This is a collection of nine short stories taking place during the Civil War, all written by author Jack Matthews. The author's stories are unbiased, not favoring either North or South, which is admirable. I like the way that many of his stories "lapse into philosophy", often touching on some very interesting and thought-provoking subjects. The book also includes a preface, Jack Matthew's obituary, a section on further readings in Civil War fiction, and a couple pages about the author in the back. My personal favorite is "Lamp in the Window". The stories included within are as follows:

Requiem on the Rappahannock: A young man is sent to deliver the message to a certain general that his wife died in birthing a dead baby, but when he gets there his order is countermanded by a different superior officer, and he is told NOT to deliver the message. Whose order should he follow?

End of Whiskey: During a drunken brawl, soldier Mike Lynch brutally beats up fellow soldier Elias Briggs, who will never be the same again. The people want a hero to take on Lynch and give him a dose of his own medicine, and ex-farm boy Jesse Tattersall is elected. Jesse is strong, but he doesn't know if he could do it. Who will win the fight?

Conroy's Ghost: Two brothers join the Confederate army, the older brother vowing to take care of his younger brother Conroy if things get tough. In the first battle, the promise is neglected, and Conroy is wounded. The wound turns gangrenous, and it doesn't look good for Conroy. Will the older sibling ever be able to forgive himself if Conroy dies?

Lamp in the Window: An old man now, Charles Kennerly recounts a battle during his youth when he was a Confederate captain, lying wounded and bleeding on a battlefield. What comes out in his scrawled handwriting is a fantastical and unbelievable story that will provoke thoughts rendered otherwise unthinkable by their astounding audacity.

Here Lies Billy Talbert, Dead and Gone: A Union soldier, Billy Talbert, is fixated on the idea that his death is near, and worries about what his tombstone should say. Simple minded, he repeats each epitaph that comes to him over and over to all who will listen, bringing down everybody's morale and driving everyone crazy. What can the officers do to stop this madness?

The Silver Link: A young Confederate private and a maid are sweethearts, and are both illiterate. The private asks a lieutenant to write his letters for him, and the maid asks her mistress (Miss Tilden) to read them for her and write back. As they continue corresponding, the lieutenant and Miss Tilden start to feel an affinity towards each other, and fall in love.

Johnny Kincaid: Gus and his older brother join the Union. Measles plagues the camp, and a man dies. When they go to bury him, they find men digging a hole for somebody else. Gus dumps the body in the hole and thinks nothing of it... until Gus gets very ill, and in his delusion the man's ghost who's grave he stole comes back to haunt him.

Stop Thine Ear Against the Singer: A young Union soldier is severely wounded in an explosion, and is left only half a man. A kindly Southern lady takes him in, takes good care of him, reads to him, and helps him heal. But is there an ulterior motive for her helping a soldier fighting for the opposite side?

The Killing of Old Mortality: When the hero of this story is given the duty of finding and killing a sniper hidden in the hills who was picking them off one by one, he is told to pick one man to come with him. He picks the one man nobody thought he would: a hypochondriac who never stopped talking, and who everybody disliked. Did he make the right choice? ( )

As a big fan of Civil War Era history, I LOVED this collection of stories. It doesn't show the battle part of the war, but rather, the non-battle portion, where the soldiers mingle with each other and the happenings that would go on in the encampments. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who loves history, of any kind! ( )