This is the story of a resident, Jonathan Vander of Charleston SC, and his challenges and experiences living there during The Civil War. Jacob Johnson helps him secure a job as an overseer for freight deliveries. Jonathan was able to escape military service for the Confederacy. The story is pro-south but not pro-Confederate. It is anti-war and anti-slavery. Jonathan witnesses the bombardment of Fort Sumter, the last great Charleston horse race., the great Charleston fire of 1861. and the Battle of Secessionville. He visits the North Carolina mountain homes and plantations. He has an encounter with a VooDoo conjure man and runs through a Federal blockade. He visits the boomtowns of Nassau and Wilmington and we learn of the Battles of the ironclad and monitors. The author has research with authentic detail of the Battle of Battery Wagner which was in the Glory movie. I enjoyed the book which gave great information on all these experiences and the evils of slavery. If you are a history buff this is a book you need to read in order to get another perspective of The Civil War. Thanks to NetGalley and Southern Rocket and Fountain City Publishers for a free copy for an honest review.

This is a magnificent civil war saga as told by a non-combatant. I was immediately immersed in the conflict between the North and the South during the American Civil War and was swept away into another time via the protagonist, Mr. I. Jonathan Vander.

When Jonathan tries to return to Boston from France, the return voyage is interrupted by a rogue wave and Jonathan winds up in Charleston due to needed ship repairs. He misses the boat back to Boston and now being low on funds he is forced to stay in Charleston.

The relationship between the rich and poor in Charleston is apparent throughout the conflict. The plight of the African American slaves was a bit different than expected as well. They too had a caste system which separated them into very distinct groups. Those that were freed were able to own businesses and controlled other groups of slaves. Jonathan being destitute was hired by one of these freed slaves. This entrepreneur dealt in all kinds of commodities.

I was particularly intrigued by the blockade running enterprise of some of the traders. Jon is constantly harassed by the Confederate military because he was young and of the age of conscription but he was carrying papers which detailed his reasons for not being in the military.

His relationship with a young woman that he saved from a fire is particularly moving. The development of instruments of war is also well described. The ballistics of the weapons and the distances they could shoot with accuracy amazed me.

Give yourself a block of time to allow yourself to be taken back to this era. It’s frighteningly eye-opening. The relationships of the inhabitants and their struggles are a rewarding infusion of knowledge. The tale is an immersion into another time and place. 5 stars CE Williams

Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This story fascinated me- I love history and especially getting an intimate look at the lives of the real people who lived it. I found so many fascinating facts, that I kept a page open from Wikipedia to learn more.

This book is based on a box of papers that the author received. It purports to be a story of a resident of Charleston, SC, living there during the Civil War, as told to his great-great nephew Ralph Bennett . The author admits that he has done some research to verify the events but for the sake of argument, the reader can consider this a work of fiction.

In 1941, Ralph attends the 100th birthday party of his great Uncle Jonathan, learns that Jonathan has a tale to tell, and captures the story over the course of several days.
At the beginning of this story a series of sudden change of plans finds 20 year old Boston born Jonathan in 1860 Charleston- jobless, penniless and friendless. He meets a kind free black man named Jacob Johnson who sees his plight and helps him secure a job as an overseer for freight deliveries. Such begins Jonathan’s observations of day to life the era of the civil war. Though employed, he is a man adrift, feeling plenty sorry for himself, nothing but work, eat and sleep . He describes himself as a tool, just to be used for work as were the slaves and the animals.

Jonathan learns to fake a SC accent, and evades questions about where he is from by changing the subject to his time spent in Paris, thus he is able to avoid joining the Confederate army or Union army.
As he states “ I did not see this element of my nature as a philosophy or a religious statement. It seemed, and still seems, the normal and natural state of a healthy human: to not kill other people. War is made glamorous and attractive by men who seek greater power, without the basic concern that actual death and suffering of their brothers is the result. Without enough concern, anyway. And grief of loss can actually be converted into revenge, and used to generate more soldiers, more armies. And armies require the tools of war, which means great profits for some. And like a spent horse at the end of a hard-run race, after the profits have been made, too many men are dead and wounded. The profiteers must wait another twenty years or so for a new generation to be born, to grow, and to be fooled into deadly folly. I’ve seen this cycle three times in my life so far.”

There was something that really bothered me about the story- I really didn’t like Jonathan. There is a glossing of the treatment of freemen or slaves with just a couple of off hand mentions of some families being split up and sold off. The story gives the impression that for some at least, slavery wan’t so bad. Jonathan mentions several times that he is against slavery and is clearly sympathetic of their plight- but not enough to actually do ANYTHING about it. In fact, he actually does a number of things to aid the south- including helping to build torpedos or transporting slaves to be sold off. Though a good man in many ways, he was the embodiment of white privilege.
I appreciate the author’s attempt at demonstrating the complexities of the situation from both the white and black people in the story - a happy life is created by finding contentment in whatever situation you find yourself in.
Example- Jacob, who was freed upon the death of his owner, and managed to “buy” his family back. He now runs a respectable business supplying labor for a growing city. Jacob knows what his life could have been had he not been freed and is grateful for what he has- his wife 2 sons, a home, plenty of food and a degree of self determination. He “stays in his lane” and his life is pretty good, all considering. He loves his city, even if the city doesn’t love him. His 22 year old son Esau doesn’t understand why Jacob is so complacent. As the young so often do, he sees his fathers life and strives for more, to be more. This ends up tearing his family apart, as the son leaves to meet his destiny. We also meet an Zeke, elderly slave caretaker of a mountain estate. His “master” has fled the war a few years prior and left him in charge of everything . Though a slave, he has a relative amount of freedom and takes great pride in his work and of doing his job well.
I appreciate trying to tell the story from both sides, I have real problem with a happy slave narrative as it eases the conscience of those who were and frankly, continue to be on the wrong side of history.

What I enjoyed about the book were the little snippets of wry humor, and his observations of the events with the benefit of hindsight -how wrong people can be about what they KNOW to be true, and that how people behave short-sightedly against their own best interests that still have relevance even today. For example, when Boston got it’s public water system ( safe clean drinking water for everyone)- It took DECADES to overcome the influence of the water-peddlers and anti-tax people resistance against it. Someone will always fight progress because the current system is better for them personally, despite it being better for humanity.

Jonathan has seen the horror or war first hand and will be against it for the rest of his life. His POV is correct but unfortunately, as long as we have power hungry men, war is a necessity. I go back to the quote of Edmund Burke: The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. Jonathan saw the evil, recognized it as such and yet did nothing.