A review by hammrdown
The Demon of Unrest: A Saga of Hubris, Heartbreak, and Heroism at the Dawn of the Civil War by Erik Larson

informative sad slow-paced

4.0

This book is an informative but a downright depressing accounting of the awful months in the country just before the start of the Civil War.  With the lens of time, the error and evil of the humans-as-property viewpoint and lack of perspective from the slave states that they had no chance it would survive long term, speaks loudly on the danger of 'like-only-thinking.'   The lack of understanding that 'cotton' was no economic savior for the south long term, nor their agricultural prominence having import to Europe and the world gave them no realistic chance to be a real power/country post a delusional peaceful succession  The book does a great job of pointing to the inevitableness of the clash starting in South Carolina.  It showed that although the specifics of timing and early months of battles may have differed with a few choices by Buchanan or the non-supportive Lincoln cabinet, it is clear that civil war was just "when", not "if".    The research started by author Larson in early covid days in 2020, could not be any more timely for people in 2024 to understand that sticking to 'the old ways' is not going to work any better today than it did in the 19th century.  Unfortunately, many of those involved in current divisive and exclusionary behavior are not likely to benefit from the lessons in the book and are more likely to take false bravado from long lost dangerous views of chivalry shared by Mr. Larson.