrative about another of the ladies.
A very interesting story of four women who participated in the Civil War in various undercover roles. The story follows the course of the war by jumping back and forth between the four women's activities. It's a very light and easy read, perfect for those who have a hard time with non-fiction. The author acknowledges in her intro and in the notes that the accounts tend to be sensationalized so it's a good idea to take certain scenes with a grain of salt.
2 stars - Meh. Just ok.
The synopsis to this book promised a fascinating read and it does indeed start strong. Hearing the back story of the four main historical figures was very interesting. Unfortunately, once the introductions were over it became a dull, dry read, akin to reading history from a textbook.
The author mentions that all included dialogue is factual, based on her sources, and it seems that after doing so much research, she wanted to include every tedious event, quote and tidbit that she had uncovered. By the end I had a very difficult time forcing myself to pay attention and would have never finished it were it not a book club selection.
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Favorite Quote: N/A.
First Sentence: For a period of thirty-three hours, from just before dawn on April 12, 1861, to mid-afternoon the following day, sleep was hard to come by, in both North and South.
The synopsis to this book promised a fascinating read and it does indeed start strong. Hearing the back story of the four main historical figures was very interesting. Unfortunately, once the introductions were over it became a dull, dry read, akin to reading history from a textbook.
The author mentions that all included dialogue is factual, based on her sources, and it seems that after doing so much research, she wanted to include every tedious event, quote and tidbit that she had uncovered. By the end I had a very difficult time forcing myself to pay attention and would have never finished it were it not a book club selection.
-------------------------------------------
Favorite Quote: N/A.
First Sentence: For a period of thirty-three hours, from just before dawn on April 12, 1861, to mid-afternoon the following day, sleep was hard to come by, in both North and South.
As someone who is no a civil war scholar, this was a little bit too much information to ingest. The book follows the lives of four women and their involvement in the Civil War. Because the story line jumps from woman to woman, it was a little bit difficult to swallow. Also, it was rather long. I would not recommend this to someone unless he or she was a true 19th century American history buff. I was underwhelmed.
-k
-k
Some really interesting women/stories. It went on a bit too long for my taste - found myself skimming some, especially when she was talking about war strategy or troop movements.
The Civil War wasn't just about epic battles and armies on the move. Instead, the war affected the lives of nearly every person in the United States. Karen Abbott tells the stories of four women during the war--two from the North and two from the South--in an effort to understand the impact that the war had on their lives and the impact that their lives had on the war. Belle Boyd was a young woman who was a spy for the Confederate Army, shot a Union soldier in the front hallway of her Virginia home, and seduced men from both sides in the war in an effort to aid the cause of the South. Emma Edmunds cut her hair, dressed in men's clothes, enlisted in the Union Army, and was fully incorporated into her unit which saw action in several battles in the war. Elizabeth Van Lew was a wealthy abolitionist living in Richmond, Virginia who participated in a spy ring right under the noses of her family and her Confederate neighbors. And Rose O'Neal Greenhow had affairs with prominent Union politicians in order to gather information and often used her young daughter to transport this information to Southern agents operating in Washington, D.C. This book is a fascinating read and offers new insight into life for civilians during the Civil War.
adventurous
medium-paced
adventurous
informative
slow-paced
The book jumps around between the different perspectives which made it difficult to follow in an audiobook. May be different if reading the book.
Very entertaining read about four women spies in the American Civil War. I think it's a little overwritten and breathless for a nonfiction book, but it seems to be well-grounded in research, and the stories of these women could hardly be more fascinating. I frequently had to stop and tell my husband about the amazing thing I'd just read -- always a good sign.