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What They Didn't Teach You About the Civil War (What They Didn't Teach You (Paperback))

What They Didn't Teach You About the Civil War (What They Didn't Teach You (Paperback))

List Price: $15.95
Your Price: $10.85
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Two stars for scholarship, but ten for appeal!
Review: As a Canadian, you can imagine that what they didn't teach *me* about the American Civil War was everything -- but after an accidental visit to Gettysburg this summer I was hooked. I began to read, and when I discovered Mike Wright's fascinating book in Toronto I thought I'd done some fabulous one-stop shopping! But then a number of Wright's facts just didn't jibe with what I'd read before and in numerous other sources -- George Pickett's wife's name, for instance (not Mary, but LaSalle), or Stonewall Jackson's final words. And the work is peppered with typographical errors, the most jarring of which is the reference to Winfield Scott Hancock as being Lewis Armistead's "closet" friend. So, on the one hand, What They Didn't Teach You About the Civil War suffers for want of both a fact-checker and a proofreader, and can serve only as a reference up to a point -- a PHENOMENAL shame. But on the other hand, this is such an entertaining read that I'd have to say I loved it, and would recommend it to those who, like myself, are most intrigued by the human face of this particular war and this particular age. If you're prepared to take what Wright says with the proverbial grain of salt, it's tasty in the extreme!

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Factual Mistakes Combined with Unworthy Opinion
Review: Civil War vignettes/anecdotes always make for an interesting read. But this book doesn't footnote its sources, makes unbelievable mistakes and the author's writing style is a condescending one, even as it becomes evident that the guy's opinion on some of the topics is totally outlandish.

Other reviews have already noted some of the ludicrous discrepancies. Some of the guy's commentary is no better.

For example, in arguing that the Confederate commanders were not superior as a whole (a fairly justifiable statement), Wright lists some of the Confederate commanders that were lacking. When he reaches Longstreet, this is what he writes. "James Longstreet? Not first-rate, and many questioned his loyalty." The claim that Longstreet was not a "first-rate" corps commander (especially ironic since Longstreet commanded the ANV's First Corps) could certainly be argued and is by many historians. Longstreet was definitely the Confederacy's premiere corps commander after Jackson's death.

Wright's entitled to his opinions, despite the fact that he doesn't define any "first rate" commanders. But Wright oversteps boundaries when he insinuates that Longstreet's loyalty couldn't be trusted because he was Grant's best man at his wedding, or because Longstreet became a Republican after the war. What They Did Teach You About the Civil War is that Longstreet fought hard, fought well and suffered a permanent crippling injury for the Confederate cause. To question his loyalty is absolutely outrageous and not justifiable. Jubal Early would laugh in his grave at what Wright's "teaching" us.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Factual Mistakes Combined with Unworthy Opinion
Review: Civil War vignettes/anecdotes always make for an interesting read. But this book doesn't footnote its sources, makes unbelievable mistakes and the author's writing style is a condescending one, even as it becomes evident that the guy's opinion on some of the topics is totally outlandish.

Other reviews have already noted some of the ludicrous discrepancies. Some of the guy's commentary is no better.

For example, in arguing that the Confederate commanders were not superior as a whole (a fairly justifiable statement), Wright lists some of the Confederate commanders that were lacking. When he reaches Longstreet, this is what he writes. "James Longstreet? Not first-rate, and many questioned his loyalty." The claim that Longstreet was not a "first-rate" corps commander (especially ironic since Longstreet commanded the ANV's First Corps) could certainly be argued and is by many historians. Longstreet was definitely the Confederacy's premiere corps commander after Jackson's death.

