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stephnbaby's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
jmrprice's review against another edition
4.0
So many untold, and still unknown, stories of the courageous women of the Civil War era.
rgyger's review against another edition
4.0
This book is a good survey of women's contributions to the war, as well as the trials they faced living during that period. The chapters discuss those who fought, as well as those who spied, nursed, loved and lost family members, and those who used the war to bring about their own personal freedom from the constraints of that day.
The first half of the book was extremely enlightening, discussing female soldiers, spies, and rebels. The woman of these chapters played a direct part in the events of the Civil War and yet few of them are ever mentioned in history curriculums.
The second portion of the book related to woman whose lives were upturned by the war but who may not have had as large of an impact on it. This included the families of soldiers, displaced refugees, and the members of Native American tribes who were slaughtered by soldiers who were angry over being stationed in the west instead of being allowed to join the "heroic cause" back home.
At times, some of the later chapters had very little to do with the Civil War. Instead they would tell different women's life stories which happened to include the Civil War. Because of the topic of the book, I would have rathered there been more about the war efforts of some of the women mentioned in earlier chapters, however this did help paint a picture of the world all these women lived in.
The first half of the book was extremely enlightening, discussing female soldiers, spies, and rebels. The woman of these chapters played a direct part in the events of the Civil War and yet few of them are ever mentioned in history curriculums.
The second portion of the book related to woman whose lives were upturned by the war but who may not have had as large of an impact on it. This included the families of soldiers, displaced refugees, and the members of Native American tribes who were slaughtered by soldiers who were angry over being stationed in the west instead of being allowed to join the "heroic cause" back home.
At times, some of the later chapters had very little to do with the Civil War. Instead they would tell different women's life stories which happened to include the Civil War. Because of the topic of the book, I would have rathered there been more about the war efforts of some of the women mentioned in earlier chapters, however this did help paint a picture of the world all these women lived in.
blogginboutbooks's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this book about the unsung female heroes of the Civil War. Monson does a good job of offering stories about a wide variety of women—white, black, Native American, educated, slaves, wealthy, poor, etc. Although the expected figures (Clara Barton, Harriet Tubman, etc.) appear in the book, most of the women were unfamiliar to me, which is amazing considering the unique and important contributions they made to the war—and peace—effort. In short, this is a fascinating, empowering book that can be enjoyed by teens and adults alike.
marie_gg's review against another edition
5.0
I read this book in preparation for my interview with Marianne Monson on my "Resilient Writers" series on the Finding Fertile Ground podcast. I loved reading about these badasses of history.
akooda7's review against another edition
4.0
Well organized collection of information, quotes and author commentary on well known and lesser known women impacted by and essential to both sides of the American Civil War.
phinepupc's review against another edition
4.0
This is a good, well-written, and informative read. A few minor typos can be found in the text, but overall it is very well-written. I learned much both about women as a whole in the Civil War and about specific women and their respective service during the Civil War.
thegeekybibliophile's review against another edition
5.0
Women of the Blue and Gray delves into the often ignored, yet vitally important, contributions made by women during the Civil War. Monson introduces us to a varied group of women, both Union and Confederate, and tells their stories. The bloody war wrought by a bitterly divided nation led many brave women—regardless of wealth or color—to rise up and do their part as nurses, spies, smugglers, and (disguised) soldiers.
In my experience, when it comes to reading about history, books tend to fall into one of two categories: (1) informative, but boring to read, or (2) informative, but written in such a way that keeps the reader fully engaged at all times. Happily, Women of the Blue and Gray falls into the second category. I was fascinated with the stories of each woman, often amazed at how courageous they were—especially given that it was in a time where women were often considered too ‘delicate’ to do most things. I was especially moved by the stories of African-American women who took dangerous risks as spies, despite knowing how grave the cost would be if ever they were caught. It was also gratifying to see that Native Americans included in this book. Their stories weren’t as easily found, but it was important to see the role some Native American played during the war, and how the Tribes were affected, as a whole, due to the conflict.
I highly recommend this book to women’s history enthusiasts. I think you’ll enjoy learning about these women as much as I did.
I received an advance reading copy of this book courtesy of Shadow Mountain via Edelweiss.
In my experience, when it comes to reading about history, books tend to fall into one of two categories: (1) informative, but boring to read, or (2) informative, but written in such a way that keeps the reader fully engaged at all times. Happily, Women of the Blue and Gray falls into the second category. I was fascinated with the stories of each woman, often amazed at how courageous they were—especially given that it was in a time where women were often considered too ‘delicate’ to do most things. I was especially moved by the stories of African-American women who took dangerous risks as spies, despite knowing how grave the cost would be if ever they were caught. It was also gratifying to see that Native Americans included in this book. Their stories weren’t as easily found, but it was important to see the role some Native American played during the war, and how the Tribes were affected, as a whole, due to the conflict.
I highly recommend this book to women’s history enthusiasts. I think you’ll enjoy learning about these women as much as I did.
I received an advance reading copy of this book courtesy of Shadow Mountain via Edelweiss.
miocenemama's review against another edition
5.0
What I really liked about this book is that it tried to acknowledge the suffering and the contributions of women on both sides without ever justifying the beliefs of the Confederacy. In fact, in the author's final notes, she explained that she had no intention of justifying the reasons for secession but that at some point we had to acknowledge that we have more in common as human beings than as differences, something that would be well to remember in this time of such divisiveness. She also made a point of including the experiences not only of African Americans but also of Native Americans. She shared things about the effect of the Civil War on Natives some of which I was not aware of. Even the injustices against Natives that I knew about were given a new context in light of the Civil War. The book is well researched with extensive footnotes but is still superbly readable