The Story the Soldiers Wouldn't Tell: Sex in the Civil War

Rating:
Summary: More than history...
Review: All of the other reviewers are correct. This is a fine book with a few holes...but...where, I ask you, are the books on this subject matter that we can compare? There are, simply out, none. And in that vein, I am very impressed. My advice? Buy it, and read slowly...savor the details and the lucid writing. Hear, in your mind, Dr. Lowry reading this to you across a coffee table or a campfire. Marvelous writing that really speaks! And remember, read slowly - this is the only book of it's kind.

Now, the REAL VALUE here is not as a civil war reference (and I find useless those trivia bugs who dwell on which way the wind blew at 4:45am on the first day of Bull Run). This is not the point, nor the issue.

Please understand that Dr. Lowry has illustrated, in a way that can be deduced by the wise reader, the sexual mores of the United States for the last 200 years. What he has done is show that our conservative fear of sex in the last 50 years, like the drug wars, is completely irrational and not at all in keeping with our national history and ethnic makeup.

Dr. Lowry has produced a telling record that shows that we are not the prim and proper Americans that we pretend to be as we decry teen sex, homosexuality and AIDS.

This is a book to buy and share. 'Please Sir, can I have some more?'

Rating:
Summary: The more things change, the more they stay the same.
Review: I must admit that I found this book to be an interesting read, for it covers another one of those rare American Civil War topics which has not been covered a million and a half times over. (It's the only book of its kind in my rather extensive Civil War library.) The reason for this could possibly be that the mental image of Abraham Lincoln and his wife Mary Todd doing "the deed" is not an especially attractive one. As Dr. Lowry points out in his introduction, there has been an almost total lack of research done on the sexual attitudes and experiences of the average Civil War soldier. Though he makes a very valiant attempt, Lowry does not entirely succeed in covering the topic thoroughly. Perhaps the doctor's complaint of censorship by well-meaning relatives leaving little evidence for researchers to uncover is the reason that I was, after finishing the book, left with the feeling that I had gotten only a brief glimpse of the sexual side of the men who fought in the sectional conflict of 1861-1865. Therefore, while a good start, this book is certainly not the diffinative work on the subject. Still, I was confirmed in my impression that like today, sex, while perhaps not always openly discussed in polite society, has always been very much on everyone's mind throughout our entire human history. Hence the title for my review.

Rating:
Summary: After the last page, too many questions still remain!
Review: I'm awarding one star for the title, one star for the subject and one for effort. My problem is I become impatient with an author who leaves me with more questions than answers.

As a young girl, I loved history. Unfortunately, every time I asked an earthy question such as what did women do for their personal needs or what were houses of ill repute, I was snarled at, lied to or just ignored. My knee jerk reaction has been to search for truthful answers to *all* my questions about the past especially in the realm of human nature.

Naturally when I saw The Story the Soldiers Wouldn't Tell, I immediately grabbed it. Unfortunately, while the book had excellent moments and the prose is good, it was over-all a disappointment. Dr. Lowry successfully titillated, but unsuccessfully answered the titillating questions he brought up.

For instance Dr. Lowry sites a lot of data concerning a variety of sexual dilemmas such as rape, venereal disease and prostitution. I am keenly interested in both learning and understanding these offenses particularly within the context of the Civil War. In my opinion however, his efforts were weak and lacked even a cursory analysis.

In the area of rape for instance, he provided the nitty gritty of several reported episodes and subsequent trials. Yet he never touched on the army's attitude towards these crimes or the prevailing cultural climate. The stories were left treading water in mid-stream. Did a `boys will be boys' environment condone rape? How did the ordinary soldier feel about this crime against women? Were the women blamed as having somehow invited attack? If rape was as rare as he suggests, why? Even if Dr. Lowry couldn't solve these mysteries, I would have appreciated his acknowledgement that the questions exist.

The same was true when he discussed venereal diseases. He reported the horrific devastation and some of the customary remedies, but never indicated whether any of the unpronounceable potions had any medicinal value. It seems to me as both a medical and psychiatric doctor; he is uniquely equipped to provide a cogent explanation of these curatives. Was there any prevention? Did any of the medicines work? How did loved ones treat the men? Did they take their diseases back home? How did the army deal with this pervasive problem?

I am not sorry I purchased or read the book, only disappointed it wasn't as professional and complete as I had hoped.

Rating:
Summary: After the last page, too many questions still remain!
Review: I'm awarding one star for the title, one star for the subject and one for effort. My problem is I become impatient with an author who leaves me with more questions than answers.

As a young girl, I loved history. Unfortunately, every time I asked an earthy question such as what did women do for their personal needs or what were houses of ill repute, I was snarled at, lied to or just ignored. My knee jerk reaction has been to search for truthful answers to *all* my questions about the past especially in the realm of human nature.

