Before the Creeks Ran Red

Timothy and Joseph have very similar lives and problems when the civil war is starting. First, Timothy and the men at their fort find out that the southern people are going to attack all the forts so they leave to go to fort Sumter. They men at the first fort blow up that fort so the southern people cant use it. Second, Joseph and the rest of the town find out that northern troop are coming through their town. So they get ready for the troops. Third, when Timothy comes to the new fort he is making more enemies than friend, and everyone is going crazy because, cap tin Doubleday wont let them leave for food. One time one of the southern people come to give the men food but Doubleday won't take it because he thinks it might be poisons. Forth, since the south cut off all boats coming from the north people are going with out food. And the shops and market wont open or come because they are to scared to come. Timothy and Joseph have very similar problems but in the end their life's seem to end the same.

As a Civil War buff I really appreciated her thorough research, and the way these stories were tied in with one another - although this bok is classified as Fiction (but based on actual history), these narratives embodied the soul and essence of critical places and history in the early moments in the Civil War. Those individuals peopling these stories, although fictional for the most part, swept me up in the locale, the events, the emotions of a country divided, of loyalties hidden in order to survive, of friendship and camaraderie woven together with disloyalty and treachery. Yes, each story ended incomplete- but each story paved the way for the next progression in the slow but inexorable march toward the war that threatened to divide and tear asunder our newly independent country. I could easily use my imagination to craft another story for each of the 3 endings -- how those people survived during and after the Civil War, how they were called to arms, how they fled, or died. Or Carolyn Reeder might want to come back in the future and craft a sequel -- but I liked the way each narrative ended -- with uncertainty but with great shows of heroism, cowardice, craftiness, and human emotion in families who, though divided in loyalties, chose at that moment to stay together and help one another survive. This book brings to mind (to me, anyway)- another book "Rifles for Waite". In my imaginary sequel, any one of those characters in Ms Reeder's excellent book might JUST come into contact with this man, or his troop, later on in the Civil War.

I really enjoyed this book. Although I love historical fiction it isn't as dear to me as regular old fiction, but this book changed that. It is the story of three different boys, all about the same age, living in different places in the US during the months preceding the American Civil War. The first character is Timothy. He is a bugler in Fort Sumter and his story was my favorite. Timothy is an orphan but he's quick and clever and really nice. The second character is Joseph who goes to a prep school in Baltimore. He's a Unionist but he doesn't tell anyone because all of his friends are Confederate. This story is about his struggle to keep his identity hidden while his friends and nieghborhood are Confederate, and is twon is torn in half by rioting and violence. The final character was Gregory, a Virginian who lives in Alexandria. The most interesting thing is that his father is Unionist but the rest of the family iss Confederate. It explores the tensions within and without the family, and the atrocious behaviour of the Union soldiers when they conquer the town. These three stories are very interesting and amazingly well-written. Not only do they describe the tensions between the North and South, there are also underlying themes like revenge, identity, and loyalty. THe only prolem with this book was that it was too short. The author created wonderfully compeling characters, but didn't go anywhere with them. This story might have been better if it was divided into three seperate books, or if all of the characters meet at one point. We never find out the final fate of any of the people, including the relatives who have gone to war. Still, this story is more about the history than the people, which is a shame, and that is why I give it four stars.