Customer Reviews

WHITESTONE: The Second Nebraska Cavalry

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I enjoyed this book as it brought to life the experiences of a cavalry troop in the field. However, in full disclosure of my reasoning, my 3rd great grandfather was a private in Company G of the 2nd Nebraska Cavalry. Company G is only mentioned in passing in this book but the stories he told the family, which made it to my ears, are fully fleshed out in this book. Since I have his enlistment papers, the monthly pay papers, and other momentos of his life reading the book made my Grandfather James O'Laughlin come to life as a young trooper. The author has a real gift in presenting his subjects as living and breathing men. I recommend the book to anyone interested in cavalry stories from both the civil war and indian war periods. GRCAIA_1

This was a great little book about the 1863 Battle of Whitestone Hill. Jack Botts is a former UNL journalism professor turned writer who put together a well researched historical novel about the 2nd Nebraska cavalry. The author utilized historical documentation and letters to draw the primary characters, Colonel Robert Furnas and General Alfred Sully. He succeeded in creating vivid realistic assessments of both men.

The story line follows the line of march from the Second Cavalry's base in Sioux City to the White Stone Hills by the James River in Dakota Territory. The purpose of the campaign was to pacify renegade Sioux Indians after the bloody Minnesota uprisings that had occurred over the previous year. The author does a good job of giving the reader a background in the complex political situation of America's territorial frontier during the Civil War. The men of the Second Nebraska, however, remain his focus. The book is told entirely from the soldier's point of view and so persons wanting to gain insight into the motives and tactics of the Santee Sioux should look elsewhere.

Still the work is a fantastic addition to Nebraska historical fiction and many persons should note that this campaign was a teenage Luther North's first military experience

University of Nebraska professor Jack Botts, who is a prolific writer and author, gives the readers a history lesson with attitude. He captures the events of 1862 and 1863 in the Nebraska Territory with the uprising of Santee Sioux Indians. In his book "Whitestone: An Historical Novel", the reader is taken out looking for these renegades and thus the beginning of an interesting tale. The author makes history come alive through a skillfully written narrative and a well constructed dialog. His characters move and become real people as you go though the story. He has written this book so you cannot tell easily where real history and fact separates into creative imagination; it is a good bridging between the real and make believe world of his novel. The author's feelings about that time and place and his compassionate sense of understanding for the men on both sides of these events comes across clearly, although at times, ever so subtle; which only adds more depth to the reading experience.

If you are looking for an exciting "old west" novel that rings true with facts then this is a wonderful book to pick up and read. The book has all the elements that make a great novel. The author writes with attitude and energy. The plot and the interactions between people is first class. This is good entertainment and perhaps even an education on the attitudes and the history of that time period in our nation's past.

The MWSA gives this book it highest rating of FIVE STARS!