jenmangler 's review for:

Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy: Four Women Undercover in the Civil War by Karen Abbott

4.0

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This is a fascinating look at the Civil War, and one that I thoroughly enjoyed. Abbott brings these four women to life and allows the reader to see the war through their eyes. I found that fascinating. I especially loved learning about Elizabeth Van Lew, because I'd never read anything about what it was like to be a Unionist in Confederate territory. My only quibble was that it relied so heavily on the memoirs of Belle, Rose and Emma, and each of the women definitely decided what character they wanted to be as they wrote their memoirs, projecting a symbol more often than a real living, breathing woman. It especially felt this way for Belle, who had such an outsized ego and hunger for attention. Still, this book gives the reader an entry into the Civil War that most of us haven't had before, and that's important. We need to know more about how war affects people, and how they cope under tremendous difficulty.