Liar, temptress, soldier, spy : four women undercover in the Civil War

Title:

Author:

Kahler, Abbott, 1973-

ISBN:

9780062092892

Personal Author:

Kahler, Abbott, 1973-

Edition:

First edition.

Publication Information:

New York, NY : Harper, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, [2014]

Physical Description:

xiii, 513 pages : illustrations, map ; 24 cm

Contents:

Splendid and silent suns (a note) -- The fastest girl in Virginia (or anywhere else for that matter) -- Our woman -- A shaft in her quiver -- As if they were chased by demons -- Never as pretty as her portrait shows -- Little rebel heart on fire -- Admirable self-denial -- The birds of the air -- The secret room -- Stakeout -- Hard to name -- Crinoline and quinine -- Dark and gloomy perils -- Unmasked -- The defenseless sex -- Not your ideal of a beautiful soldier -- She will fool you out of your eyes -- Rebel vixens of the slave states -- Wise as serpents and harmless as doves -- A woman usually tells all she knows -- A slave called "Ned" -- Perfectly insane on the subject of men -- The other side of the river -- My love to all the dear boys -- One grain of manhood -- The madam looks much changed -- The Secesh Cleopatra -- The bright rush of life, The hurry of death -- She breathes, she burns -- The still, small voice -- Richmond underground -- Playing dead -- When you think he may be killed tomorrow -- Bread or blood -- A wean that's born to be hung -- A dreadful blow -- No one ignorant of the danger -- La Belle Rebelle -- Women make war upon each other -- Please give us some of your blood -- That unhappy country -- Despicable remedies -- The sanctuary of a modest girl -- You are very poor company -- Be prudent and never come again -- Good-bye, Mrs. Greenhow -- This verdict of lunacy -- The delicacy of the situation -- Not at all changed by death -- The sweet little man -- Like most of her sex -- The way a child loves its mother -- As this mighty work was done.

Abstract:

"The never-before-told story of four real-life women who risked everything to take on a life of espionage during the Civil War"--Provided by publisher.

Personal Subject:

Boyd, Belle, 1844-1900.

Greenhow, Rose O'Neal, 1814-1864.

Van Lew, Elizabeth L., 1818-1900.

Bowser, Mary Elizabeth, approximately 1840-

Subject Term:

Women spies -- United States -- Biography.

Women spies -- Confederate States of America -- Biography.

Geographic Term:

United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Secret service.

United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Participation, Female.

United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Women.

United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Biography.

Genre:

Biography.

History.

Document ID:

SD_ILS:2156114

Holds: Copies:

Available:*

Library	Collection	Collection	Call Number	Status
Searching... Beale Memorial Library (Kern Co.)	Searching... Unknown	Adult Non-Fiction	973.785 ABB	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Selma Branch Library (Fresno Co.)	Searching... Unknown	Non-fiction Area	973.785 ABB	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Sunnyside Branch Library (Fresno Co.)	Searching... Unknown	Non-fiction Area	973.785 ABB	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Visalia Library (Tulare Co.)	Searching... Unknown	Non-Fiction Area	973.785 ABB	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

Karen Abbott, the New York Times bestselling author of Sin in the Second City and "pioneer of sizzle history" (USA Today), tells the spellbinding true story of four women who risked everything to become spies during the Civil War.

Karen Abbott illuminates one of the most fascinating yet little known aspects of the Civil War: the stories of four courageous women--a socialite, a farmgirl, an abolitionist, and a widow--who were spies.

After shooting a Union soldier in her front hall with a pocket pistol, Belle Boyd became a courier and spy for the Confederate army, using her charms to seduce men on both sides. Emma Edmonds cut off her hair and assumed the identity of a man to enlist as a Union private, witnessing the bloodiest battles of the Civil War. The beautiful widow, Rose O'Neale Greenhow, engaged in affairs with powerful Northern politicians to gather intelligence for the Confederacy, and used her young daughter to send information to Southern generals. Elizabeth Van Lew, a wealthy Richmond abolitionist, hid behind her proper Southern manners as she orchestrated a far-reaching espionage ring, right under the noses of suspicious rebel detectives.

