Philip Gerard

Representing the distillation of a series of essays published in "Our State" (being North Carolina) in the 2010s, I don't doubt that this seemed like a clever idea by the editorial staff to give the assignment to a literary writer like Gerard, in the hopes of making the antiquarian new again.

As for myself, while I can respect the effort, I'd be a liar if I didn't find the result less than compelling; it was all a little too pat for me. Still, I have to give Gerard points for his afterword, show more where he considers how this writing project created for him the sense of the "Great American Mystery," of how so much violence could be perpetrated and still not generate a clear break from the great American original sin of chattel slavery, and does so with some eloquence. My thought is that in the process of the generation-long countdown to this war, it became an "honor" fight for a culture that was not inclined to back down in the face of challenge. show less

Being episodic accounts illuminating the lives of North Carolinians during the War of the Rebellion. The book proceeds for most of its length with only a vague nod to chronology, but tightens focus during the final few chapters, which treat of General Sherman's invasion of the state at war's end. The author tells us that he was selected for this project, originally a series of articles for his state's historical society's magazine, because, not in spite of, the fact that he is not a show more historian but a creative writing professor, and indeed, he's a magnificent storyteller. He chooses his vignettes carefully and often builds to a memorable and dramatic climax, just as in a good novel. show less

This historical novel narrates events in late 1898 in Wilmington, NC, a 25,000 population city which at that time had many black professionals, tradesmen and politicians. White supremacists imported weapons and carried out a coup d'etat, with murders and forced ouster of duly elected political officers. The book details the labyrinth of small town politics during the late reconstruction era. The interactions between people and races are fascinating, but I found myself wishing a true show more historical narrative had been written. But one has not. Perhaps small town politics has had a role to play in that? Otherwise, I found the novel less than compelling in its literary art. show less

This book tells the fantastic story of the guys in World War II who staged elaborate campaigns of deception to confuse the Axis powers. The "deception division" included famous folks like movie star Douglas Fairbanks Jr. (who was one of the leaders) and Bill Blass, the future fashion designer. The secret soldiers did everything from writing and performing scripts for fake radio traffic, to impersonating top military personnel, to building, setting up, and moving entire fake battalions show more complete with rubber tanks and balsa-wood planes. A brave, reckless, and imaginative bunch who deliberately put themselves in harm's way to protect the "real" soldiers, and yet had to keep all they did a secret for decades.
Highly recommended. show less