Naturally when I saw The Story the Soldiers Wouldn't Tell, I immediately grabbed it. Unfortunately, while the book had excellent moments and the prose is good, it was over-all a disappointment. Dr. Lowry successfully titillated, but unsuccessfully answered the titillating questions he brought up.

For instance Dr. Lowry sites a lot of data concerning a variety of sexual dilemmas such as rape, venereal disease and prostitution. I am keenly interested in both learning and understanding these offenses particularly within the context of the Civil War. In my opinion however, his efforts were weak and lacked even a cursory analysis.

In the area of rape for instance, he provided the nitty gritty of several reported episodes and subsequent trials. Yet he never touched on the army's attitude towards these crimes or the prevailing cultural climate. The stories were left treading water in mid-stream. Did a 'boys will be boys' environment condone rape? How did the ordinary soldier feel about this crime against women? Were the women blamed as having somehow invited attack? If rape was as rare as he suggests, why? Even if Dr. Lowry couldn't solve these mysteries, I would have appreciated his acknowledgement that the questions exist.

The same was true when he discussed venereal diseases. He reported the horrific devastation and some of the customary remedies, but never indicated whether any of the unpronounceable potions had any medicinal value. It seems to me as both a medical and psychiatric doctor; he is uniquely equipped to provide a cogent explanation of these curatives. Was there any prevention? Did any of the medicines work? How did loved ones treat the men? Did they take their diseases back home? How did the army deal with this pervasive problem?

I am not sorry I purchased or read the book, only disappointed it wasn't as professional and complete as I had hoped.

Rating:
Summary: A Must for Civil War Researchers
Review: I've read many books on the Civil War, but this is one of the best. Lowry does an incredible job digging up the seamy side of the war and presenting it in unflinching fashion. Yet at the same time, he views this stuff with a detached and nonjudgmental eye, and with gentle humor as well. Lowry often picks up where Bell Irvin Wiley left off in his wonderful "Life of Johnny Reb" and "Life of Billy Yank." Where Wiley tiptoed away from certain subjects (he was writing in the '40s, after all), giving the reader only a titillating tidbit followed by a footnote telling us we could find the information at some faraway library, Lowry seems to have gone and looked up that information for us, and presented it in all its glory. A notable example of this is the poem about collecting urine in the South for making gunpowder. Wiley only told us the poem existed; but Lowry prints it, and it's a howler! If you want to go on believing that all the Civil War soldiers were pure as the driven snow, this is probably not the book for you. But if you like your history fascinating warts and all, buy this book!

Rating:
Summary: Valid insights
Review: Lowry offers a serious, yet oft times tongue-in-cheek look at the sexual behavior(s) of Civil War participants. From addresses of Washington area brothels, to medical examination forms, from excerpts from Walt Whitman's "love diary" to insights into the "self-help" manuals of the times, Lowry explores just about all aspects of sexuality during the era. Of course, some readers may be offended by the use of graphic language, but indeed, this IS a story about sex!

Rating:
Summary: Incomplete though fairly interesting
Review: Most people have the ridiculous notion that somehow sex was different in the Civil war, more repressed, less open, less frequent and done in the dark under the covers with guilty consciences. A cursory examination of civil war literature and letters from the time will quickly dispel that notion.

Lowry is to be admired for tackling this subject, but he really doesn't reveal anything new. There is much "padding" in this book, with unnecessary repetition and extraneous chapters which have little to do with sex.

If you're interested in the sexual habits and mores of the time, it would be more instructive to consult marriage manuals of the period which are easily obtainable on the Internet. Lowry barely touches the surface and doesn't really explain much. Perhaps because the simple truth is that sex is sex, whether it's in 1860 or the year 2000.

Rating:
Summary: Very informative book about a taboo subject.
Review: Mr. Lowry's book deals with sex and the role it played amongst the performers in the Civil War. Although sex is usually left out of the history books, its prevalence in every day Civil War life makes it hard to believe that a book like this hasn't already been written. This book serves as a good introduction to sex in the Civil War but at times it feels as though some the meat and potatoes have been left out. I enjoyed the book, though, and would recommend it to any fan of history (or sex).

Rating:
Summary: It Wasn't All Flags and Heros -- It was Real Life Too!
Review: Quite a different Civil War history -- but boys will be boys.

Rating:
Summary: The story the soldiers wouldn't tell: Sex in the Civil War
Review: This book is more than Civil War history, but also a social history of pre and post Civil War America. The chapters are a bit scattered, but the content is intriguing. Not neccessarily scholarly, but interesting history just the same.