American Civil War

The American Civil War Collection brings together a curated selection of titles focused on the 19th-century conflict that shaped America. Through forms ranging from biography to historical fiction, this Collection examines the roots and impact of the American Civil War, including the roles of enslavement and abolition.

Publication year 1983Genre Biography, NonfictionTags History: U.S., American Civil War

This study guide references the 1990 Oxford University Press edition of James M. McPherson’s Abraham Lincoln and the Second American Revolution. The book is a collection of seven essays originally delivered as lectures, all on the 16th president of the United States, Abraham Lincoln, and his role in the Civil War (1861-1865). The book calls the Civil War era the “Second American Revolution” because, with Lincoln’s help, it brought about a fundamental transformation in the... Read Abraham Lincoln and the Second American Revolution Summary


Publication year 1936Genre Novel, FictionThemes Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Identity: Race, Society: Nation, Society: War, Values/Ideas: Justice & InjusticeTags Classic Fiction, Historical Fiction, Southern Gothic, American Civil War

William Faulkner’s Absalom, Absalom! (1936) is one of the many texts in Faulkner’s oeuvre that is set in the fictional Yoknapatawpha County, Mississippi. Faulkner is considered one of the greatest writers of the 20th century, a designation earned due to his innovative and stylistic modernist techniques, which he uses to investigate the history and identity of the American South. Faulkner, who grew up in Mississippi and spent the majority of his life there, was deeply... Read Absalom, Absalom Summary


Publication year 1964Genre Novel, FictionThemes Society: War, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / PerseveranceTags Historical Fiction, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, American Civil War

Across Five Aprils (1964) is a young adult (YA) historical novel written by the American children’s book author Irene Hunt. A coming-of-age story, the novel follows young Jethro Creighton through four years of his life from the beginning to the end of the American Civil War. Irene Hunt based the novel largely on the experiences of her own grandfather who, like Jethro, was only nine years old when the Civil War began.The book was Hunt’s... Read Across Five Aprils Summary


Publication year 1898Genre Short Story, FictionThemes Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Values/Ideas: Justice & InjusticeTags Historical Fiction, American Civil War

Publication year 1953Genre Short Story, FictionThemes Relationships: Family, Life/Time: The Past, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Emotions/Behavior: MemoryTags American Civil War

Publication year 2022Genre Biography, NonfictionThemes Society: WarTags History: U.S., Politics / Government, Military / War, American Civil War

Publication year 1890Genre Short Story, FictionThemes Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Society: War, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Values/Ideas: FameTags Classic Fiction, Historical Fiction, American Civil War

Ambrose Bierce, an American writer and Civil War veteran, wrote “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” in 1890. Bierce’s story was first published in The San Francisco Examiner and later became part of his collection Tales of Soldiers and Civilians published in 1891. “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” is considered one of Bierce’s best works for its use of the stream-of-consciousness narrative technique and the hero’s journey as well as its exploration of death... Read An Occurrence At Owl Creek Bridge Summary


Publication year 1874Genre Short Story, FictionThemes Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Equality, Identity: Gender, Values/Ideas: Justice & InjusticeTags American Civil War, African American Literature

“A True Story, Word for Word as I Heard It” is a short story by Mark Twain, first published in 1874 in the Atlantic Monthly. Mark Twain was an American writer known for such classics as Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. In its critique of slavery and racism, the story anticipates Huck Finn; it also explores themes of The Possibility of Human Connection, Black Women Defying Racism and Sexism, and... Read A True Story Summary


Publication year 1863Genre Poem, FictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: MemoryTags Narrative / Epic Poem, American Civil War

Publication year 1988Genre Novel, FictionThemes Identity: Femininity, Relationships: Fathers, Values/Ideas: Safety & DangerTags Historical Fiction, Auto/Biographical Fiction, Military / War, History: U.S., Gender / Feminism, Social Justice, American Civil War