Using a wealth of primary source material and interviews with the spies' descendants, Abbott seamlessly weaves the adventures of these four heroines throughout the tumultuous years of the war. With a cast of real-life characters including Walt Whitman, Nathaniel Hawthorne, General Stonewall Jackson, detective Allan Pinkerton, Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln, and Emperor Napoleon III, Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy draws you into the war as these daring women lived it.

Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy contains 39 black & photos and 3 maps.

Author Notes

Karen Abbott was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She worked as a journalist for several years at Philadelphia magazine and Philadelphia Weekly. She also wrote for Salon.com and other publications. She has written several books including Sin in the Second City and American Rose.

(Bowker Author Biography)

Reviews (4)

Publisher's Weekly Review

In this gripping book, Abbott (Sin in the Second City) tells the moving and fascinating story of four women who played unconventional roles during the Civil War: Belle Boyd, a boisterous flirt and Confederate spy; Rose Greenhow, a seductive widow also spying for the South; Emma Edmondson, who disguised herself as a man and enlisted in the Union army; and Elizabeth Van Lew, a wealthy spinster in the Confederate capital with Unionist loyalties. Meticulously researched and fluidly written, this book draws the reader in and doesn't let go until the four heroines draw their final breaths. Abbott provides an alternate view of this tumultuous time in history by featuring previously untold stories of the impact women and civilians had on the war effort, and she brings these individuals fully to life, with their passion for their causes (Elizabeth for abolitionism, Rose for the Confederacy), personal flaws (Rose was racist and self-involved, Belle was impulsive and vain), and heartbreak (Emma by two different men, Belle for an opposing spy). For example, in an era when men had trouble even picturing women in pants, Emma Edmondson enlisted as a man in the Union army and saw action in her roles as both spy and nurse. In the end, Abbott tells a remarkable story of passion, strength, and resilience. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Kirkus Review

Four Civil War subversiveswho happened to be womengarner a lively treatment.Having previously written on Gypsy Rose Lee (American Rose) and the Everleigh brothel in turn-of-the-century Chicago (Sin in the Second City), Abbott finds some sympathetic, fiery characters in these four women who managed to aid their causes, either North or South, in their own particular ways. Belle Boyd, a 17-year-old farmers daughter from Martinsburg, Virginia, which had voted three to one against secession, declared her loyalty to the Southern cause by shooting a Yankee soldier who dared to touch her mother, and thereby took advantage of the confusion and movement of troops to slip through the lines and pass secrets; she was in and out of jail during the course of the war. Emma Edmonds, having left the family farm in 1859 to reinvent herself as a man selling Bibles door to door, offered herself to the Union cause two years later, serving mostly in a medical capacity. According to Abbott, Edmonds was one of 400 women, Northern and Southern, who posed as men. Rose Greenhow, a comely widow and grieving mother of some means in Washington, D.C., fashioned herself as a spy for the Southern cause, learning code, passing messages wound in her servants hair and inviting all kinds of late-night gentlemen callers; Greenhow would eventually go abroad to drum up sympathy for the Confederacy in England and France, turning her charms on Napoleon III and others. A wealthy Richmond spinster, Elizabeth Van Lew had deep Yankee roots in her family and was unique in that she cultivated intricate subterfuge right under her Southern neighbors nosese.g., passing Confederate troops movements to Gen. Benjamin Butler. Abbott proceeds chronologically, navigating the historical record through quotes and personal detail.Remarkable, brave lives rendered in a fluidly readable, even romantic history lesson. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Booklist Review

Abbott (Sin in the Second City, 2007; American Rose, 2010) is attuned to women's social history. In her latest slice of female Americana, she tackles the Civil War. Not all females stayed put and kept the home fires burning as the U.S. disintegrated. Four extraordinary women, by dint of a combination of creativity, cunning, and chutzpah, bravely defied nineteenth-century gender norms and expectations, doing all they could do to support their chosen sides. Spitfire Emma Edwards disguised herself as a man and joined the Union Army. Belle Boyd became a teenage courier and a Confederate spy. Rose Greenhow, a Washington, D.C.-based seductress, aided the rebel cause by using her feminine wiles to wrest secrets from unsuspecting males. Wealthy abolitionist Elizabeth Van Lew orchestrated an intricate network of Union spies. This inspiring collective biography reads like a novel while shedding some much-needed light on fascinating chapters in both Civil War and women's history.--Flanagan, Margaret Copyright 2014 Booklist

