When Will This Cruel War End?

How would it feel to have your brother, your father and your boyfriend away at war? What would it be like having bands of the enemy army roaming through your property and taking your food supplies? How would you deal with being sequestered to the upper level of your home while enduring the noise and inconvenience of enemy officers using your home’s main floor as their headquarters?

The fictitious Emma addresses all this and more in When Will This Cruel War Be Over?: The Civil War Diary of Emma Simpson, Gordonsville, Virginia, 1864. She reflects at times on her old life with it’s new pretty dresses and fine carriage rides but mostly writes about her current state of affairs, including what she is reading, news about the neighbors, who is sick, how difficult her cousin is being, her visits to the stable, the demise of her home and the arrival of letters from her boyfriend and her father. On Wednesday, November 23, 1864 part of her entry states, “At times I feel like I am a thousand years old—that is what this cruel war has done to me.”

What an excellent choice for entertaining reading that offers insight into the Civil War through confederate eyes. This is one of the many titles offered in the Dear America series. I reviewed another one, Across the Wide and Lonesome Prairie: The Oregon Trail Diary of Hattie Campbell, here.

Ages 9 and up
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Activity: Tea and biscuits with apple butter may have been a typical breakfast for Emma. Use this recipe to make your own apple butter.

American Girl

American Girl has a knack for publishing great books for girls and these Welcome to _______’s World titles are no exception. Plus what a selection:

• Welcome to Felicity's World, 1774: Growing Up in Colonial America
• Welcome to Kirsten's World, 1854: Growing Up in Pioneer America
• Welcome to Addy's World, 1864: Growing Up During America's Civil War
• Welcome to Josefina's World 1824: Growing Up on America's Southwest Frontier
• Welcome to Samantha's World-1904: Growing Up in America's New Century
• Welcome to Kit's World, 1934 : Growing Up During America's Great Depression

I am impressed by the amount of information in these generously sized books. In Welcome to Molly's World,1944: Growing Up in World War Two America the pages are brimming with collage style layouts. You learn not only about the causes and logistics of the war but about how it effected the work force, fashions and lifestyles on the home front. Interspersed among all the interesting details are stories of Roosevelt’s fireside chats, British orphans and a leukemia afflicted Japanese girl, Sadako.

Unfortunately it appears that these are out of print. But luckily they are still available through out-of-print sources.

Ages 9-12
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Activity: Help Molly lend a hand on the home front. Here is a fun online game from American Girl!

Civil War Reenactment

Ryan and I stepped back in time this weekend at the annual Olustee Battle Reenactment. These pine woods are the site of Florida’s largest Civil War battle which occurred on February 20, 1864.

It was cold, but thankfully sunny. I enjoyed walking around the authentic campsites while reenactors cooked in iron pots and played fiddles around campfires. Besides soldiers, many others were dressed in period clothing, lots of women among them, including one in black mourning dress and veil. We also saw a very convincing Frederick Douglas.

The battlefield was lined with bleachers on one side. From this vantage point I especially liked seeing the cavalry maneuvers. Ryan on the other hand couldn’t seem to get enough of the giant smoke rings produced by the cannon fire. And back in the vendor's tents he couldn’t resist handling the swords and purchasing a cap gun.

If you haven’t seen this U. S. Civil War in Four Minutes video you should check it out. It’s amazing.

Eye Witness to History

The Roman philosopher Seneca wrote of his day at the Coliseum watching the Gladiators. Pliny the Younger recalled in a letter how he barely survived the Pompeii disaster of 79AD. Sadie Frowne told of immigrating to America from Poland and Lady Bird Johnson recorded her memories of the day JFK was shot. All these juicy tidbits from history have been collected at an amazingly well organized site, www.eyewitnesstohistory.com.

Browse fascinating written eyewitness accounts from the making of a mummy to Nixon leaving the Whitehouse. But there are also recorded voices, fascinating photos and amazing videos available too.

Warning...addictive browsing. Very bookmark worthy.