Behind Rebel Lines: The Incredible Story of Emma Edmonds, Civil War Spy by Seymour Reit is a work of historical fiction and children’s literature based on the true story of a young woman who pretends to be a man so that she can join the Union army during the US Civil War. The book’s target audience is ages 10-14, and it uses a simple style to appeal to a young audience. It is categorized as... Read Behind Rebel Lines Summary


Publication year 1993Genre Novel, FictionThemes Identity: Race, Society: War, Relationships: SiblingsTags Historical Fiction, Military / War, American Civil War

Bull Run is a middle-grade historical fiction novel published in 1993. Written by Paul Fleischman, winner of the Newbery Medal and nominee for the Hans Christian Andersen Award Book, the novel uses 16 alternating Union and Confederate narrators to describe the Battle of Bull Run in the Civil War. Bull Run won the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction, was named a Best Book by the School Library Journal, and received several other awards. The... Read Bull Run Summary


Publication year 2009Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Values/Ideas: FameTags History: U.S., American Civil War

Chasing Lincoln’s Killer is a YA novel adapted from the adult version, Manhunt, both by James L. Swanson. Manhunt is a meticulously researched nonfiction novel describing the hunt for John Wilkes Booth, and includes previously unpopularized transcripts, archives, and interviews. Published by Scholastic in 2009, Chasing Lincoln’s Killer makes these rare historical finds digestible for younger audiences and provides a rapid-fire, abridged version of the narrative of the pursuit of John Wilkes Booth. Those who... Read Chasing Lincoln's Killer Summary


Publication year 1998Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Life/Time: The Past, Emotions/Behavior: GriefTags Sociology, Action / Adventure, History: U.S., American Civil War

Confederates in the Attic is a non-fiction book written by Pulitzer-Prize-winning journalist Tony Horwitz. The book is a mixture of ethnography—the study of a specific group of people in a specific place—and travel writing, where Horwitz attempts to dive deeply into his childhood fascination for the American Civil War by traveling through the deep South, visiting Confederate battlefields, museums, and monuments, and interviewing the locals that he comes into contact with about their relationship to... Read Confederates In The Attic Summary


Publication year 1988Genre Novel, FictionTags American Civil War

Dances with Wolves, a historical-romance novel by Michael Blake, was published in 1988. It tells the story of a Civil War soldier posted to the frontier who meets the buffalo-hunting Comanche people, learns their ways, and becomes one of them, fighting alongside them against the many threats they face. The book became the basis for a blockbuster film that won seven Academy Awards. The 2002 edition contains a Foreword by the author; the e-book version... Read Dances with Wolves Summary


Publication year 2016Genre Novel, FictionThemes Society: War, Identity: Gender, Identity: Sexuality, Relationships: FamilyTags Western, Historical Fiction, Military / War, LGBTQ, American Civil War, Race / Racism

Days Without End (2016) is a novel by Irish author Sebastian Barry. Days Without End is Barry’s ninth novel and received considerable critical acclaim. The novel won the 2017 Walter Scott Prize, was listed at number 74 on The Guardian’s list of the 100 best books of the 21st century (2019 edition), and made BBC News’s 2019 list of the 100 most influential novels. The novel also won the 2016 Costa Book Award, making Barry... Read Days Without End Summary


Publication year 1863Genre Essay / Speech, NonfictionThemes Values/Ideas: Equality, Society: War, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Society: Politics & Government, Society: Nation, Identity: RaceTags History: U.S., Politics / Government, Race / Racism, American Civil War

Publication year 2015Genre Play, FictionThemes Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Fate, Values/Ideas: LiteratureTags American Civil War

Publication year 2021Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Equality, Values/Ideas: Justice & InjusticeTags History: U.S., Race / Racism, Social Justice, African American Literature, American Civil War

Publication year 2018Genre Biography, NonfictionThemes Identity: Race, Society: War, Values/Ideas: Religion & SpiritualityTags Race / Racism, History: U.S., Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Politics / Government, American Civil War, Reconstruction Era

