Saturday, October 10, 2009
'The State of Jones'
Quickie Hub Blog book recommendation: 'The State of Jones,' by John Stauffer, a Harvard professor and Cambridge resident, and Sally Jenkins, a Washington Post reporter. ... It's about a white Mississippi farmer, Newton Knight, who led a protracted guerilla war against the Confederacy during the Civil War and later battled ex-Confederates during Reconstruction. There's some controversy over how much the non-fiction book might be based on folklore, and there's apparently a running dispute with a competing author and book. But I found 'The State of Jones' fascinating and informative. There's just too many letters, documents and other evidence to dismiss Knight's mini-civil war within a larger civil war. 'The State of Jones' reminded me of 'Manhunt,' another off-the-beaten-trail look at a largely forgotten part of the Civil War era. 'The State of Jones' is not as exciting and fast-paced as 'Manhunt,' but it tells a good story. Thumbs up from HB.
Quickie Hub Blog book recommendation: 'The State of Jones,' by John Stauffer, a Harvard professor and Cambridge resident, and Sally Jenkins, a Washington Post reporter. ... It's about a white Mississippi farmer, Newton Knight, who led a protracted guerilla war against the Confederacy during the Civil War and later battled ex-Confederates during Reconstruction. There's some controversy over how much the non-fiction book might be based on folklore, and there's apparently a running dispute with a competing author and book. But I found 'The State of Jones' fascinating and informative. There's just too many letters, documents and other evidence to dismiss Knight's mini-civil war within a larger civil war. 'The State of Jones' reminded me of 'Manhunt,' another off-the-beaten-trail look at a largely forgotten part of the Civil War era. 'The State of Jones' is not as exciting and fast-paced as 'Manhunt,' but it tells a good story. Thumbs up from HB.
