The Bonfire: The Siege and Burning of Atlanta

Wortman has found an interesting way to portray the history of a city over a half-century of development during trying time. Using Atlanta in 1864, when it was the center of the focus of war in the Western Theater, as the pivot point of his story, Wortman goes back to the period of the removal of the Native Americans from the area and brings his story up to the Civil War period. He does this by selecting a few of Atlanta's diverse citizens, telling how they came to be in Atlanta during the Civil War, what happened to them during this period, and what happened to the city at large. This is not a story of war, so much as it is the story of what war can do to a city and it's citizens. It is also a story of how such citizens face adversity. Wortman tells an interesting story, making the history of this city over this half-century come alive in a very personal way.

"Bonfire" is "a film waiting to happen"~ The images elicited by the wonderful scenic descriptions, the remarkable characterizations and the overall exciting pace of the work make it a book most 'difficult to put down'! The skilled generalship of the flinty Sherman and his cold-blooded determination to bring the Southern populace, civil as well as military, to a realization of the futility of further resistance has long been the central focus of any study of the battle for Atlanta. Where author Wortman excells is in his technique of telling the story by repeated references to certain citizens of Atlanta, such as Mayor Calhoun, no partisan of the Confederacy~ Mrs. Cyrena Stone, a fervid Unionist and diarist of the daily experiences of the average Atlantan and~ for me, most wonderfully, the story of Robert Gadsby. Gadsby, born into slavery, was the illegitimate son of the 'larger than life' politico Daniel Webster who had an affair with Charlotte Goodbrick, "a mulatto of uncommon beauty" who was owned by John Gadsby the operator of a eminent Washinton holstery: "Webster eventually bought Charlotte..Bob was not so fortunate." After the death of John Gadsby, Bob Gadsby became the property of a wastrel son who promptly 'lost' the young slave in a card game. His new owner sold Bob into the ownership of a slave trader who found a buyer in Georgia for the young black. It was thus that this intelligent, talented young man found himself far from the sophisticated world of Washington and living in a plantation far into the South. His talents as 'gentleman's gentleman', barber, chef, etc., soon ingratiated him with his new owners, there was a custom of the times which would enable a slave to 'lease' his freedom in exchange for a monthly stipend. Bob soon became an entrepreneur and at the time of the siege by the troops of Sherman, he was more than uncommonly wealthy. The suffering of wounded Union prisoners held little concern for the Rebel forces; they were unable to attend well to their own hospitalized military personnel. Gadsby organized a force of 'negroes' to give what assistance, as they minimally could, to somehow alleviate the distress of the Union prisoners. As a black, he soon~ and uniquely, was to accompany the delegation of civilian Atlanta 'city fathers' who rode out to meet the Union forces of the advance column which entered Atlanta after Confederate forces withdrew. This is a book with a unusual feel for the personages of those times and belongs in the library of anyone interested in the tragedy that was the Civil War. Sherman has the final word in the concluding passages of author Wortman's work: "Here we were, claiming to be the freest people in all the world. and offering liberty to all mankind, and yet there was an abnormal state of things.There were 4,000,000 slaves in the United States and we had, in the heart of the country an institution antagnostic to the very principles of our government. So it had to be abolished."

Marc Wortman has done a masterful job of conveying a sense of deeply personalized history yet keeping the city of Atlanta itself as the central character in the story. When I read a pair of sentences such as the two that follow, I feel engaged in a gripping story: "A Georgia up-country reel was in the offing in which the partners would approach like courting mates, touch briefly and tellingly, and then deflect across and away until they met again, around ridges and rivers, repeating their steps until, like lovers, they fell into a deep embrace. But here the embrace was that of war." I love how people like Lincoln and Grant are mere peripheral characters, ones whose influences are certainly felt, but who are far from the core of the story. Instead, people like the slave/entrepreneur Bob Webster become our heroes (heroes not without flaws mind you) by tending to the Union wounded left to rot in the post battle sun. The fascinating character of Sherman is presented in such a way that our focus on him becomes increasingly clear as the tale gets closer and closer to its climax and returns to him again in a contemplative fashion several years later in a post war Atlanta visit with his daughters. I feel like I have just scratched the surface in terms of how much I appreciate this book. It is a wonderful accomplishment by Mr. Wortman and a gift to anyone who reads it.

The most fully realized depiction of wartime Atlanta from boom city in transportation, manufacturing and commerce to its siege, evacuation and destruction. He weaves well-chosen dialog and thoughts from letters, many diarists and contemporary newspaper accounts to paint a complete picture of the time. I was impressed that he was able to balance these threads while also keeping tabs on important outside action which effected the city -- always anchoring the story with the voices of those involved. Six accurate maps in the start help to pinpoint where everything happened. In a great year for books covering Atlanta's history, "The Bonfire" stands out.

I loved this book. If you like U.S. history, this book is for you. Confederacy and the life of the people of Atlanta really comes alive in this riveting story. It was a fascinating read about Atlanta during the hotbed of war. You have to read it.