Gray Ghost: The Life of Col. John Singleton Mosby

This is a great book on a confederate icon about whom I'd heard, but as to whom I never really knew much. A great read; hard to put down. It spans his sickly childhood, through his arrest and conviction at the University of Virginia for shooting a local bully, through his finding himself in the Confederate calavry operating behind Union lines throughout the War. Never captured (although seriously wounded at one point), always honorable, he kept hundreds and at one point thousands of Union soldiers/cavalry tied up protecting against his sudden appearances. Then, the real shocker: after the War, he became friends with General/President Grant and was sent to the Indian Territories and Hong Kong on behalf of the US Government to clean up corruption there (which he did), and then he became an attorney with the US Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. for the remainder of his career. An amazing life and journey. Well worth the read.

Gray Ghost: The Life of Col. John Singleton Mosby The Mosby Confederacy is well done and well written. The accuracy of the dates and times of his activities are amazing. It is fascinating what this mild mannered very ill young man was able to accomplish and how he seemed to thrive on being a partisan. What one does learn about is his zeal for accomplishing the impossible was not limited to the confederacy. He seemed to take on every mission with the idea of doing it right and doing it with precision. I really liked this book and learned about heroism and the fact that one can be a hero at almost any job they undertake by just being honest and doing what is right. In today's large corporation's it is almost unheard of for one to put their own character for the success of the whole above the shallow short term goals of an individual. This book is exciting and very enjoyable to read. It doesn't end with the Civil War, but details Col. Mosby's entire life which certainly gives him perspective.

James A. Ramage has written what must be THE definitive book on the life of John Singleton Mosby. I cannot imagine a more thoroughly written book on the topic. Ramage discusses his family history, his childhood and more. Of course, the largest amount is written about his service in the Civil War as a partisan ranger that terrorized the Union troops arrayed against Robert E. Lee. Ramage is definitely a fan of Mosby, but he refuses to get involved in the hype that Mosby and his contemporaries sometimes engaged in concerning how effective Mosby's men were. Ramage agrees that Mosby was cost-effective, meaning that his small groups of men - usually around 120 or so - would tie down thousands of Union soldiers, but disagrees with Mosby himself that he tied down tens of thousands. The real strength of this biography is that Ramage covers Mosby's post-Civil War career thoroughly, including his controversial forays into politics and his government posting in Hong Kong. Ramage even includes a chapter on how Mosby has been represented in film and television, including a movie in which Mosby played himself in 1910. This is not a book for the casual Civil War reader - there is too much specific detail and an assumption that the reader knows and understands the basics of the war. However, this book will continue to serve as the reference for all things Mosby.

This book is about as close to entertainment as history can get. This does not mean that it is fiction however. Ramage writes a sturdy bio of Mosby. And although Mosby is one of the most famous, or infamous if you are a Yankee, Civil War personalities around, there aren't many good reads on him. However, Ramage's bio is terrific from both a historian's and a reader's point of view. Ramage is obviously an admirer of Mosby's, but does not blindly believe all that comes with the "Mosby myth". Instead, Ramage uses both primary and secondary sources to try to find the real Mosby and see what his real exploits were. The descriptions of Mosby's forays are fast-paced and exciting. The chapters on Mosby's post-war career are extremely interesting as we see the hated Mosby become a Republican and friend of U.S. Grant. Mosby also became embroiled in disputes with "Lost Cause" people like Jubal Early due to Mosby's support of J.E.B. Stuart. Interesting all the way around.

An excellent book for anyone interested in the Civil War. Ramage has written an exciting, fast-paced biography of one of the South's most mythologized and celebrated Civil War heroes. He draws the reader into the world of Mosby from his early fights with childhood bullies to his final fight for J.E.B. Stuart's memory and legacy. Certainly one of the Confederacy's more popular figures, Mosby ruled an area of Virginia causing Union officers and privates alike to fear capture if separated from the main body. Mosby's able and selfless leadership set an example to his men, and both Stuart and Lee saw that he was no ordinary partisan ranger. Even after the war, Mosby's fight continued as he supported the Republican Grant for president. Ramage aptly delves into the now out-of-favor hero's post-war life and one of the best chapters in the book is his description of Mosby's fight against corruption as U.S. consul in Hong Kong. Ramage has gone through many sources and succeeded in bringing Mosby the man to life. The author even met with Mosby's grandson and received valuable first-hand descriptions of him in his later life. This book is destined to be the definitive work on the "Gray Ghost".