Well I didn’t finish it, but I finally got around to writing my review of it. I’m deliberately leaving it unfinished for reasons far too complicated to explain. That has to be one of the most disjointed reviews I’ve ever written, but the book itself wasn’t very cohesive. It’s what I deserve I suppose for going page by page through my (messy!) notes from January when I started the book. I’d like to say I’m going to have a lot of time to read on the Civil War for my class project, but I doubt that’s going to be the case.
Unfortunately I’m not enjoying Lincoln at Gettysburg too much. There are a few interesting aspects, which I’ll note when the book is not in the car, but it’s not what I’d hoped it would be. I got a clearer picture of Lincoln’s words and their impact from speaking with the various guides while at Gettysburg. I suppose this book could serve as a primer though, or someone who wants to deeply analyze the drafts and the various parties.I picked up They Met at Gettysburg, and I have higher hopes for that.
Literature and history are often entwined, as we saw with CitA when the author had the chance to meet with Shelby Foote. The idea of having the opportunity to meet an author while on site (Foote in this case is clearly not an option) might be a way to entice visitors. It would allow them to put a face with the history of the place and bring it a bit more to life. This could be a way to bring those visitors classed as “somewhat likely” to come because it could be a deciding factor. I’d love the chance to meet an author and see what drew their interest in a subject. Hmmm.