Wright's entitled to his opinions, despite the fact that he doesn't define any "first rate" commanders. But Wright oversteps boundaries when he insinuates that Longstreet's loyalty couldn't be trusted because he was Grant's best man at his wedding, or because Longstreet became a Republican after the war. What They Did Teach You About the Civil War is that Longstreet fought hard, fought well and suffered a permanent crippling injury for the Confederate cause. To question his loyalty is absolutely outrageous and not justifiable. Jubal Early would laugh in his grave at what Wright's "teaching" us.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Entertaining and educational!
Review: Mike Wright captures little known facts and sometimes humorous oddities of the Civil War and brings them together in a entertaining book. History lacking in school or lacking in general comes to life in this wonderful book that captures events such as Fort Sumter, Soldier life, Jackson versus McClellan, Great raids with meager results, Prison Camps, Sex and the single soldier, Spies, Errors, Villians, Music, Outlaws, fame and much more!

This book is such a different approach to reporting on battles, people or places. It covers what many books rarely mention or are written about. Anyone who is a fan of the Civil War owes it to themselves to read about these funny yet important aspects of the war.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Entertaining and educational!
Review: Mike Wright captures little known facts and sometimes humorous oddities of the Civil War and brings them together in a entertaining book. History lacking in school or lacking in general comes to life in this wonderful book that captures events such as Fort Sumter, Soldier life, Jackson versus McClellan, Great raids with meager results, Prison Camps, Sex and the single soldier, Spies, Errors, Villians, Music, Outlaws, fame and much more!

This book is such a different approach to reporting on battles, people or places. It covers what many books rarely mention or are written about. Anyone who is a fan of the Civil War owes it to themselves to read about these funny yet important aspects of the war.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Entertaining and Educational
Review: The author is a TV writer and producer who lives in Chicago. He is a native Virginian which gives him better insight into this topic. If the "Civil War" only means dates, names, and battles to you, this book gives concrete facts that helps you to understand those times. The book is well worth reading, as entertaining as it is educational.

Mike Wright says "no one has yet determined just where 'yankee' originated" (p.xx). James Fenimoore Cooper had the Indians speak of the "yengeese". I think this word is the Indian pronunciation of "English" (soft vowel, dropped "l", hard "s"). It was first used to differentiate the rebel Colonials from the loyalist Englishmen. Then to describe the Union supporters. Often derogatory, as slang often is.

The only complaint I have is that the book isn't longer!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Hillarious
Review: This book is funny as hell in parts, and easy to read in all the other parts. The bits about baseball and games are interesting, while the chapter on sex is just plain funny. A very quotable book as well. Definitely worth a read, if not a buy.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Can't be trusted
Review: This is an interesting book, with interesting stories, although there are so many factual lapses and inconsistencies that no story in the book can be taken at face value without independent verification. This is, of course, undesirable in a history book.
Wright, for instance, reports that during the Vietnam war, a TV cameraman pictured an American soldier setting fire to a Vietnamese hut. Wright identifies this village as My Lai, and the televised hut-burning as the start of the My Lai massacre. In fact, the televised hut-burning was at Cam Ne in August 1965. The My Lai massacre happened in March 1968, and wasn't publicly revealed until November 1969.
Wright's mortality figures from the Civil War are equally perplexing. Most sources, including Wright, say between 3 and 4 million Americans served in the War, on both sides. If, as Wright says, 600,000 died in the War, that's a mortality rate of between 15 and 20%. But in the same paragraph, Wright gives a mortality rate of 13.4%. And later in the book, Wright says 1 of 65 soldiers died in battle, and 1 in 13 died of disease -- which would be a mortality rate of 9.2%. While Wright doesn't need to solve a mystery that's unsolvable due to incomplete records, he should explain why he gives three different figures for the same event.
Wright says that "Amazing Grace" was originally a Negro spiritual. In fact, Amazing Grace started as an English hymn written by former slave-trader John Newton. Later, the hymn's music, taken from an American folk song or "plantation melody," was added.
Further, Wright's habit of repeating anecdotes from chapter to chapter, almost verbatim, such as John Jones and the "Bread Riot," is distracting.
In sum, no matter how interesting and educational most of the anecdotes are, if the information given can't be trusted to be factual, the book should sadly be passed up. With a bit of editing and fact-checking it would be a good book.


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