All the Daring of the Soldier: Women of the Civil War Armies

Though the beginning of the book was a little dry, it continues to improve. It's greatest strength is the use of personal stories and accounts of those who actually knew the women. As the book begins, many women are mentioned who had small, some might say even insignificant, role in the Civil War. This part is the book is the more dry area, but when the author, Elizabeth D. Leonard, begins to focus on the five most prominent women who helped to illicit information from the enemy, it again improves. This style of writing continues throughout the book, first mentioning several women whom not much is known about, then sharing the story of a well-known Unionist or Confederate female. Another strength of this book is the information that one can learn. I was surprised at some details and statistics provided. For instance, many women who brought information across enemy lines were able to do so through the use of their clothing as a means for hiding letters and even entire army uniforms. One woman strung hats and boots underneath her hoop skirt and kept letters in her hair. The statistic that six women were able to kept their pregnancy a secret (until delivery) while being enlisted under a male alias is shocking. This book provides another look at women in the Civil War. Many believe, incorrectly, that only a few females were involved with either the Union or Confederate cause. As this book proves, however, that is not the case. Overall, this book has an equal amount of interesting aspects, as well as dry moments. The "good" parts, however, are worth reading the book in its entirety.

I am the author of "Memories of Maggie" and "Potpourri Of War" so I readily ordered this new book to learn more about the women who served during the Civil War."All the Daring of the Soldier" was excellent. It brought forth more women than I was even aware of who did so much for their country during the Civil War. Elizabeth D. Leonard should be proud of the work she put into her research and writing. This book should be a welcomed item to anyone's collection but especially for students to learn more women's history.I only have one complaint. There was no mention of Dr. Mary Edwards Walker who also served during the Civil War and was ultimately the only woman to date to receive the Congressional Medal of Honor for her actions during the war. I hope this was just an oversight on the author's part.BUT believe the rest of this book is wonderful!