Publication year 1863Genre Essay / Speech, NonfictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Values/Ideas: EqualityTags History: U.S., American Civil War

Publication year 1936Genre Novel, FictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Identity: Femininity, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Life/Time: Coming of AgeTags Historical Fiction, Classic Fiction, Romance, Military / War, American Civil War, Southern Literature

Gone with the Wind (1936) is the only novel by author Margaret Mitchell published during her lifetime. It is an enduring but controversial classic of American literature, and according to one poll, its popularity among American readers is only exceeded by the Bible. Thirty million copies have been sold worldwide.The novel’s tale of the Civil War is told from the perspective of the wealthy planter class that ruled the antebellum South, a class from which... Read Gone With The Wind Summary


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Ron Chernow
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Publication year 2017Genre Biography, NonfictionTags Politics / Government, History: U.S., American Civil War

Publication year 1955Genre Biography, NonfictionThemes Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / PerseveranceTags History: U.S., Race / Racism, American Civil War, African American Literature, Women's Studies (Nonfiction)

Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad is a 1955 biography by American author Ann Petry. This book takes the reader on a journey through Harriet Tubman’s life, from her birth to enslaved parents on a Maryland plantation to her death as a free woman in New York in 1913. Tubman is a well-known figure in American history and is best known for her heroic actions as a “conductor” on the Underground Railroad. After escaping... Read Harriet Tubman Summary


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Geraldine Brooks
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Publication year 2022Genre Novel, FictionThemes Values/Ideas: Art, Natural World: Animals, Life/Time: The PastTags Historical Fiction, Animals, Race / Racism, American Civil War, Sports

Publication year 1864Genre Poem, FictionThemes Society: Community, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Society: WarTags Lyric Poem, American Civil War

Publication year 1861Genre Autobiography / Memoir, NonfictionThemes Identity: Race, Society: Class, Values/Ideas: Power & GreedTags Inspirational, Race / Racism, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, History: U.S., African American Literature, American Civil War

The memoir Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl (1861) is an account of the life of Harriet Ann Jacobs, who calls herself “Linda Brent” in the narrative. Written in the tradition 18th-century writer Olaudah Equiano, Jacobs’s work joins that of her American contemporaries and fellow anti-slavery activists Solomon Northrup and Frederick Douglass. It is a key text for understanding the conditions of the lives of the enslaved in the Southern United States in... Read Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl Summary


Publication year 2014Genre Biography, NonfictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Identity: Femininity, Identity: GenderTags American Civil War, Gender / Feminism, History: U.S., History: The Americas

Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy: Four Women Undercover in the Civil War is the third book by New York Times best-selling author Karen Abbott. Though Abbott has recently changed her publishing name to Abbott Kahler, because Liar Temptress, Soldier, Spy is still printed and published as authored by Karen Abbott, this guide will refer to the author by that name. Abbott often writes about American women’s history, focusing on overlooked stories, accomplishments, and contributions of women... Read Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy Summary


Publication year 1881Genre Autobiography / Memoir, NonfictionThemes Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Equality, Values/Ideas: Justice & InjusticeTags History: U.S., American Civil War, Race / Racism

Publication year 1883Genre Autobiography / Memoir, NonfictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Relationships: TeamsTags Action / Adventure, History: U.S., American Civil War, American Literature

Life on the Mississippi is a powerful narrative concerning the past, present, and future of the Mississippi River, including its towns, peoples, and ways of life. The narrative is written by Mark Twain, whose real name is Samuel Langhorne Clemens. Twain explains in the narrative how he “stole” this nickname from an old steamboat captain who was also a writer. Mark Twain is a nautical term and a pilot’s phrase that means “two fathoms.” Two... Read Life on the Mississippi Summary


