Play Book Tag discussion

The Demon of Unrest: A Saga of Hubris, Heartbreak, and Heroism at the Dawn of the Civil War

Larson, one of my favorite non-fiction writers, tells the story of the lead up to The Civil War. The story centers around the events at Fort Sumter, in South Carolina, leading up to the first shots of the war. The additional content includes events in Charleston and those in Washington, D.C. with Lincoln and his Cabinet.

Most of the reading I have done on The Civil War never dived into the activity at Fort Sumter. Larson puts you there, with the small contingent of soldiers who tried valiantly to hold the Fort for The Union.

Larson's research lead him to some unknown characters. One of them being a Southern woman in Charleston, Mary Boykin Chestnut, who kept an extensive diary throughout the war. It was very interesting to read the thoughts of a woman from that time.

I am a huge Larson fan, however this one is not one of my favorites. It was well written and researched though, the reason I am rounding up to 4 stars.