The History Book Club discussion

Joseph Burrell, here is your new thread in 2015. Happy reading in the new year.

Our Required Format:

JANUARY

1. by Winston S. Churchill
Finish date: January 2015
Genre: (whatever genre the book happens to be)
Rating: A
Review: You can add text from a review you have written but no links to any review elsewhere even goodreads. And that is about it. Just make sure to number consecutively and just add the months.

Thank you for letting me do the challenge. I already have my 50 books to read on my kindle. So here we go and happy reading to all.

You are welcome Joseph and we are here to help you along the way with format, suggestions or any other helpful hints you might need. It sounds like you have a plan and are well on your way. Enjoy.

Congratulations, Joseph, but please respect the format of this thread, just like it appears in the first post. You should cite your book the following way:

by J. Tracy Power

Hello Joseph - at first it takes a bit to get the hang of things but after you do get the format and the citations down - you will wonder why you thought it was hard at all.

Here are a few links to help you.

First citations:

Mechanics of the Board thread will give you excruciating details on how to do this:

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

The above thread is part of the Help Desk Folder.

If you want some hand holding on getting things right and need some personalized attention - you can get it on the Mechanics thread or you can even ask a mod a question and get some personalized attention and assistance by going to the Ask a Mod thread.

Here is the link for that:

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Also I did set up a thread for the discussion that we are having on another book and that shows the format for various citations which I think you will find helpful too. We are always here to help and you will get the hang of things in no time.

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Somehow you have to get it to look like message 1.

I can understand the month and bolding and the citation may need some getting use to but the bottom half of the format is pretty straight forward starting with Finish date:

We are here to help - just let me know where you are stuck.

You are making some progress. Let me go through what you need to update. And how it should look.

First the month: you need to put that in caps and bold at the top. You only have to place that above the first book that you complete in each month.

JANUARY

1. by J. Tracy Power
Finish Date: January 4th, 2015
Genre: Civil War History
Rating: A
Review: This book is not written about the battles ended the civil war but about the common fighting man and their experience during the Overland campaign. Its about their hardship during the siege at Petersburg and the decline of the Army of Northern Virginia until the bitter end. This is a very well written book and must read for those who want to go beyond the battles and experience the war as the front line troops did.

You have Genre:, Rating, and the numbering correct.

You need to add the month as noted, you need to fix the citation, you need to change finished on to Finish date:

You need to add the words Review: before your comments.

You are making progress. May I suggest the Mechanics of the Board thread so that you can practice.

When you go in to add book/author area - you are adding the link rather than the book cover - look at the radio buttoms at the bottom and make sure that the cover one is filled and then you can add the cover when available - then when you go into author - make sure to click on the radio button at the bottom for photo and then go back in again a second time for the author and click on link - you do have the link added correctly for the author but the author's photo has to come before the author's link when available. I also see that you typed in the word by and that is good too. Just remember to add one blank space before the word by and one after.

You are making progress Joseph and in no time you will be a power user and wonder why you thought this was so hard (smile).

JANUARY
1. by J. Tracy Power
Finish Date: January 4th 2015
Genre: Civil War History
Rating: A
Review: This book is not written about the battles that ended the civil war but about the common fighting man and their experience during the Overland campaign. Its about their hardship during the siege at Petersburg and the decline of the Army of Northern Virginia until the bitter end. This is a very well written book and must read for those who want to go beyond the battles and experience the war as the front line troops did.

Great so far - but you need to go in and add the month before the first book in each month that you complete - make sure the month is in caps and bolded like this


<b>Put Month Here</b>

<b>JANUARY</b>

It will then end up looking like this:

JANUARY

2. By William Marvel(No photo)
Finish Date: January 10, 2015
Genre: Civil War History
Rating: A
Review: William Marvel tells the gripping account of the Army of Northern Virginia final days that end with Lee's ultimate surrender at Appomattox Court house. In the book Marvel claims to dispel many of the myths surrounding Lee's retreat and surrender however, I can't say if he does or not dispel any of those myths having never read or studied anything on the final day's of Lee's army but what I can say is that Marvel does a awesome job in writing about Lee's flight to Appomattox. This a very good book to start you on your way to learning about Lee's retreat and surrender.

