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Hardtack
and Coffee: the Unwritten Story of Army Life
By
John D. Billings
Hardtack
and Coffee is a humorous account of a soldier's
life during the Civil War, as told by a veteran of
the Union Army of the Potomac. The author expounds
on the most interesting topics NOT usually found in
history books - clothing and shelter, the many
aspects of life in camp and on the march, offenses
and punishments, and how the soldiers dealt with
such adversities as body lice and army food. Though
originally published in 1888, Hardtack and
Coffee has lost nothing of its original charm.
John Billings' keen eye, his sparkling, fresh style
and seemingly unlimited supply of fascinating Civil
War anecdotes made Hardtack and Coffee an instant
bestseller in 1888. This is The Bible of Civil War
reenacting. On
amazon.com
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The
Life of Billy Yank: The Common Soldier of the
Union
By
Bell Irvin Wiley
Through
excerpted letters, diary entries, newspaper
accounts, and official records, Wiley offers the
reader a complete portrait of the ordinary foot
soldier in the Union Army during the Civil War.
On
amazon.com
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The
Life of Johnny Reb: The Common Soldier of the
Confederacy
By
Bell Irvin Wiley
Wiley offers
a rare but complete portrait of the ordinary
soldier of the Confederacy during the Civil War,
via extensive research of letters, newspaper
stories, official records, and excerpts from diary
entries. On
amazon.com
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A
Civil War Drummer Boy: The Diary of William
Bircher, 1861-1865
Edited
by Shelley Swanson Sateren
This is a
compilation of actual letters, diaries, and memoirs
of William Bircher, a Civil War drummer.
On
amazon.com
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Diary
of a Drummer Boy
By Marlene Targ Brill
Grades 4-7.
In 1861, 12-year-old Orion Howe joined the Union
army as a drummer for the Fifty-fifth Illinois
Regiment. In this fictional diary, Orion tells of
his experiences: his quiet life at home, where the
main annoyance is his little sister; his army
training of "eat, sleep, and drill, drill, drill";
his observations of wartime discomfort, disease,
and death; his hour of glory--when wounded in the
leg, he still managed to take a message to General
Sherman; and his return home to find that even his
sister is a welcome sight. The book will serve well
as a lively, vivid introduction to the Civil War,
particularly as a short book to read aloud or have
students read aloud in classrooms. Carolyn Phelan,
Booklist. On
amazon.com
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Drummer
By
George C. Richardson
Ages 8-14. A
young runaway slave demonstrates courage and
determination as he evades a bounty hunter in his
quest to become a Union drummer. It is a story of
courage and determination by this young boy to
become the company drummer for a new colored
infantry unit. The
book's website.
On
amazon.com
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Drummer
Boy at Bull Run
By Gilbert Morris
Grades 4-7.
As Fort Sumter falls, young Jeff Majors' father
makes the difficult choice to move his family out
of Kentucky and take them back to his native
Richmond, Virginia. Jeff must bid his best friend
Leah Carter farewell, but the two boys vow to
remain friends. This bond is tested when Jeff joins
the Confederate Army as a drummer boy, and Leah
becomes a sutler in the Union Army.
On
amazon.com
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Drummer
Boy: Marching to the Civil War
By
Ann Turner
Grades 3-5,
somewhat younger for reading aloud. In this
historical picture book, a 13-year-old farm boy is
so inspired when he hears President Lincoln make a
speech that he runs away from home and joins the
Union army as a drummer. Turner's cogent,
first-person account follows him from the
cornfields to the battlefields, where he learns to
cope with the whizzing bullets, the shaking ground,
and the screams of wounded soldiers and horses by
concentrating on his job, on the beat of his drum.
Although somewhat idealized, the boy's narrative
does convey the battlefields as places of fear and
death rather than glory. Painted in a soft-edged,
rather pretty style, the illustrations romanticize
the characters and scenes. Some readers will
respond to the emotional appeal of the
illustrations as well as to the story. Carolyn
Phelan, Booklist. On
amazon.com
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The
Drummer Boy of Vicksburg
By G. Clifton Wisler
Grades 4-6.
Like Wisler's Red Cap (1991) and Mr.
Lincoln's Drummer (1995), this historical novel
tells of a drummer boy who serves in the Union army
during the Civil War. The author's appended note
tells of his research on the life of the real-life
hero, Orion Howe, whose experiences in the
Fifty-fifth Illinois Infantry Regiment provide the
framework for the book. Told from the young
drummer's point of view, the story follows
13-year-old Orry as he runs away from his
grandmother and makes his way south to join his
father and brother in the army. Maps enable readers
to follow his path from Chicago to Vicksburg,
Mississippi, where the story follows the course of
the war and climaxes in the boy's act of heroism.
Details of the common soldier's lot provide readers
with enough realism to believe in the story.
Carolyn Phelan, Booklist. On
amazon.com
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Mr.
Lincoln's Drummer
By
G. Clifton Wisler
Grades 5-7.
When his Pa joins the Union army as a soldier,
11-year-old Willie goes along as a drummer boy.
They're assigned to different companies of the
Third Vermont Regiment, and Willie shares a tent
with some older boys from back home. As the Army of
the Potomac marches through Virginia, their war
consists mainly of camp life, discomfort, and
retreat, though they see action at Lee's Mill and
Malvern Hill. Willie meets Lincoln twice and
receives the Congressional Medal of Honor. Carolyn
Phelan, Booklist. On
amazon.com
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Red
Cap
By G. Clifton Wisler
Grades 4-6.
Thirteen-year-old Ransom (later dubbed "Red Cap")
thought fighting in the Civil War would be an
adventure--until the day of his first battle. "A
sober but important contribution to the growing
number of Civil War novels."--Booklist.
On
amazon.com
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Red
Legs: A Drummer Boy of the Civil War
By
Ted Lewin
Grades 5-7.
The Civil War divided the United States and pitted
North against South, brother against brother, and
often children against children. On the eve of a
fateful battle, Stephen, a drummer boy in the "Red
Legs" regiment, thinks of home and the fight ahead.
The next morning, he beats his drum and the Red
Legs and the other Union soldiers fall into rhythm.
They meet the Confederate army on the battlefield.
Shots ring out. Cannons boom. The fighting has
begun.
Ted Lewin
dramatically captures one of many battles waged in
the bloodiest war fought on American soil. In this
book he pays a moving tribute both to the brave
Civil War soldiers and to the dedicated reenactors
who preserve their memory. The book is actually
about a reenactor experiencing the life of a Civil
War drummer. On
amazon.com
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