Good Rebel Soil: The Champ Ferguson Story [Paperback]

Troy D. Smith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 26, 2002

To some he was a brutal thug, a heartless murderer-a monster. To others he was a protector, a beloved martyr to the Confederate cause-a hero. To a few he was a family man, a good old boy caught up in passions beyond his control-a man.He was all these things, and more. He was an American tragedy.He was Champ Ferguson.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Troy D. Smith has written for numerous magazines, including Wild West, Louis L'Amour Western Magazine, and Civil War Times Illustrated. His novel Bound for the Promise?Land won the 2001 Spur Award for best original paperback novel. He was also a Spur Award finalist in 1998.

Product Details

• Paperback: 360 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse (September 26, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0595245749
• ISBN-13: 978-0595245741
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,523,719 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Troy D. Smith was born in the Upper Cumberland region of Tennessee in 1968. He has waxed floors, moved furniture, been a lay preacher, and taught high school and college. He writes in a variety of genres, achieving his earliest successes with westerns -his first published short story appeared in 1995 in Louis L'Amour Western Magazine, and he won the Spur Award in 2001 for the novel Bound for the Promise-Land (being a finalist on two other occasions.) He is currently teaching American history at Tennessee Tech, and serving as president of Western Fictioneers -the first national writing organization devoted exclusively to fiction about the Old West.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating story., October 25, 2002

By 

David Cook (SPARTA, TN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Good Rebel Soil: The Champ Ferguson Story (Paperback)

Like another novel by Troy Smith, Bound for the Promise-Land, this story features a complex and intriguing central character. One of the things that interested me about the novel was the fact that the main character, Champ Ferguson, was a real person. He fought in the Civil War, but not as a regular soldier -- he was closer to a guerilla warrior. It turns out he was one of only two confederate fighters not to receive amnesty after the war. It was also an intriguing story to me because I live in the small rural Tennessee town where Champ had his headquarters (though not the town he was originally from). The book grapples very effectively with the issues that his guerilla status brings up. The reader is asking the question throughout the book, "Is Champ a soldier or just a common criminal set loose by circumstance?" I would recommend this story not just because of the interesting questions it brings up, nor simply for the rich historical detail (there is a lot of it), but also because it is a very lively and exciting story.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars AN EXCITING STORY OF THE CIVIL WAR, January 2, 2003

By 

Lester E Williams "Les" (Lincoln, Nebraska United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Good Rebel Soil: The Champ Ferguson Story (Paperback)

GOOD REBEL SOIL-THE CHAMP FERGUSON STORY is an exciting Civil War story of not the many major battles that took place in this great conflict, but is a natative and insightful look at guerilla warfare. Troy weaves a tale of both revenge by Champ for the disgrace suffered by his wife and daughter and his fight to protect his home land. GOOD REBEL SOIL is a book that will keep you turning pages as you learn more aboutone of the lesser know figures of the Civil War.