Thomas F. (hardtack) -
If you are a deeply committed, Civil War buff, as I am, then your should read this book. It begins in the early 1840s and finishes up after the war.
Frankly the final couple of chapters aren't that interesting or thought provoking, as their topics are discussed in many other books on that period. But the author's discussion of switching of economic ties and loyalties from the 1840s through the beginning of the war are fascinating and deserve your reading, if only to help you question other ideas of why the War happened when it did.
The author agrees slavery is still a primary causes of the war, and rightly so, but provides facts---tables, charts, etc.---letting you see clearly how slave owners influenced the political aspects of the "War of the Rebellion," as Abraham Lincoln always called it.
The book took me a long time to finish, as I only read it while sitting on the back porch of a 19th century homestead in Florida's Dudley Farm Historic State Park---a National Historic Landmark. I read it between doing farm chores and guiding visitors about. As a reward for finishing this book, I'm now starting a book which covers Civil War soldiers and the alcohol they drank. :-)
Frankly the final couple of chapters aren't that interesting or thought provoking, as their topics are discussed in many other books on that period. But the author's discussion of switching of economic ties and loyalties from the 1840s through the beginning of the war are fascinating and deserve your reading, if only to help you question other ideas of why the War happened when it did.
The author agrees slavery is still a primary causes of the war, and rightly so, but provides facts---tables, charts, etc.---letting you see clearly how slave owners influenced the political aspects of the "War of the Rebellion," as Abraham Lincoln always called it.
The book took me a long time to finish, as I only read it while sitting on the back porch of a 19th century homestead in Florida's Dudley Farm Historic State Park---a National Historic Landmark. I read it between doing farm chores and guiding visitors about. As a reward for finishing this book, I'm now starting a book which covers Civil War soldiers and the alcohol they drank. :-)