OK we will look for the edit on Monday.

Joseph, that book seems to be great, but please cite it according to our group rules:

by William Marvel (no photo)

Something weird happened to message 10. At least when I look at it.

The font is totally weird and it's all bold.

Joseph - it looks like you used the following html (pre) - I think you should do an edit and make sure to take it out.

Message 7 is great now.

Something weird is going on with message 10. Remember you do not have to add the month before your second book because you are still working on completing books in January. And you only place the month before the first book completed for that month.

Message 7 needs a bit of tweaking. You need to add the author's link, not just his name typed in. Like so -

by J. Tracy Power

3. by Jay Winik (no photo)

Finish date: January 18,2015
Genre: Civil War History
Rating: A
Review: This book chronicles the events of April 1865 , Winik's writing style keeps you captivated and engrossed in the book. Winik begins to weave the events that lead to April 1865 with a clarity rarely found in books. I love the way Winik incorporates history into his story an example of this is in the very beginning of his book he starts with Thomas Jefferson and his duality. Jefferson the founding father and advocate of human rights, the right for all men to be free. The right for all men to govern themselves and Jefferson own public voice against slavery but yet he personally held slaves in bondage himself. Most of our founding fathers dealt with this dual nature. Winik ties this into the very heart of the antebellum south. Winik uses this as a foundation to build the friction that began to tear the nation apart and open the door for civil war. He begins to weave the story of, how April of 1865 could have had a very different outcome. The surrender of Lee , the assassination of Lincoln that left chaos reigning in its wake followed by the eventual surrender of all confederate forces. How a nation rent in two could be sown back into a one united states. Very good reading.

Good progress Joseph - since you have become a power user (smile) you may want to try to add one blank space before and after the word by - be careful not to affect the html for the book cover or link in the case about.

Thanks Bentley, I'm trying. I'm pretty far into my 4th book hope to add it soon.

You are doing very well. And you figured out the by. (smile)

4. by Clifford Dowdey

Finish Date: January 28,2015
Genre: Civil War History
Rating: B
Review: The book covers the Seven Days battles and the emergence of Robert E Lee as commander of the Army of Northern Virginia. Over all the book is a good read, I found that Clifford Dowdey has a simple southern writing style similar to Shelby Foote. I read in the reviews that the book was totally pro southern however I found Dowdey's account unbiased, He points out Lee's failings as well as Jackson's lethargy during the Peninsula Campaign. Lee at this at crucial point was just taking the reins of the Army of Northern Virginia and there was a lot of molding to do. Once Lee had established himself as over all commander the Army of Northern Virginia,it would become the formidable weapon that would crush the Army of the Potomac in battle after battle. Also a note to add: The only reason I gave the book a B rating was because the kindle version has many errors in the transferring to the digital format, something Amazon needs to fix. Its unfair to Downey and all his labor to write this account.

Excellent choice

Thanks Bentley, time to start my fifth book by Rudolph J. Schroeder III (no photo)

OK good job with the cover but remember the whole citation.

by Rudolph J. Schroeder III (no photo)

FEBRUARY

5. by Rudolph J. Schroeder III (no photo)
Finish Date: February 9,2015
Genre: Civil War History
Rating: A
Review: Great book on the Peninsula Campaign of 1862. Schroeder adds his own spin to events during the seven day's battles. In the previous book I read on the seven day's battles and the emergence of Robert E. Lee. Clifford Dowdy focused a lot on the lethargy of Thomas Jackson during the campaign and in Schroeder's book we see the vainglorious attitude of James Longstreet. Schroeder's book is definitely one of the most detailed books on the campaign.

