Only Call Us Faithful: A Novel of the Union Underground (Hardcover)

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Editorial Reviews

Review

“Marie Jakober knows her history and brings to life a cast of heroic and unforgettable characters.”
--James M. McPherson, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Battle Cry of Freedom on Only Call Us Faithful

“Fascinating and well plotted, with lively characters, good momentum, and suspense throughout.”
--Kirkus Reviews on Only Call Us Faithful

“Canadian author Marie Jakober has developed a fascinating Civil War spy story . . . This is a historical novel that is more truth than fiction.”
--Abilene Reporter-News on Only Call Us Faithful

“This is the testimony of Civil War spy Elizabeth Van Lew told in eloquent, moving prose by her ghost . . . Ms. Jakober presents an authentic, vibrant portrait of Richmond, its history and inhabitants through a sometimes amusing, often caustic, proud woman’s voice.”
--Romantic Times on Only Call Us Faithful

"Marie Jakober knows her history and brings to life a cast of heroic and unforgettable characters." (James M. McPherson )

"Fascinating and well plotted, with lively characters, good momentum, and suspense throughout." (Kirkus Reviews )

"Canadian author Marie Jakober has developed a fascinating Civil War spy story." (Abilene Reporter-News )

"An authentic, vibrant portrait of Richmond, its history and inhabitants." (Romantic Times ) --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Description

Told from the unique point of view of the ghost of Elizabeth Van Lew, this is the historically documented story of Van Lews career as a spy in the heart of DixieRichmond, Virginia, the capital of the Confederacy. Ranging from Van Lews childhood, through the Civil War, and into the years after the end of the war, the narrative, told with almost tender regret by the ghostly Van Lew, makes very personal the tragedy of this most wrenching American conflict, while also engaging the reader as a co-conspirator in Van Lews Unionist activities.Elizabeth Van Lew was known in Richmond as the spinster daughter of a prominent family. She was considered eccentric or worseMad Bet, some called her. But those who knew her well knew that behind the facade of dottiness lay a keen intelligence and a fiery determination to see the cause of freedom for all triumph over the petty, self-absorbed goals of the South. Elizabeth saw the Antebellum South as deluded by a system that limited not only its slaves, but also the privileged classes, who dared not rock the boat lest their idealized view of the world be shattered.From the start of the war to its bitter aftermath, Van Lew stood as an honest, rueful observer of herself and those around her, bringing a compassionate and refreshingly candid eye to the unspeakable horrors of what started out as the Grand Rebellion.

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Product Details Hardcover: 384 pages Publisher: Forge Books; 1st edition (December 1, 2002) Language: English ISBN-10: 0765303167 ISBN-13: 978-0765303165 Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews) Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,765,104 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

6 Reviews 5 star:  (4) 4 star:    (0) 3 star:  (1) 2 star:  (1) 1 star:    (0)           Average Customer Review 4.2 out of 5 stars (6 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews 2 of 2 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars A Must For Civil War Buffs, August 27, 2004 By  M. W. Stone (peterborough, cambs england) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)    This review is from: Only Call Us Faithful: A Novel of the Union Underground (Mass Market Paperback) This is the story of a Southern Lady, from a fine old Virginia family,in fact a superb example of the Southern womanhood that Confederates claimed to be fighting for Only this one didn't want them to fight for her. She was loyal to the Union (and also antislavery) and when her state seceded her reaction was to set up in business as a spy for the North. Narrated, in an original twist, by the heroine's ghost, this novel gives a fascinating picture of the war behind the lines. Spies (including a Black one right inside Jefferson Davis' White House) slave stealers, prisoners of war and loyal Virginians helping the Union Army (or trying to) give a whole angle on the war that Gone With The Wind never mentioned. I do have one or two gripes. While the heroine (and the author, I suspect) have some reason to be aggrieved at the way the loyal southerners have been forgotten by history, I feel she makes a bigger mystery of this than it really is. Wars, even more than other historical events, tend to get remembered "in primary colours" and as the War passed into memory as a war of North against South, the dissidents on both sides got airbrushed out, all the more so as they still had to live with the neighbours, hence found it wiser not to brag about their war records. So by 1870 you got Southern Unionists saying they had served with Lee, whilst every Yankee claimed to have been a true blue Union Man, even if really he had voted for Vallandigham and spent every waking moment organising resistance to the Draft. So it goes. Also, Miss Van Lew rather passes over the effect of Radical Reconstruction in smothering the development of a "loyal" southern tradition. Unlike her, many former Unionist disliked carpetbaggers and uppity blacks as much as any Reb, and (like Andrew Johnson, about the most prominent loyalist, yet whom the novel doesn't even mention) found in opposition to Reconstruction a quick and easy path to reconciliation with their neighbours Still, enough quibbling. With all its faults, it's a great novel, and if the Civil War turns you on, it belongs up there on your bookshelf. Read and enjoy 2 of 2 people found the following review helpful: 3.0 out of 5 stars A worthwhile subject, June 15, 2003 By  "swan22" (San Francisco) - See all my reviews This is a novel about the Union underground network of spies in the South during the Civil War. It is a story of ordinary people who took great risks to remain loyal while all those around them were rebelling. I have a great appreciation for this book because I feel loyalist in the South is a much neglected part of American history. This book uses the device of a ghost's perspective to both tell the story as a first person account and to interject present day perceptions and give hindsight explanations. Although these passages are admittedly necessary, they do cause the book to drag. The story is interesting, but there is too much lamenting about how today's world has forgotten the loyalist and unjustly idealized the South. Just tell me the story and I can figure that out myself. 1 of 1 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating authentic look at the War Between the States, December 23, 2004 By  Mom of Two "lkayeb" (Cleveland) - See all my reviews This review is from: Only Call Us Faithful: A Novel of the Union Underground (Mass Market Paperback) I've read many books on the Civil War and this is one of my faves, up there with Andersonville and Gettysburg. The protagonist, Eliza Van Lew, is based on a true person who aided the Union POW's in Libby Prison and provided info to the Union through an underground network. The voice of Van Lew, spoken by her ghost, offers an intriguing perspective on the war and its outcome. Author Jakober invites us into a world where Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee and other main figures from the South continue to live in the past. I especially enjoyed her takes on how the 21st century has idealized the South's culture and mores. The South remains the "romantic" side of the war despite, or because of its, loss and its strictly stratified society. It is a story of a woman breaking free of her culture's bonds, leaving you no doubt as to who the true "Rebel" is.		Ad feedback   Most Recent Customer Reviews 5.0 out of 5 stars Character study of a lady rebel Marie Jakober's work is always as emotionally unique as it is historically meticulous. In this civil war novel she delves into the life story and motivations of a southern lady... Read more Published 2 months ago by Lynda Williams 5.0 out of 5 stars excellent biographical fiction In the 1840s after attending finishing school in Philadelphia, Elizabeth Van Lew returned to her Richmond, Virginia home and liberated all her slaves. Read more Published on June 2, 2006 by Harriet Klausner 2.0 out of 5 stars Only Call Us Faithful Despite my respect for the scholarship of James McPherson, who is said to have read this book and liked it, I didn't find that Only Call Us Faithful worked for me. Read more Published on September 10, 2003 Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Forge Books; 1st edition (December 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0765303167
• ISBN-13: 978-0765303165
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,765,104 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must For Civil War Buffs, August 27, 2004

