Sunday, November 2, 2014

The Civil War Guerrilla

One of the better developments in the Civil War literature over recent years has been a deeper and more nuanced appreciation of guerrilla fighting as something more than a rear area irritant (though the strategic implications of irregular warfare overall remain hotly debated). University Press of Kentucky's spring 2015 catalog will contribute to the topic in the form of The Civil War Guerrilla: Unfolding the Black Flag in History, Memory, and Myth, an essay compilation edited by Joseph Beilein and Matthew Hulbert. In it the editors "assemble a team of both rising and eminent scholars to examine guerrilla warfare in the South during the Civil War. Together, they discuss irregular combat as practiced by various communities in multiple contexts, including how it was used by Native Americans, the factors that motivated raiders in the border states, and the women who participated as messengers, informants, collaborators, and combatants. They also explore how the Civil War guerrilla has been mythologized in history, literature, and folklore."

Kentucky's website also mentions a new Ebook Loyalty Program that makes physical copy owners eligible for a free electronic edition. This isn't quite the same thing, but I've often thought that a good way to encourage direct ordering from university and private presses would be to simultaneously offer a free or nominally priced e-book copy with the purchase.

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