Intimate Strategies of the Civil War: Military Commanders and Their Wives

In Intimate Strategies of the Civil War: Military Commanders and Their Wives, editors Carol K. Bleser (In Joy and in Sorrow) and Lesley J. Gordon (General George E. Pickett in Life and Legend) present essays on the domestic lives of six Union and six Confederate leaders, by an array of historians. Sarah Gardner looks at Mary Anna Jackson's self-appointed role as style counsel to the reluctant Stonewall; he begged her to stop sending him pants decorated with gold braiding, and shied away from her efforts to make the most of his wartime glory. John F. Marszalek examines the unharmonious relationship between General ""Cump"" Sherman and Ellen Boyle Sherman, beset by insurmountable, lifelong religious and lifestyle differences after the war. A limited audience of Civil War and pop culture scholars will appreciate this narrow but engaging collection. (Nov.)