6. by Jay Monaghan (no photo)
Finish Date: February 17,2015
Genre: History/ Civil War
Rating: A
Review: A small dusty town on a vast prairie on a sweltering summer day, a group of 30 outlaws or bushwhackers surround the town with pistols in hand. The men decide to split up around the town to cut off the 10 armed federal's barricaded in the town. The federal's are preparing for the worse. As the temperature climbs and sweats begins to beat off their brows, they ready themselves for the fight they know is coming. They all know once the guns start their deadly work there is no surrender, its to the death. Sounds like a good western but its not this is civil war on the western border of Missouri and Kansas. This is a really good book that covers the events of bleeding Kansas and leading up to the civil war. There are no large field armies here, just small bands of men fighting on both sides for the cause they felt was right. Men like Bloody Bill Anderson who cut a path of terror in civil war Missouri. I really enjoyed this book, I have never studied bleeding Kansas or the civil war on the western border. This a new area to me and I really enjoyed learning from this book.

7. by Bruce Nichols (no photo)
Finish Date: February 20,2015
Genre: History/Civil War
Rating: A
Review: This a four volume set of books on the Guerrilla operations in Missouri. Nichols goes to great detail in describing the activities of the armed guerrillas and their federal counter parts , the guerilla hunters. He breaks Missouri up into quadrant's so you can better follow the battles in those areas. I printed me a small reference map of Missouri with county's and main cities to help familiarize myself with the places he discus's in the book and have found that really helps you understand the areas. Volume 1 of this series is a very good account of the 1862 operations in civil war Missouri.
I have just started volume 2

Good stuff, Joseph, thanks.

8. by Bruce Nichols (no photo)
Finish date: February 26,2015
Genre: History/Civil War
Rating: A
Review: Volume 2 in a 4 volume set. This volume covers all the guerilla and guerrilla hunters activities in 1863 in civil war Missouri. Nichols covers Quantrill's raid into Lawrence on August 21,1863 which resulted in 164 civilian deaths. He also covers Quantrill's raid at Baxter Springs Kansas on October 6,1863. In this volume Nichols also covers Shelby's raid and all of the major events of 1863.

I'm on Guerrilla Warfare in Civil War Missouri, Volume III, January-August 1864: 3 which covers the events of 1864. Lastly this is truly a great 4 volume set if you want to study the civil war in Missouri.
by Bruce Nichols (no photo)

You are making good progress Joseph - one nit - you have Finish Date; - the format is Finish date: - you have that very small issue in all of them

Message 29 was going very well (aside from the Finish date: issue) until you added the section on the bottom - don't embed citations in the middle of the sentence and in this case the citation is also incorrect.

You said: (with the book cover) and no author's photo or author's link:

I'm on by Bruce Nichols which covers the events of 1864. Lastly this is truly a great 4 volume set if you want to study the civil war in Missouri.

What you should have said was the following - just typing normally in the sentence and just adding the additional citation at the bottom:

I'm on Guerrilla Warfare in Civil War Missouri, Volume III, January-August 1864 which covers the events of 1864. Lastly this is truly a great 4 volume set if you want to study the civil war in Missouri.

by Bruce Nichols (no photo)

Ok I will fix it. Thanks Bentley

Just do your best Joseph - we are here to help - you are doing great by the way.

You are doing fine, Joseph and are reading some interesting books. Good job.

MARCH

9. by Perry D. Jamieson (no photo)
Finish date: March 21,2015
Genre: History/Civil War
Rating: A
Review: Great summary of the closing campaigns of the civil war. The books opens with a summary of the events that lead up to the spring of 1865 then moves to Joe Johnston surrender in North Carolina. The book closes with Robert E. Lee's surrender. Over all the book was really a good read.

My next book is by Donald S. Frazier (no photo).

10. by Donald S. Frazier (no photo)
Finish Date: March 28, 2015
Genre: History/Civil War
Rating: A
Review: Great book, on the western theater of war. Frazier talks about confederate dreams of a western empire in the New Mexico and Arizona territories. The book covers the events of 1861 and 1862, were Sibley attempts to take those territories with the army of New Mexico. The battles of Val-Verde and Apache pass are covered as well as others. The book overall is a great read, very well written and I learned a lot from this book.

My next book is by Daniel J. Vermilya (no photo).

