The Retreat of Norris and Mcmanus

Book excerpt: From 18611865, the Great American Civil War raged. It is generally taught as though it were a well-scripted movie with a definitive beginning and end. Images and stories from the horribly littered Gettysburg battlefield to the Appomattox surrender from General Lee to General Grant have all the trappings of a powerfully executed drama, and with the coda of Lincolns assassination, the story could not be more complete. But while the massive engagements on the innumerable fields of battle were relegated to the history books and museums, the hearts and minds that fed the fire that nearly consumed the country have never truly surrendered. In 2008, with the election of a descendant of the slavery system to the highest office in the land, it seemed the perfect moment to finally declare, once and for all, that America had healed itself from that wretched war and was ready to fold the flags for goodat least in a poetic sense. Sadly, it turned instead to be the beginning of a shabby sequel to one of the greatest films ever made. In 2015, weve come to view divided as the new norm in American society: red state and blue state. And while it might make for good television, it has left us with a lousy, dysfunctional society. This novel is drawn from both Civil Wars. If you enjoy a good yarn filled with the incredulous that simultaneously addresses the politics of the present, you hold in your hands a rare treat. So get your flags out, get loud and get proud, and rock this bad boy for all its worth!