Publication year 2017Genre Novel, FictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Society: Community, Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Society: War, Relationships: Fathers, Natural World: Appearance & RealityTags Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Magical Realism, Grief / Death, American Civil War, Religion / Spirituality, History: U.S., Race / Racism, American Literature

The novel Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders, published by Random House in 2017, offers a portrait of an American legend in mourning, surrounded by a poignant but funny cast of 166 characters. It is Saunders’s debut novel, though he has been a notable author of short story collections for decades. The novel won the prestigious Man Booker Prize and was a New York Times best seller.Set in 1862, Lincoln in the Bardo is... Read Lincoln in the Bardo Summary


Publication year 1992Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Relationships: TeamsTags Military / War, History: U.S., Politics / Government, American Civil War

Publication year 1865Genre Essay / Speech, NonfictionThemes Society: Nation, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Identity: Race, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Society: Colonialism, Society: Politics & Government, Society: WarTags History: U.S., Politics / Government, Military / War, American Civil War

Publication year 2002Genre Novel, FictionThemes Relationships: Family, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Relationships: Siblings, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Relationships: Daughters & Sons, Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Equality, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Society: War, Relationships: FathersTags Historical Fiction, Children's Literature, Auto/Biographical Fiction, American Civil War, Race / Racism, History: U.S.

Publication year 2001Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Identity: Race, Society: Politics & GovernmentTags History: U.S., American Civil War, Race / Racism, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, American Literature

Race and Reunion by David W. Blight was published in 2001. It is about the history of American Civil War memory, specifically focusing on the 50-year period (1865-1915) after the war’s conclusion. It centers the competing themes of racial equality and sectional reunion. The book won numerous awards, including the Frederick Douglass Prize, the Merle Curti Award, the Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Prize, the Bancroft Prize, and the James A. Rawley Prize.SummaryBlight uses a variety of... Read Race and Reunion Summary


Publication year 2021Genre Autobiography / Memoir, NonfictionTags American Civil War, History: U.S., Politics / Government

Publication year 1989Genre Novel, FictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: courage, Self Discovery, Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Society: War, Life/Time: Coming of AgeTags Historical Fiction, American Civil War, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman

Publication year 2020Genre Novel, FictionThemes Identity: Gender, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Values/Ideas: MusicTags Historical Fiction, American Civil War, Romance, Military / War

Publication year 1998Genre Novella, FictionThemes Society: War, Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Life/Time: Coming of AgeTags Historical Fiction, American Civil War, Military / War, Mental Illness

Gary Paulsen’s young adult novel Soldier’s Heart: Being the Story of the Enlistment and Due Service of the Boy Charley Goddard in the First Minnesota Volunteers highlights a young soldier’s experience in the Civil War. Many of the novel’s plot events are based on historical records, as is the novel’s main character Charley, who is based on the actual soldier Charley Goddard. However, Paulsen takes liberties within the story and notes that parts of the... Read Soldiers Heart Summary


Publication year 2021Genre Novel, FictionThemes Values/Ideas: Fate, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Relationships: Marriage, Relationships: FriendshipTags Historical Fiction, Southern Literature, Survival Fiction, American Civil War

Publication year 2003Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Society: Nation, Society: Colonialism, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Society: Class, Society: Immigration, Society: Community, Society: Economics, Values/Ideas: Equality, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Society: Politics & GovernmentTags History: U.S., Immigration / Refugee, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Black Lives Matter, Race / Racism, Social Justice, Politics / Government, American Revolution, American Civil War, Colonialism / Postcolonialism, Colonial America, Sociology

The American Dream: A Short History of an Idea that Shaped a Nation, originally published in 2003 by Oxford University Press, is a popular history book by American cultural historian Jim Cullen. As an overview and critical analysis of the American Dream, this book adds some meat to the bones of a traditionally ambiguous concept. Cullen maintains an optimistic outlook about the usefulness of the various American Dreams and about the promise of America, despite... Read The American Dream Summary


