Two Men Before the Storm: Arba Crane's Recollection of Dred Scott And the Supreme Court Case That Started the Civil War

by Gregory J. Wallance

In the early 1850s, Arba Crane, a young Harvard Law School graduate from Vermont, arrived in St Louis to begin his law career. Working alone late in the evenings, Crane forms a friendship with the office janitor, a slave named Dred Scott. As Scott recounts his life as a slave, Crane realizes that Scott has a legal claim to freedom and persuades him to file a lawsuit. Thus begins a chain of events that ignites a political and legal firestorm across the nation. Crane fights for Scott's rights for years. The case reaches the US Supreme Court before a spellbound country. But the Court's catastrophic decision in Scott v. Sandford holds that slaves are property without rights and that Congress has no power to halt the spread of slavery. While the decision marks the beginning of the path to civil war, it is not the end of Dred Scott's quest for freedom. Two Men Before the Storm is based on historical the profound friendship between a young lawyer and a slave and a fight for justice that fundamentally changed our nation. A work of historical fiction (with detailed historical endnotes), it is especially timely as we approach a new political battle over nominees to the Supreme Court.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction

360 pages, Paperback

First published September 15, 2005

About the author

GREGORY WALLANCE is a lawyer and writer in New York City. He is the author of Papa’s Game, about the theft of the French Connection heroin, which received a nonfiction nomination for an Edgar Allan Poe Award, America’s Soul in the Balance, The Woman Who Fought an Empire, which received a nomination for the National Jewish Book Award, and the historical novel Two Men Before the Storm. He has written op eds for The New York Times, USA Today, and the Wall Street Journal, has appeared as a commentator on CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, C-SPAN, and The Today Show, and is currently an Opinion Contributor for The Hill.

His newest book, Into Siberia: George Kennan’s Epic Journey Through the Brutal, Frozen Heart of Russia, was just released by St. Martin’s Press.

“In Wallance’s bracing narrative, Kennan emerges as a cheerful, deeply decent companion, an uncompromising observer whose greatest strength was his ability to change his mind. He’s a welcome change from the callous imperialists who people most Victorian travelogues, and his humanity allows Into Siberia to delve into horror without succumbing to despair." — The New York Times Book Review

“[A] riveting biography … Resurfacing a mostly forgotten episode of Russian-American relations, this thrillingly narrated adventure enthralls.”
— Publishers Weekly Starred Review

"A page-turning history of a harrowing investigation that upended Russian–American relations." — Kirkus Reviews

“Wallance’s, recounting of Kennan’s journeys reads like a classic adventure odyssey, a man vs. nature epic, as well as an exposé of a horrendously brutal politicaln system. It is history at its most compelling." — Booklist

"As a descendant of exiles in Siberia, I am appreciative of George Kennan and his exploration into Russian brutality grippingly chronicled here by Gregory Wallance in Into Siberia. Wallance makes a heavy topic interesting and necessary to understand just as Mr. Kennan did before him. It’s a timely read for understanding what the democratic world is up against. " ―Jessie Asya Kanzer, author of Unlocking Your Inner Zelensky

Reviews

[Rosie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book
lots of historical facts within this fictional setting
I actually learned quite a bit from this book.

recommend

[Kaye Severns · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really understood why the Dred Scott Supreme Court Decision caused the Civil War with this book. Better than a straight history I think. Sometimes fiction is a bit easier.

[Jp · Rating 5 out of 5]

Compelling recount of the struggle involved to find justice for a family, who in the eyes of some, were considered property.