By	M. W. Stone (peterborough, cambs england) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Only Call Us Faithful: A Novel of the Union Underground (Mass Market Paperback)

This is the story of a Southern Lady, from a fine old Virginia family,in fact a superb example of the Southern womanhood that Confederates claimed to be fighting for

Only this one didn't want them to fight for her. She was loyal to the Union (and also antislavery) and when her state seceded her reaction was to set up in business as a spy for the North.

Narrated, in an original twist, by the heroine's ghost, this novel gives a fascinating picture of the war behind the lines. Spies (including a Black one right inside Jefferson Davis' White House) slave stealers, prisoners of war and loyal Virginians helping the Union Army (or trying to) give a whole angle on the war that Gone With The Wind never mentioned.

I do have one or two gripes. While the heroine (and the author, I suspect) have some reason to be aggrieved at the way the loyal southerners have been forgotten by history, I feel she makes a bigger mystery of this than it really is. Wars, even more than other historical events, tend to get remembered "in primary colours" and as the War passed into memory as a war of North against South, the dissidents on both sides got airbrushed out, all the more so as they still had to live with the neighbours, hence found it wiser not to brag about their war records. So by 1870 you got Southern Unionists saying they had served with Lee, whilst every Yankee claimed to have been a true blue Union Man, even if really he had voted for Vallandigham and spent every waking moment organising resistance to the Draft. So it goes.

Also, Miss Van Lew rather passes over the effect of Radical Reconstruction in smothering the development of a "loyal" southern tradition. Unlike her, many former Unionist disliked carpetbaggers and uppity blacks as much as any Reb, and (like Andrew Johnson, about the most prominent loyalist, yet whom the novel doesn't even mention) found in opposition to Reconstruction a quick and easy path to reconciliation with their neighbours

Still, enough quibbling. With all its faults, it's a great novel, and if the Civil War turns you on, it belongs up there on your bookshelf. Read and enjoy

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A worthwhile subject, June 15, 2003

By	"swan22" (San Francisco) - See all my reviews

This is a novel about the Union underground network of spies in the South during the Civil War. It is a story of ordinary people who took great risks to remain loyal while all those around them were rebelling. I have a great appreciation for this book because I feel loyalist in the South is a much neglected part of American history. This book uses the device of a ghost's perspective to both tell the story as a first person account and to interject present day perceptions and give hindsight explanations. Although these passages are admittedly necessary, they do cause the book to drag. The story is interesting, but there is too much lamenting about how today's world has forgotten the loyalist and unjustly idealized the South. Just tell me the story and I can figure that out myself.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating authentic look at the War Between the States, December 23, 2004

By	Mom of Two "lkayeb" (Cleveland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Only Call Us Faithful: A Novel of the Union Underground (Mass Market Paperback)

I've read many books on the Civil War and this is one of my faves, up there with Andersonville and Gettysburg. The protagonist, Eliza Van Lew, is based on a true person who aided the Union POW's in Libby Prison and provided info to the Union through an underground network.

The voice of Van Lew, spoken by her ghost, offers an intriguing perspective on the war and its outcome. Author Jakober invites us into a world where Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee and other main figures from the South continue to live in the past.

I especially enjoyed her takes on how the 21st century has idealized the South's culture and mores. The South remains the "romantic" side of the war despite, or because of its, loss and its strictly stratified society.

It is a story of a woman breaking free of her culture's bonds, leaving you no doubt as to who the true "Rebel" is.