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A review by bmyurs
The Demon of Unrest: A Saga of Hubris, Heartbreak, and Heroism at the Dawn of the Civil War by Erik Larson
adventurous
informative
slow-paced
3.75
Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book!
I've read many other books by Larson in the past, and this continues in the same stream as his others. Focused on the window of time leading up to the beginning of the Civil War (For Sumter), it centers in on a few parallel story lines- a debutante in Charleston, Major Anderson station at Fort Sumter, Lincoln and his cabinet, and a few southern rebels pushing for secession. It took awhile to get into the book (and to keep the various stories straight); once you get past that point, then it's smooth sailing from there. I have a background in American History and have studied the Civil War a lot; there were still nuggets of information in Larson's book that were new to me which was nice. Appreciate that he didn't just focus on the big stars of the story (Lincoln et.al.)- he gave equal time to to everyday people who lived and witnessed these events.
I've read many other books by Larson in the past, and this continues in the same stream as his others. Focused on the window of time leading up to the beginning of the Civil War (For Sumter), it centers in on a few parallel story lines- a debutante in Charleston, Major Anderson station at Fort Sumter, Lincoln and his cabinet, and a few southern rebels pushing for secession. It took awhile to get into the book (and to keep the various stories straight); once you get past that point, then it's smooth sailing from there. I have a background in American History and have studied the Civil War a lot; there were still nuggets of information in Larson's book that were new to me which was nice. Appreciate that he didn't just focus on the big stars of the story (Lincoln et.al.)- he gave equal time to to everyday people who lived and witnessed these events.