Sesquicentennial Series of Books- Worth Getting? - Armchair General and HistoryNet >> The Best Forums in History

R. Evans · #1 13 Jan 13, 17:46

I've added a whole bunch of these books to my Amazon wishlist. I've haven't seen any of these discussed so I was wondering whether they're worth getting. Hopefully they are.

Here's the ones I've got listed:

There's more but these are the ones I've reserved for now mainly because they cover battles that I've never really studied.

Eric Wittenberg · #2 13 Jan 13, 18:03

I have two entries in that series, Bob. Some of them are really good. Some of the early ones, not so much. It also depends on what you're looking for. If you want treatments of obscure battles, they're really good. If you're looking for a definitive work on a major battle like Antietam or Gettysburg, forget it.

The series is great for spotlighting obscure actions. One of my entries in the series is on the August 26-27, 1863 Battle of White Sulphur Springs, which involved just over 4000 men between both sides, but which was some of the hardest, bloodiest fighting of the war. This series was the perfect outlet for that book.

The early entries into the series, including my Brandy Station book, do not have indexes. I and a couple of other authors persuaded them that indexes are a MUST and must be included. The overall quality of the books has increased since they began including indexes.

The History Press does an excellent job of marketing its works, and I have enjoyed working with them. All things considered, I am not sorry that I have done two books for this series.

Eric Wittenberg · #3 13 Jan 13, 18:13

By the way, my friend John Hoptak's book on South Mountain is really a first-rate treatment of the battle, and it was the first real book-length monograph on it. I introduced John to THP, and I'm really glad I did. John also enjoyed working with the Press, and ended up doing the Gettysburg volume in the series for it.

Chris Kolakowski's book on Tullahoma is good, but due to the scope of what it covers, doesn't go in depth. His Perryville volume is an excellent short treatment of that battle.

I can say the same thing about the Pea Ridge book.

One thing that impressed me about this series is that there are separate volumes for each significant action of Sterling Price's 1864 raid, which is the sort of depth this campaign has always needed but had not gotten. Likewise, it includes the first monograph on the Battle of Big Bethel ever published. It's good stuff.

R. Evans · #4 13 Jan 13, 18:34

Thanks for the replies, Eric.

I did see that your One Continuous Fight was part of the series and I immediately added it to the list.

And I did see in the preview that Amazon had on your friend's book about South Mountain that he had thanked you in his preface. Not to put any pressure on you

, but seeing that made me put it on my list.

I'll check out the one on White Sulphur Springs. Thanks for the heads up.

Edit: I take that back. It wasn't One Continuous Fight but The Battle Of Brandy Station that's part of the series. Of course you knew that.

Both of them are on my list so that's where I got confused.

Eric Wittenberg · #5 13 Jan 13, 18:42

No worries, Bob.

If you want signed copies of either Brandy Station or White Sulphur Springs, PM me. I can hook you up.

R. Evans · #6 13 Jan 13, 19:07

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eric Wittenberg

No worries, Bob.

If you want signed copies of either Brandy Station or White Sulphur Springs, PM me. I can hook you up.

I'll do that.

guthrieba · #7 14 Jan 13, 21:18

I gave a presentation on the Kentucky Campaign of 1862 to the Greater Greensburg (Westmoreland County, PA) Civil War Round Table last November, and Kolakowski's The Civil War at Perryville - Battling for the Bluegrass was one of my sources. For details of the battle itself, one can find more detailed works, but, among other actions, Kolakowski discussed Morgan's masterful withdrawal from Cumberland Gap, a movement I had not seen covered in other works.

He also disputed whether a cabal of officers had meeting on the eve of the battle seeking to depose Buell. He argued that the meeting took place on about October 23, about two weeks after the battle. I am incompetent to take a position as to when the meeting took place, but his argument is certainly plausible.

Certainly, this volume of the Civil War Sesquicentennial Series is a valuable addition to literature on the late War.

scottmanning · #8 18 Jan 13, 10:51

The South Mountain book was fantastic. I picked that up at the Antietam Sesquicentennial and it did not let me down. After multiple trips to South Mountain, I was still fuzzy on most of the movements, but the book does a superb job of laying everything out. I highly recommend it, especially if you are going to visit that battlefield.

I am still working my way through Pea Ridge. I've never visited that battlefield, so it is a little more difficult to judge. Still, it is obviously a high quality work.

Eric Wittenberg · #9 18 Jan 13, 11:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by scottmanning

The South Mountain book was fantastic. I picked that up at the Antietam Sesquicentennial and it did not let me down. After multiple trips to South Mountain, I was still fuzzy on most of the movements, but the book does a superb job of laying everything out. I highly recommend it, especially if you are going to visit that battlefield.

John Hoptak is a friend, and since I introduced him to the Press, he asked me to review his South Mountain manuscript for him before it was submitted, and after reading it, I knew it was an outstanding piece of work. Brian Jordan's book (published by Savas-Beatie) goes into a bit more depth, simply because Brian didn't have length limitation like John did, but I think John's treatment is just as good as Brian's. I've been very pleased with how well received John's book has been. Since I am responsible for it being placed with the Press, I have a vested interest in its success.

scottmanning · #10 18 Jan 13, 13:00

Eric, that's great to hear. I had the privilege of briefly meeting John at the Antietam Sesquicentennial. I really enjoyed his talks and of course his book. That is a great legacy to help other historians like that.

Eric Wittenberg · #11 18 Jan 13, 13:56

Quote:

Originally Posted by scottmanning

That is a great legacy to help other historians like that.

Scott,

A lot of people did similar things for me, and nobody did more than the late Brian Pohanka. I'm just trying to repay the kindnesses that were shown to me when I was just getting started. I view it as paying it forward.

This is not the first time that I have done this, and it won't be the last.

Eric