Book Review: Curiosities of the Civil War: Strange Stories, Infamous Characters, and Bizarre Events By Webb Garrison

I recently received a copy of the book Curiosities of the Civil War: Strange Stories, Infamous Characters, and Bizarre Events by Webb Garrison to review.


As a history geek, I am fascinated by the history of the US Civil War. I love re-enactments, and miss that here in Washington state, there just isn't as much as there is down South (for obvious reasons!) Did you know that 2011 is the 150th anniversary of the Civil War? The first shot was fired on April 12th, 1961 at Fort Sumter, over in South Carolina.

See? I told you I was a history geek. ;) Curiosities of the Civil War is full of fun and interesting facts, many of which I had never heard. For instance, in December 1863, a list of all Mississippi River steam boats destroyed since the beginning of the War was published. Nearly 200 vessels were on that list! Most of us always think that battles were always fought on land only, but ships were frequently destroyed to stop supplies from reaching the enemy. Did you know it was virtually the kiss of death to be the flag bearer? Those carrying the regiment's flag went into battle unarmed, and were sought by the opposing forces because it marked where the enemy fire was likely most concentrated.

And did you know that Confederate Major General John B. Gordon didn't want to go into battle unless he was wearing a battered shirt in a checkered pattern? While future US President Ulysses S. Grant rarely wore much of a uniform, and didn't like to have any symbol of his rank indicated.

That's just a teeny tiny bit of facts and observations you can learn while reading this book. I found it hard to put down, and geekily read through it quickly. Curiosities of the Civil War definitely has a place in my permanent library, and I highly recommend gifting this book to other Civil War history buffs. It's a fun read, not full of stuffy writing, and even those who don't really do history, but still enjoy reading military books may enjoy it as well.

...did you know that one of Stonewall Jackson's limbs actually received it's own proper burial? (How come they didn't teach us that in school? I would have gone nuts to know that back then! lol)

Curiosities of the Civil War is actually a combined republication - the original books, Civil War Curiosities and More Civil War Curiosities were published back in the mid-90's. It's nice to have everything all in one book now.

Curiosities of the Civil War: Strange Stories, Infamous Characters, and Bizarre Events by Webb Garrison is a hardcover history book published by Thomas Nelson. It contains 549 pages, including the index. The suggested retail price is $19.99, but Amazon has it available for $13.31 as of this posting with free super saver shipping available. It is also available for the Kindle and other e-readers.

I received a copy of this book in order to read it and share my thoughts on it.