Library Journal Review

In this riveting work, Abbott (Sin in the Second City) tells the story of the Civil War through the eyes of four women who dared to risk everything to serve as spies for their respective causes. Unlike biographical works such as Larry G. Eggleston's Women in the Civil War that devote a chapter to each subject, these women's tales move from one account to the next throughout the years. The result is a highly entertaining narrative with the pace and tone of a novel, albeit one told from the singular viewpoint of women who had an unusual amount of access to both Union and Confederate military and political leaders. Of particular interest are references to Mary Bowser, whose placement inside Jefferson Davis's household by her employer Elizabeth Van Lew is a missed opportunity for a broader perspective on undercover activities. Extensive research drawn from analysis of personal papers, newspapers, and official records provides authentic dialog, and the author takes great care in noting discrepancies or questionable claims. VERDICT This fresh perspective on what is perhaps a familiar story will cause readers to ponder the fine line between traitors and patriots. [See Prepub Alert, 1/10/14.]-Barbara Ferrara, Chesterfield Cty. P.L., VA (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Splendid and Silent Suns (A Note)	p. xi
Part 1 1861
The Fastest Girl in Virginia (Or Anywhere Else for that Matter)	p. 3
Our Woman	p. 11
A Shaft in her Quiver	p. 20
As if they were Chased By Demons	p. 31
Never as Pretty as her Portrait Shows	p. 37
Little Rebel Heart on Fire	p. 49
Admirable Self-Denial	p. 57
The Birds of the Air	p. 66
The Secret Room	p. 75
Stake-Out	p. 84
Hard to Name	p. 89
Crinoline and Quinine	p. 96
Dark and Gloomy Perils	p. 104
Unmasked	p. 119
The Defenseless Sex	p. 124
Part 2 1862
Not Your Ideal of a Beautiful Soldier	p. 133
She Will Fool You Out Of Your Eyes	p. 141
Rebel Vixens of the Slave States	p. 151
Wise as Serpents and Harmless as Doves	p. 158
A Woman Usually Tells All She Knows	p. 167
A Slave Called "Ned"	p. 178
Perfectly Insane on the Subject of Men	p. 187
The Other Side of the River	p. 193
My Love to All the Dear Boys	p. 200
One Grain of Manhood	p. 210
The Madam Looks Much Changed	p. 215
The Secesh Cleopatra	p. 218
The Bright Rush of Life, The Hurry of Death	p. 224
She Breathes, She Burns	p. 234
The Still, Small Voice	p. 242
Richmond Underground	p. 250
Playing Dead	p. 261
Part 3 1863
When You Think He May Be Killed Tomorrow	p. 275
Bread or Blood	p. 283
A Wean that's Born to Be Hung	p. 289
A Dreadful Blow	p. 293
No One Ignorant of the Danger	p. 303
La Belle Resells	p. 312
Women Make War Upon Each Other
Please Give Us Some of Your Blood	p. 325
Part 4 1864
That Unhappy Country	p. 335
Despicable Remedies	p. 341
The Sanctuary of a Modest Girl	p. 349
You are Very Poor Company	p. 356
Be Prudent and Never Come Again	p. 360
Good-Bye, Mrs. Greenhow	p. 368
This Verdict of Lunacy	p. 373
The Delicacy of the Situation	p. 381
Not at All Changed By Death	p. 386
The Sweet Little Man	p. 391
Like Most of Her Sex	p. 396
Part 5 1865
The Way a Child Loves Its Mother	p. 401
As this Mighty Work Was Done	p. 405
Epilogue	p. 413
Acknowledgments	p. 431
Credits	p. 435
Notes	p. 437
Bibliography	p. 483
Index	p. 497

Available:*

Bound With These Titles

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Summary

Summary

Author Notes

Reviews (4)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Kirkus Review

Booklist Review

Library Journal Review

Table of Contents