Army Life in Virginia: The Civil War Letters of George C. Benedict

Rating:
Summary: Excellent all around!
Review: One of the most useful and interesting publishing phenomena of the past decade has been the appearance of a number of collections of Civil War diaries and letters written not by famous names but by the line officers and common soldiers who actually fought the war--and who suffered the diseases, quibbles and boredom of camp life in the often-long intervals between battles. I found this particular book especially insightful on both the details of military life and the ambience of the war years. The letters themselves are marvelous--even in their mundane concerns. This truly is a slice of "real life" that a standard history text can't offer (the book reminds me of the wonderful collections of courts-martial, reports and papers assembled by Dr. Thomas Lowry, who is consistently one of our most interesting Civil War historians). Credited as the book's "editor," Eric Ward has actually done far more than simply getting the narrative into shape for publication (a tough enough job by itself). Ward has set the book off superbly, and his interlocutions to place Benedict's jottings in context are masterful in their accuracy, succinctness and insight. For those seriously interested in Civil War studies, or simply for a reader anxious to enter that bygone world for the first time, this book is an excellent choice. Very well done!