Ages 9 and up
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A Stitch in Time

Here are two satisfying stories with more than a few things in common. They are both about children and their mothers carrying on with their lives at war’s end. They each contain lessons about creating something when your resources are slim to none. Sewing is the dominate theme in each book. And each story ends with a reward: supplies for a new school in one case and a much needed coat in the other.

The promise implied in the title, The Promise Quilt, was made to Addie by her father before he joined General Lee’s army. That promise was that he would take Addie to school. He never returns from the war, but his red shirt is sent to the family from a woman at the Northern hospital where he died. Mama gives the sentimental shirt to Addie. They continue on, doing what they need to survive. When Addie brings up going to school, her Mama reminds her that the soldiers burnt the school down.

“But Papa promised!” Addie cries. Mama tries to find a way to make school a reality for Addie. A neighbor offers his shed as a makeshift shoolhouse but they need money for supplies. When Mama writes the woman at the Northern hospital, she replies with the suggestion that Mama make a quilt, send it to her, she will auction it off and put the money towards books. When Mama is almost finished with the quilt she realizes that she doesn’t have enough material for the border. Do you see where this is going? Addie offers her father’s shirt. Everything falls into place, Addie goes to school, and in a way, Papa kept his promise.

Candice F. Ransom does an excellent job of giving a child’s perspective of the Civil War and it’s after effect. It's a lovely, bittersweet selection.

Ages 6-9
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This book is a lesson in resourcefulness and in the processes involved in making a coat. A New Coat for Anna takes place in Europe after World War II. Anna has outgrown her coat, but new coats and money are scarce. Anna's mother trades possessions with people who can provide the material or service she needs to get Anna a coat. After their year long project is finished, Anna and her mother celebrate Christmas Eve by inviting over the farmer, spinner, weaver and tailor. And, of course, Anna visits the sheep the next day to show them her coat made from their wool.

Your children may never look at their clothes in the same way again. This is a very clever and appealing book.

Ages 6-9
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Activity: Can you help make a coat by putting the necessary procedures in the correct order?

The Lincolns

I really enjoyed reading about Abraham Lincoln's wife and her dearest friend in An Unlikely Friendship: A Novel of Mary Todd Lincoln and Elizabeth Keckley, by the ever so talented Ann Rinaldi. This well written historical fiction will especially appeal to teenage girls as well as adults with an interest in history.

It is organized in a unique way:
1. The day Abraham Lincoln was shot (starting with breakfast)
2. Mary Todd's upbringing in Lexington, Kentucky
3. Elizabeth Keckley's upbringing as a slave
4. The friendship of these two women.

You could certainly say that Mary and Elizabeth (Lizzy) were opposites. Priviledged Mary Todd grew up waited-on by slaves while Lizzy endured the wretched life of a slave. Mary lost her mother early in life and was then subjected to a loathsome step-mother. Lizzy on the other hand was raised in the company of her mother, the plantation's seamstress. And thankfully, her mother taught her how to sew, a skill that eventually earned her freedom and an introduction to the upper-crust of the nation's capitol.

Readers will come away from this story with empathy for those trapped in slavery and a true sense of what Antebellum life was like. A great read.

Ages 12 and up
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Another Lincoln title caught my eye this week. The Lincolns: A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary is a thick "scrapbook" containing 156 pages of newspaper clippings, photos, political cartoons and letters from the couples lives all arranged in chronological order. It's chock-full of information making for interesting browsing. Here is one of the many little gems it contains...an account of the first time Abraham met Mary:

Tall and gawky, wearing a swallowtail coat that was too short, shabbily patched trousers, and mismatched socks, Abraham made his way to Mary's side. "Miss Todd," he said, "I want to dance with you in the worst way." And, as Mary remembered it, "he certainly did."

Ages 9 and up
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Activity: How well do you know the 16th president? Try this Abraham Lincoln Crossword Puzzle.

The U.S. Civil War in Four Minutes