Publication year 2020Genre Novel, FictionThemes Values/Ideas: Literature, Relationships: Mothers, Life/Time: The PastTags Historical Fiction, Military / War, American Civil War

Publication year 2008Genre Short Story, FictionTags Classic Fiction, American Civil War, Realism

This guide is based on Charles Waddell Chesnutt’s “The Goophered Grapevine,” available at The Atlantic website and originally published in the monthly in August 1887. Chesnutt was the first African-American to publish in the highly-respected monthly. Structured as a story within a story, “The Goophered Grapevine” is the history of a ruined North Carolina plantation as told to an unnamed narrator by Julius McAdoo, a former slave on the plantation.The narrator opens the story by... Read The Goophered Grapevine Summary


Publication year 1974Genre Novel, FictionThemes Society: War, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Society: NationTags Historical Fiction, Military / War, American Civil War

Publication year 1895Genre Novel, FictionThemes Society: War, Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & PrideTags Military / War, American Literature, Historical Fiction, History: U.S., American Civil War, Naturalism

The Red Badge of Courage was written in 1895 by Stephen Crane, a novelist, poet, and journalist well known for his naturalist style and for incorporating the inner lives of common and marginalized people. The novel won wide acclaim for Crane, though his life after the book’s publication was distinguished by scandal and money troubles. Its themes reframe the concept of military duty as a rite of passage, detailing a highly individual and self-searching act... Read The Red Badge of Courage Summary


Publication year 2003Genre Novel, FictionThemes Values/Ideas: Equality, Relationships: Family, Society: WarTags Historical Fiction, Military / War, American Civil War

The River Between Us by Richard Peck is a young adult historical fiction novel about the Civil War. Peck was the author of over 35 novels for children and young adults and won a Newberry Medal, Newberry Honor, the Edgar Allan Poe Award, the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, and the Christopher Medal. The River Between Us, published in 2003, won the Scott O’Dell Award and was a National Book Award finalist. The book deals with... Read The River Between Us Summary


Publication year 2019Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Identity: Race, Society: Nation, Society: WarTags History: U.S., American Civil War, Politics / Government

Publication year 2011Genre Novel, FictionThemes Identity: Masculinity, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Society: CommunityTags Historical Fiction, Satire, Western, Allegory / Fable / Parable, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, History: U.S., Addiction / Substance Abuse, Gender / Feminism, American Literature, American Civil War

The Sisters Brothers is a 2011 novel by Canadian writer Patrick DeWitt. Set in 1851, it traces the journey of Charlie and Eli Sisters, two hired killers traveling from Oregon to San Francisco to find a man called Warm, who allegedly stole something from their boss, the Commodore. The darkly comic Western is in the picaresque genre, as the brothers’ episodic misadventures explore different communities populating the American West.The Sisters Brothers is divided into 64... Read The Sisters Brothers Summary


Publication year 2021Genre Novel, FictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Identity: Masculinity, Identity: Race, Identity: Sexuality, Life/Time: The Past, Relationships: Marriage, Relationships: Daughters & Sons, Society: Community, Society: War, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Natural World: Flora/plantsTags Historical Fiction, LGBTQ, Race / Racism, American Civil War, African American Literature, Grief / Death, History: U.S., Love / Sexuality, Post-War Era

Publication year 2019Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Identity: Race, Society: Politics & Government, Identity: FemininityTags Race / Racism, Social Justice, Politics / Government, History: U.S., American Civil War, American Literature

Publication year 1851Genre Novel, FictionTags Classic Fiction, American Civil War

American author Harriet Beecher Stowe’s anti-slavery novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly was published in 1852 after having originally appeared as forty weekly installments in the abolitionist periodical The National Era beginning in June of 1851. It was not intended to become a full-length novel, but its huge popularity led a publisher to contact Stowe and convince her to expand it. Though already an active abolitionist, the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850... Read Uncle Tom's Cabin Summary