Harriet Tubman is one of the giants of American history—a fearless visionary who led scores of her fellow slaves to freedom and battled courageously behind enemy lines during the Civil War. And yet in the nine decades since her death; next to nothing has been written about this extraordinary woman aside from juvenile biographies. The truth about Harriet Tubman has become lost inside a legend woven of racial and gender stereotypes. Now at last; in this long-overdue biography; historian Kate Clifford Larson gives Harriet Tubman the powerful; intimate; meticulously detailed life she deserves.Drawing from a trove of new documents and sources as well extensive genealogical research; Larson reveals Tubman as a complex woman— brilliant; shrewd; deeply religious; and passionate in her pursuit of freedom. The descendant of the vibrant; matrilineal Asanti people of the West African Gold Coast; Tubman was born into slavery on the Eastern Shore of Maryland but refused to spend her life in bondage. While still a young woman she embarked on a perilous journey of self-liberation—and then; having won her own freedom; she returned again and again to liberate family and friends; tapping into the Underground Railroad. Yet despite her success; her celebrity; her close ties with Northern politicians and abolitionists; Tubman suffered crushing physical pain and emotional setbacks. Stripping away myths and misconceptions; Larson presents stunning new details about Tubman’s accomplishments; personal life; and influence; including her relationship with Frederick Douglass; her involvement with John Brown’s raid on Harpers Ferry; and revelations about a young woman who may have been Tubman’s daughter. Here too are Tubman’s twilight years after the war; when she worked for women’s rights and in support of her fellow blacks; and when racist politicians and suffragists marginalized her contribution.Harriet Tubman; her life and her work; remain an inspiration to all who value freedom. Now; thanks to Larson’s breathtaking biography; we can finally appreciate Tubman as a complete human being—an American hero; yes; but also a woman who loved; suffered; and sacrificed. Bound for the Promised Land is a magnificent work of biography; history; and truth telling.
#1406915 in Books David Gates 1997-10-31Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.10 x .90 x 6.10l; 1.15 #File Name: 0340614471324 pagesThe Napoleonic Wars 1803 1815
Review
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Excellent general overview of the Napoleonic WarsBy AWIn The Napoleonic Wars; 1803-1815; David Gates provides an excellent overview of the Napoleonic era. The book is primarily a survey of the period. The emphasis is on breadth and not necessarily depth; and I would recommend it to those looking for greater exposure and understanding of the general storyline of the Napoleonic Wars; or those who are familiar with the period but wish to add a solid survey work to their collection.The book is well written and I greatly appreciated Gates's organizational structure. The book generally follows a chronological approach; beginning with the breakdown in French-British relations after the Treaty of Amiens and ending with a brief summary of the postwar political situation after Napoleon's final defeat and exile. Interspersed within these chronological chapters are topical chapters that cover specific socio-economic; political; or military trends that are necessary for understanding the greater context of the chronological narrative. This is; in my opinion; an ideal format for covering such a lengthy and complex time period. However; such an approach does suffer from the occasional need in the topical chapters to mention events that have not yet been covered as part of the chronological narrative. There were times that I felt previous knowledge of the Napoleonic Wars was an advantage; as some topics are only afforded superficial coverage. Generally speaking though; this was not a major issue and a newcomer to the topic should do very well with the book.Gates has a fantastic introductory chapter in which he clearly specifies his own approach to the book; with frank admission that his interest is in the military and political development throughout the era. This focus definitely permeates the work; with only relatively light coverage of sociological aspects. Gates also takes us to a philosophical place prior to diving into the era--he reminds us not to confuse "history" with "fact;" as all of history is filtered through the sieves created by those who write it down and organize it.I believe that Gates does an excellent job of covering the time period in a neutral fashion; but some may consider him to have a pro-Napoleon slant. He does on several occasions specifically criticize the approach of authors and works that could be considered hostile to Napoleon (for example; Esdaile's The Wars of Napoleon and--to a far lesser extent--Connelly's Blundering to Glory). That said; he does not necessarily defend Napoleon or his policies; but rather attempts to refute the logic or arguments presented by these authors. He also on rarer occasions rebuts other authors' support of Napoleon; the most conspicuous example being his disagreement with Hamilton-Williams's (The Fall of Napoleon) assertion that Napoleon's downfall was caused by traitors and conspirators. Here Gates emphasizes for us that Napoleon's martial policies and his efforts to prolong a war that France had long since lost enthusiasm for must certainly be considered when examining his demise.Though I enjoyed Gates's writing style; I often found battle descriptions dizzyingly confusing. Though the battle narrative itself is solid; it is very difficult to understand battle narrative without strong maps to help the reader visualize troop positioning and movements. Unfortunately; the maps in the book are awful. There are far too few of them and they are not overly informative on the rare occasions they are added to the narrative. But that is often a critique I have of military history books. You may want to have a military atlas handy while reading this book. One thing I found particularly odd about the battle narratives was how differently Gates treated them from one coalition war to another. For example; he spent many pages detailing the Battles of Jena and Auerstedt in the War of the Fourth Coalition; with comprehensive analysis on troop movements and incremental developments in the carnage. But other epic battles such as Vitoria (Spain) and Borodino (the 1812 Invasion of Russia) only manage a paragraph or two; without the same level of detail.A criticism related to the organizational aspect of the book is its lack of headings within chapters. I appreciate these in historical non-fiction; as I believe it helps keep the chronological and topical themes segmented into understandable components. Most of the chapters in this book do not have any headings or subheadings to help segment the topics/themes. In the few chapters that did utilize them; there was only one or two. If there is only going to be one heading halfway through a chapter; why even have one at all at that point? On the other hand (from an organizational perspective); I thought the author's use of chapter endnotes was excellent; and I liked how he weaved varying perspectives into his work (such as those of Esdaile and Connelly that I described above).For someone with a high degree of familiarity with the Napoleonic Wars; you won't find a great deal "new" in this account; but it is certainly valuable as a concise overview. I thought Chapter 3 "The War at Sea" was especially enjoyable primarily because I did learn a great deal from this chapter. The naval war within the Napoleonic Wars is rather mundane from a pitched battle standpoint; as there was only one real engagement of any significance (Trafalgar). Nevertheless; there is a story to tell about the navies of this period; and this topical chapter did a nice job of providing an overview of the naval conflict.This was a thoroughly enjoyable read and I was very pleased with the book. Its organization is excellent; as is the writing style. The maps are poor and that makes some of the battle narrative less engaging than it could have been. But the chronological chapters are still very informative and generally easy to follow and the political; economic; and military analyses in the topical chapters are thoughtful and interesting. David Gates has done a superb job with this work. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a general overview of the Napoleonic Wars.3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. All You Need to Know about Napoleonic BattlesBy Judith K. BinneyThis is truly a military history; with all details on the various fronts of various campaigns. It demystifies a lot of it; but I would have hoped to have a more political context to put it all into: the why's and strategies on all sides. Also more psychology of Napoleon as he forges though the action. That's probably another book.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Good for the series it is part of.By Nicholas RobertsDavid Gates writes a neutral and encompassing book on the Napoleonic Wars in this volume. These modern war series are not mean to be all encompassing but rather as introductions that cover every aspect of the war. Therefore Gates covers the causes; the campaigns; the economic and social impacts; and the future effects of the war. If you are looking for an in depth analysis of the war's campaigns I would not suggest this book. It basically scratched the surface of all the different topics dealing with the wars of Napoleon. Nevertheless it is informative and interesting and includes a great bibliography if you want to know more information.
