She Went to the Field: Women Soldiers of the Civil War [Hardcover]

Bonnie Tsui (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2003

This exciting new volume profiles several substantiated cases of female soldiers during the American Civil War, including Sarah Rosetta Wakeman (a.k.a. Private Lyons Wakeman, Union); Sarah Emma Edmonds (a.k.a Private Frank Thompson, Union); Loreta Janeta Velazquez (a.k.a. Lieutenant Harry T. Buford, Confederate); and Jennie Hodgers (a.k.a. Private Albert D. J. Cashier, Union). Also featured are those women who may not have posed as male soldiers but who nonetheless pushed gender boundaries to act boldly in related military capacities, as spies, nurses, and vivandieres ("daughters of the regiment") who bore the flag in battle, rallied troops, and cared for the wounded.

Examining the Civil War through the lens of these women soldiers who fought in the conflict offers valuable insight on existing historical work. This volume will acquaint readers with these women, offering in-depth biographies and behind-the-scenes information. While drawing from recent academic work, Women Soldiers of the Civl War is a lively text geared toward the general-audience reader.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

"From my early childhood," wrote Loreta Janeta Velazquez, aka Confederate Army Lieutenant Harry T. Buford, "Joan of Arc was my favorite heroine." Inspired by the Maid of Orlean's zeal for the glorious fields of battle, Velazquez/Buford, as well as the other women profiled in this collection of short biographies, had an often-overlooked influence on the course of the Civil War. While some of Tsui's subjects are nurses, spies and genteel abolitionists whose fighting was done more in drawing rooms than on battlefronts, most chapters recount the tales of cross-dressing warriors who hid their gender beneath either blue or gray uniforms. They were, according to the author, infatuated with the glory of war and driven by a patriotic quest. That's as far as Tsui goes, however, in illuminating her subjects' motivations. Aside from the cursory mention of lovers, families and death-defying moments, she does not delve deeply into the psychology of these unusual soldiers. (Tsui admits that these women did not leave behind many personal testimonies, save for a few memoirs and diary entries.) There is plenty of information, however, about how women served the war effort. From the "daughters of the regiment," an informal group of camp-followers, laundresses and nurses, to the vivandieres, food vendors and morale boosters whose presence among the troops was rooted in a Napoleonic tradition, the dynamism with which women served among the ranks is well documented. Tsui rounds out her book with profiles of valiant nurses, like Clara Barton, as well as of abolitionists-turned-spies Elizabeth Van Lew and Harriet Tubman. Using a swift, efficient prose style, Tsui, a magazine writer and editor, assembles her facts into competently written summaries. In the end, this thorough but dry historical account succeeds in stoking our desire to learn more about these brave women. 13 b&w photos.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From the Back Cover

She Went to the Field: Women Soldiers of the Civil War tells the little-known, true stories of the brave women who boldly challenged gender boundaries during The War Between the States. Whether disguising themselves as male soldiers or participating in related military capacities as spies, nurses, and vivandieres, these heroic women deserve to be recognized both for their contributions to the war and to women's rights.
Written in an engaging style, this book draws the reader into what has been, until recently, a mere side note in Civil War history. From Frances Clayton (aka Frances Clalin), who fought for the Union in eighteen battles and was wounded three times, to Sarah Edmonds (aka Private Frank Thompson, Union), who released a memoir detailing her adventures before the war even ended, these women patriots and their sisters played a vital ¿ and often overlooked ¿ role on the battlefield and behind the scenes.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Globe Pequot; 1st edition (September 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0762724382
• ISBN-13: 978-0762724383
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,574,024 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Bonnie Tsui is a frequent contributor to The New York Times. A graduate of Harvard University and a former editor at Travel + Leisure, she has written for The Atlantic Monthly, National Geographic Adventure, Salon, and Conde Nast Traveller, among other publications. She is the editor of A Leaky Tent Is a Piece of Paradise, a collection of essays on the outdoors, and is a recipient of the Radcliffe Traveling Fellowship, the Lowell Thomas Award for Travel Journalism, and the Jane Rainie Opel Award from the Radcliffe Institute, for outstanding contribution to her profession. She lives in San Francisco with her husband.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Awful, March 25, 2004

By 

Andrea N. Goldstein (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: She Went to the Field: Women Soldiers of the Civil War (Hardcover)

I have been researching women soldiers in the Civil War for five years now, and feel that I am quite qualified to write that this book is below par. Bonnie Tsui repeats what has been written in several other books, not revealing any new information about these remarkable women. She over-uses DeAnne Blanton and Lauren Cooke Burgess's excellent <i>They Fought Like Demons</i>, and I felt that Tsui only became interested in this topic because of that book. I also felt that Tsui wouldn't have gotten this book published had she not graduated from Harvard and had the resulting "connections."

6 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding, September 12, 2003

By 

COL Ted (Carlisle, PA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: She Went to the Field: Women Soldiers of the Civil War (Hardcover)

For general readers and Civil War buffs alike, this book brings a new understanding of the valiant women who served in both Union and Confederate armies during the war. These ladies were the heroic forerunners of the women soldiers who serve so well today. Well written, researched in depth,thoroughly documented and easy reading. A worthy addition to Civil War literature.

4 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars quality historical journalism, September 11, 2003

By 

Hitesh mMmanglani (Richmond, VA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: She Went to the Field: Women Soldiers of the Civil War (Hardcover)

Tsui's treatment of this infrequently visited aspect of the civil war is honest, historically accurate, and captivating. She writes with a subtlty found only in the best historical authors.