All Manner of War

Book excerpt: Sending four sons to war while meeting the challenges of the farm on the hill they cherish, an Alabama family experiences the War Between the States from different viewpoints, facing all manner of war on all fronts and at home. They are changed forever through the long five years of the war, coming face-to-face with so many pivotal events of the times. As much as the political circumstances of the day drive their actions and decisions, they come to realize they are a family connected by a common cause, that their family is the most important gift they have, to be treasured and protected. No matter who the enemy at the door, or the challenges they face, the common theme is the family spirit and driving desire to be whole again on the hill they call home. As each son joins the Confederate Army to serve with General Lee in Virginia, ride with the cavalry in Tennessee, or suffer the tedium of fort life on the gulf, each experiences the time in similar but different ways. The family at home must handle the burden of a blockaded existence while holding out hope and prayers for the sons to return home, while losses from the hill mount by the score. It is a story filled with desperation, fear, anger, and exhilaration, a journey through every emotion of the human soul.