The War Outside My Window: The Civil War Diary of LeRoy Wiley Gresham, 1860-1865
Edited by Janet Elizabeth Croon
Savas Beatie, 2018, 480 pp., $34.95
ISBN: 978-1-61121-388-1
Image courtesy of amazon.com
 
There is something essential to primary sources as we study the American Civil War.  And yet, when we look at those sources, especially with those who served in the military, there are some who say that we should take what they claim with a grain of salt.  However, the same cannot be said for some of the primary sources which come from the civilian end of the American Civil War.  There is something sincere about them, something which screams truth at the reader.  The War Outside My Window is one such work that, to me, had a great deal of truth to it.  Edited by Janet Elizabeth Croon, this work is one which every Civil War Scholar should take a look at.
                Janet E. Croon graduated from the University of Illinois with a Bachelors in Political Science, Modern European History, and Russian Language and Area Studies.  She also holds a Masters Degree from the University of Dayton in International Studies.  For twenty years, she has been teaching International Baccalaureate History and as she lives in northern Virginia, she has gained a great interest in the Civil War.  As of this review, this is her first book.
                The War Outside My Window chronicles the diary of LeRoy Wiley Gresham during the American Civil War.  We learn much about his lifestyle and family as the dates go by throughout the book, learning that he had come from a slaveholding family in Georgia.  Mainly living as an invalid, he had leg and back injuries, but was educated and quite witty at times.  He began this journal as secession started to take place and his own observations proved quite interesting as he saw what this conflict was going to do, not only to America, but to the world as he saw it.  For a young boy of twelve years old, his scholarly pursuits and educated readings truly came out in his writing as the war went on.  Not only were there poignant statements about what was happening to the world that he knew, mainly the slaveholding south, but his health which was constantly in decline.  Much of that enters his writing which shows that he had maturity to pen such horrid thoughts about his life and how his declining health was getting the better of him at times.  But what I took the most from this source was the interesting dynamic of the loss of his way of life, the concerns which the family had over the outcome of the war.  His words truly brought life in the Civil War south to life for me, especially coming from such an affluent family such as his.  It’s books like these that leave a stamp on you, and The War Outside My Window will always remain in my mind.
                I’m not sure what else I can say about this book.  It’s truly a great insight into the mind of a child as the world he knew was crashing down.  I highly recommend this work to anyone interested in the Civil War, especially if you are interested in the civilian life.  The work which Janet Elizabeth Croon accomplished here should be praised and remembered for ages to come.  Not only does she give us that proper look into the life of the civilian in the South, she adds on top of that the outlook of a young teenager.  This is not to be missed.  Highly Recommended!

​That Field of Blood: The Battle of Antietam, September 17, 1862
Daniel J. Vermilya
Savas Beatie, 2018, 192 pp., $14.95
ISBN: 978-1-61121-375-1
Image courtesy of amazon.com
 
The Emerging Civil War Series is one of those collections that continues to show the wonderful scholarship of Civil War academia.  It also provides what many consider to be an introductory look at certain conflicts within the war.  That Field of Blood, is a new volume within the collection that brings the Battle of Antietam to this wonderful series.  Much in the same vein as the other books, not only does this book provide a fine narrative to the battle, but also has some appendices that give other outlooks onto this bloody conflict.  Daniel J. Vermilya has done great work to extend this series.
                Daniel J. Vermilya is a Civil War historian who has worked at many of the battlefields as a park ranger throughout his career.  He served at Antietam National Battlefield, Monocacy National Battlefield, and is currently working as a park ranger at Gettysburg National Military Park.  He has also authored The Battle of Kennesaw Mountain, and James Garfield and the Civil War: For Ohio and the Union.  In 2012, he was awarded the Joseph L. Harsh Memorial Scholar Award by the Save Historic Antietam Foundation.  He is also a licensed battlefield guide at Antietam National Battlefield.
                The Battle of Antietam will always go down in history as the bloodiest day in American History.  And while many have brought this battle to life, there was just something about the narrative throughout Vermilya’s work which brought it to life.  Not only does he handle the battle well, but some of the more complex aspects of the pre-battle campaign are addressed here as well.  One of the more interesting characters throughout this campaign is George McClellan, and I felt as though Vermilya handled his actions quite well.  Also, at the end of each chapter, as there has been with other works from this series, there are directions and points of interest of each section throughout the battlefield.  Yet while there are many books on the subject, the narrative here just jumped out of the page for me.  The book is well put together, sectioning each part of the battlefield off for each chapter.  But what is even more interesting if that he details some of the points of the battle in the aftermath of the conflict, mainly in the epilogue.  The maps were well drawn out yet again, and the photographs which accompany the book were well received for the ease of the reader.
                I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in the Battle of Antietam, especially if you are new to the subject.  The thing that I love about this series is that these authors can bring the subject matter to life for someone just getting into the study.  Even the suggested reading at the end was excellent, showing some of the fine works on this campaign.  Daniel J. Vermilya is a fine author who has done a great service to this series, and I hope to read more of his work in the future.  Highly recommended!