The Guns of Bull Run: A Story of the Civil War's Eve

The Civil War #1

by Joseph Alexander Altsheler

Harry Kenton thrills at the opportunity to carry secret messages through dangerous territory, to train with the renowned Invincibles, to engage in combat with experienced soldiers, and to sneak into Washington and spy on the enemy. But in this complicated War Between the States, the enemy turns out to be not only the faceless North but also a beloved cousin, well-liked acquaintances, and respected military leaders. Stirred by a passionate devotion to his southern roots, Harry determines to stand alongside his fellow soldiers in gray and prove the independence and capability of the new nation. Many hope that the horrible rift will be remedied with a minimum of military action, but each skirmish reinforces the tenacity of both sides. As the first major battle intensifies, Harry begins to suspect that Bull Run may not be the end of the conflict. In fact, it may be just the beginning!

Genres: Civil War, Historical Fiction, American Civil War, Fiction, War, Historical, Military Fiction

290 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1914

About the author

Joseph Alexander Altsheler was an American newspaper reporter, editor and author of popular juvenile historical fiction. He was a prolific writer, and produced fifty-one novels and at least fifty-three short stories. Thirty-two of his novels were part of his seven series:

The Civil War Series (8 volumes)
The French and Indian War Series (6 volumes)
The Gold Series (2 volumes)
The Great West Series (2 volumes)
The Texan Series (3 volumes)
The World War Series (3 volumes)
The Young Trailers Series (8 volumes)

Although each of the thirty-two novels constitutes an independent story, Altsheler suggested a reading order for each series (i.e., he numbered the volumes). The remaining nineteen novels can be read in any order. [Note, however, that A Knight of Philadelphia was later expanded through the addition of nineteen chapters and some minor tweaks to become Mr. Altsheler's novel In Hostile Red.]

The short stories, of course, can be read in any order. However, some readers might prefer to read them in the order in which they were published. The short story list below is displayed in chronological order with the publication dates shown alongside the titles.

Reviews

[Michael Burhans · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun and interesting read. I'd recently read of this man, who was a hugely popular novelist in the post-civil war to world war one era, though I had never done so before. For a man as successful as he was, think the Grisham, or Luldum of his day, maybe a Cussler, I was stunned that his work seems to have all been forgotten.

Well Amazon had his complete illustrated works for like $2.99 so I though what the heck. Highly stylized language, specially the dialogue pointedly shows you this is from a different era. Yet once you get used to that, and to the odd meter of the work, the story itself is quite good. This is the first in a multi-part series about the era from the start of Secession to the end of the Civil War. I plan on continuing the series soon.

[Becky Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent! Entertaining. Even the parts of the history I already know, I'm kept on the edge of my seat wondering, "What's going to happen?" It's good for filling in gaps and giving you a taste of the culture and times when the author wrote it. I'm excited to read the rest in the series.

[Phoebe Hinkle · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars
I seem to have a bad habit of being unable to finish a book. I started this back in May and had the hardest time finishing the last half-chapter 😆 That may or may not have affected my rating 🫠
The title is a misnomer; Bull Run isn't till the last chapter, and there's not a whole lot of fighting done in this story. Much of it is about the forming and early days of the Confederacy. So, yeah, with the exception of a few scenes it's a bit of a slow read for a lot of it 🫠

But hooray for Kentucky boys! I love Kentucky, instead of found family it's my found home state 🥰 and reading this I was like "yep, been there, yep, know what that looks like". I would like to point out however that the Kentucky River is NOT blue, it's usually a lazy brownish color. 😆

As far as the protagonist, Harry, I'm fairly neutral about him . . . like a lot of characters from books of the era (this was published 1914) he doesn't seem to have a lot of personality 🫠 But as a Kentuckian he has a great interest and respect for the bygone days of the state and country, so that's something.

Overall this reads like a Henty without the infodumping. 😆

The author seems to believe in prophecy and sixth senses, which seems a little odd . . . ? I know unusual things can and do happen in wartime (like God speaking to people in dreams), but I generally don't like it as a plot device. It just felt a little weird and I wasn't quite sure about it 🫥

I'll have to continue with the series and see how I like them. Since the next one picks up where this left off (but from Harry's Unionist cousin's POV), I'm hoping there will be more action than there was in this one 😆

[Mbuye · Rating 3 out of 5]

Told from the Confederate point of view (but with all politics left out), ‘The Guns of Bull Run’ is an inspirational account of the first battles of Fort Sumter and Bull Run, and the initial victories of the Confederate Army, at which the men were mostly raw recruits, though skilled both in horsemanship and handling rifles. Only officers were veterans of earlier battles. The young narrator has friends and relatives in the Union Army, like most of his companions taking to arms for the first time. There is thus no jingoism or heroics about either side by the author. Instead, the gallantry of one side, and the steely determination of the other are duly honoured, as are the achievements of men like Generals Tyler, Stonewall Jackson and Lee. The storyline is eventful and full of suspense, without the horrifying details of the bloodiness of a civil war.

[Douglas Wingert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting story on the thoughts and actions of the "Southerns" outlook leading up to the Civil War. Including the rallying of folks in support of or against seceding from the union. The reason for the succession was more nuanced than Slavery alone which contributed to many of the people joining the South that neither owned slaves or were affected in any way at the North's decision to oppose slavery.

[Gage Randall · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boring story in my opinion, although its from a genre I am not too fond with either. I thought I would give a Civil war book a try and this one had multiple typos and the story was just really boring barely any action or climax within it, and whenever any action did happen it was rarely anything.

[Adhoc · Rating 1 out of 5]

Decent story telling with remarkably bad dialog, tough sledding.

[Monte Lamb · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this entire series of books when I was in Jr.HS and enjoyed them. I happened to find them again in my mid-60's and find them to be still enjoyable although primarily for young readers. They follow history very accurately and if someone wants to get a good background on the Civil War while reading a series of historical novels, this would be a good selection. The series follows the adventures of two cousins from Kentucky who fought on different sides. They cover all the key battles in Virginia and in the west. This book covers the time from the secession of South Carolina through the Battle of Bull Run.

[Tracy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Riveting

I've never read anything like this before because, frankly I was never interested. I acquired this for homeschooling and decided to read it. I really enjoyed it. The writing is a little dated, yet enjoyable. The reasons for the Confederate support of the war are never mentioned, but in a way that is the story of Harry. He was swept up in the idea of going to battle and he was his father's son.

[Craig Dunstan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very good book. The lead character, Harry, was very well developed in the story. He witnessed many historical events that were described very accurately. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in the Civil War. I'm looking forward to reading more books by Joseph Alexander Altsheler.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Boys loved this account of Ft. Sumter and first Bull Run seen from prospective of Kentucky boy fighting for the south against his cousin fighting for the north. I learned a lot of history in a painless manner. Boys want to read the entire civil war series.

[Courtney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story with what seem to be accurate accounts of early Civil War activities and battles. Very engaging with a likeable main character. I enjoyed the mingling of a fictional main character with historically accurate descriptions of Civil War generals.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although they were hard to find (other than Kentucky Frontiersmen, Altsheler's books were favorites for out-loud reading when our boys were younger.

[Peggy]

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