11. by Daniel J. Vermilya (no photo)
Finish Date: March 28,2015
Genre: History/Civil War
Rating: A
Review: Great synopsis of the battle of Kennesaw Mountain. I really love studying about the Atlanta campaign and the battles that were fought during it. Living an hour from the Kennesaw battle field and knowing the area helps the battle become more alive to me,if that makes sense . Over all a really great book and very well written.

I made typo will correct it. I'm sorry, I'm not a good writer at all. I have to laugh my mind works faster than my fingers.

April

12. by Joseph Wheelan (no photo)
Finish Date: April 3,2015
Genre: History/Civil War
Rating: A
Review: Another great book on the closing campaigns of the Civil War. Wheelan doesn't go by chapters in this book he goes by months. The book begins with January of 1865 and ends with May 1865.
The book is similar to by Perry D. Jamieson (no photo) in that it deals with Lee's and Johnson's surrender. But overall I am glad to see more books written about closing battles of the Civil War.

13. by John Gilchrist Barrett (no photo)
Finish Date: April 3,2015
Genre: History/Civil War
Rating: A
Review: A great overview of North Carolina's role in the Civil War. The events from 1861-1865 are talked about in the book. North Carolina's civil war history holds a special place of study for me. My great great grandfather was John G Armstrong who was from North Carolina and fought with the 52nd N.C. CSA. He fought at Petersburg in the closing battles of that campaign. North Carolina sent a lot of her son's to fight for the confederacy. North Carolina in the end did not suffer the same fate as South Carolina. In the end she would suffer defeat as all southern states did. Again great little book,very easy to read and you can read it fast.

I am currently reading by Albert Castel (no photo).

14. by Albert Castel (no photo)
Finish date: April 3,2015
Genre: History/Civil War
Rating: A+
Review: This books is not about the life of General Sterling Price but about the battles he fought. The battle of Wilson's Creek and many others are talked about in the book all the way to the last battle of mine run. It's about Price's dream of a confederate controlled Missouri despite the facts that pointed otherwise. I have to say this book is one the best books I have read this year and I would highly recommend this book on the western theater of war.

I am now reading by Russell S. Bonds (no photo)

15. byRussell S. Bonds (no photo)
Finish date: April 5,2015
Genre: History/Civil War
Rating: A
Review: Great refresher book on the battles for Atlanta. Bonds book is written in a very easy to read style that doesn't bog you down. In the book he gives a good overview of the Atlanta campaign and moves right into the battles for Atlanta. He also focuses on the burning of Atlanta. General Hood tactics are also discussed in the book. The book was really good and I used it as a primer for my next book.

My next book is by Earl J Hess (no photo).

16. by Earl J Hess (no photo).
Finish date: April 10,2015
Genre: History/Civil War
Rating: A
Review: The battle of Ezra Church or Hood's third sortie in the battles for Atlanta. The book is very well written and covers the battle in detail. I just have one peeve against Hess, he is a great writer and one of the best civil war historians but he is biased. He tends to write from a northern point of view. It may not bother most people but I love books that take the neutral point of view. With that being said this book wasn't that bad. He covers Hoods failed attempts to break Sherman's tightening yoke around Atlanta.

17. by Daniel T. Davis ( no photo).
Finish date: April 10,2015
Genre: History/Civil War
Rating: A
Review: Great synopsis of the battles of Averasboro and Bentonville. General Joe Johnston last stands against the overwhelming tide of Sherman's forces.

My next book is by Robert R. Mackey ( no photo).

18. by Robert R. Mackey (no photo).
Finish date: April 11,2015
Genre: History/Civil War
Rating: A
Review: The author breaks the book into three areas of irregular warfare.
1. Guerrilla warfare
2. Partisan warfare
3. Raiding
Mackey uses the guerilla war in Arkansas as his first example in the book and moves to Partisan commander John S Mosby. He ends the book with the raiders Forrest and Morgan. What I like most about the book is, Mackey goes into detail showing the confederate side then the next chapter is the federal response. Overall the books was very good. I really enjoyed it.

My next book is by Donald S. Frazier (no photo).

Thanks for your great reviews, Joseph.