July Reviews

Updated July 7

Focus on History

and North Carolina

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Galvanized:

The Odyssey of a Reluctant Carolina Confederate

by Michael K. Brantley

Potomac Books (2020)

3+ To-Be-Read Piles

Reviewer Leo Rand

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"My people" (like my grandparents on my dad's side and a few generations before them) were from coastal North Carolina. My granddad grew up really poor and all that. So Brantley's Galvanized reminded me of the summers I'd spend on the water off North Carolina and in hot fields and walking down dirt roads with my grandparents when my parents would send me out there.

 

Basically, Brantley (who's from the Tar Heel State) started exploring his roots, discovered his descent from a Civil War private who fought on both sides, and ended up writing this soldier's story. Brantley mentions Tony Horwitz's Confederates in the Attic. Well, Brantley doesn't write, or explore, quite like that, but he does a good job of bringing lost, common-man history to life, and he ties his themes into the issues of today by discussing things like presentism and imposing modern perspectives on historical figures and events. Given the current political and social situation in the U.S., and Brantley's enthusiasm for his subjects, Galvanized makes a great, timely read for anyone looking to dig a little deeper.

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July News

Sneak Peeks:

Our Own Sage Webb's

Short-Story Collection

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Sage's Participation in a

Jazz Age Re-Release

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Sage's legal thriller that puts readers on the deck of a sailboat bound for

St. Kitts and then drops them at counsel table in a federal courtroom

July Reviews

Updated July 7

Focus on History

and North Carolina

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Searching for Virginia Dare

by Marjorie Hudson

Press 53 (2013 for edition I read)

4 To-Be-Read Piles

Reviewer Liz Merton

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This locked-down summer, I truly enjoyed hitting the road with Marjorie Hudson as she went in search of the Lost Colony of Roanoke and the first Anglo child born in North America: Virginia Dare. In this part memoir, part "history mystery," Hudson takes readers to North Carolina to look for the 117 English settlers who arrived on Roanoke Island in 1587 and later vanished, leaving a resupply ship arriving in 1590 to wonder at the settlers' fate.

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While I wish Hudson had given us just a few more clues regarding her past (to help readers understand better the personal explorations she undertakes), she does offer her audience ideas for further reading/viewing. She mentions the movie Looking for Ms. Locklear, which I watched after finishing Virginia Dare.  Lighthearted and heartwarming, this documentary offers a little more on the Lumbee people Hudson discusses in Virginia Dare. And I'll definitely be digging into more books on Roanoke soon, so stay tuned! 

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July News

More news coming soon!

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