Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy: Four Women Undercover in the Civil War by Karen Abbott (Audio Review)

I have a huge interest in the Civil War; especially the women who lived during such a turbulent time.  If I could do my education all over again, I would probably continue studying Civil War America, and most definitely would pursue a doctorate with a concentration in women of the South.  

But life took me in another direction.  So  instead I'll be content reading interesting books like Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy  by Karen Abbott.  What an enormous amount of work Karen Abbot much have put into this history book about four women:  Elizabeth Van Lew, Emma Edmonds, Belle Boyd, and Rose Greenhow.  These women were spies during the Civil War, and what they did was nothing short of amazing.  

Elizabeth Van Lew was a wealthy spinster in Richmond, VA.  Her family were abolitionists, and she ran a huge spy ring for the North during the years of the Civil War (1861-65).  Using her inheritance, she bought slaves and set them free, often having them work as paid house staff.  She sent her freed (no one knew outside the home her "slaves" were actually freed people)servant Mary Bowser to the Confederate White House to work for Jefferson Davis.  Mary Bowser was another famous spy for the North.  She saved countless Union soldiers from horrific prison conditions by helping to maintain a vast underground system to move escaped Union prisoners back to Washington D.C..  All of this under the ever-increasing animosity of her fellow Richmond citizens, who knew she was a Union sympathizer and ostracized her in Richmond society.  

Emma Edmonds was a Canadian who joined the Michigan forces for the Union and disguised herself as a man quite successfully from 1861-63.  She took part in battles, was recruited as a spy, and kept her secret the whole time.  She only finally "deserted" the army when she came down with malaria and knew she needed to get to a hospital.  Her only recourse was to leave her male identity behind and start life over again as a female nurse. 

Belle Boyd was a young 17 year old Rebel who shot a Union soldier for harassing her mother in their home.  She used her coquettish ways, womanly wiles, and sweet talk to carry messages to Stonewall Jackson's camp; send troop movement information to various generals, and spent time in a Union prison after being caught with suspicious documents.  She was defiant and didn't try to hide her affection for the Southern cause from anyone.  

Rose Greenhow was a widower living in Washington, D.C. with her young daughter Rose.  She used her position in Washington society to spy for the Confederates, pass information she charmed out of Union generals along to Southern contacts, and also spent time in a Union prison for spying.   She even had Alan Pinkerton tailing her around Washington and peeking in her windows.  

Each of these women were remarkable in their fierce devotion to their beliefs, even if they were on opposite sides.  We sometimes forget how ingenious women can be when placed within the strictures of societal norms.  Emma may have been the only one to see actual fighting, but they were all in a dangerous game that could have seen them all shot or hung if convicted of spying.  They used all their smarts, wits, and charm to work around the system and made a large impact on both sides of the Civil War.  Battles were fought and won because of these women.  Men were saved because of these women.  

I listened to the audio of this book and thoroughly enjoyed it.  A mixture of diary entries, letters, and newspaper articles give this a strong historical background, yet it was never tedious or dull.   I loved it!  

Rating:  8/10 for a look at four remarkable women who stood up for what they believed in and never wavered in their fight for their cause.  

Available in hardcover, paperback, e-book, and audio.
 

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Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy: Four Women Undercover in the Civil War by Karen Abbott (Audio Review)

Better Than Before: Mastering the Habits of Our Everyday Lives by Gretchen Rubin

I'm still listening to audio books on my commute, and I grabbed this at the library in a quick rush a few weeks ago.  It was interesting, and I learned a few things about habits and why it can be difficult for me to create a habit and stick to it.  

Gretchen Rubin is the author of The Happiness Project, and this woman is one organized person.  I can see that establishing a foundation of good habits would make your life less stressful and happier.  It's sticking to those habits, and the tools we use to do so, that is the emphasis of this book.

Gretchen says there are 4 types of personalities:  the upholder, the questioner, the obliger, and the rebel.  I can see that my man Bud is an upholder (someone who creates, plans, and carries out a habit to the nth degree), and I am an obliger.  I am someone who will stick to a habit if there is someone I need to be accountable to (and being accountable to myself isn't as important as this outside person) because I don't want to let them down. That was an eye-opener for me.  I thought, duh!  It's so obvious that I'm an obliger; that answers so many questions I've had about my failure to cultivate good habits that will benefit me and only me.  A questioner will create a habit only after questioning everything about it; a rebel will do what they want to do--if you tell them to do something, they won't.  

Gretchen also talks about all the ways we work around keeping habits; the tips and techniques that can fail, depending on which personality you are in the habit world.  The "power hour" is a great tip:  take one hour, and tackle that one thing you keep putting off.  Use only that hour to do it.  Another tip is to schedule, another is to recognize if having a "goal", or stopping point, is a good thing for you to have when forming a habit.  This was also an "aha" moment for me.  I've had goals on starting a running habit to train for races, and sure enough, after each big race, I decrease my running, until I've stopped completely.  So having a goal which creates a stop sign in my head is bad for me.  I have to figure out instead how I can continue my habit even after hitting those races.  

I have to say, this audio was an interesting way to pass my commuting time.  I did get a bit tired of Gretchen, though.  She's an upholder, and sticks to habits pretty darn well.  I felt sometimes that I could never form and stick to habits as well as Gretchen does.  I would have rather read this book so I could take notes.  Listening to it was interesting, but I think I missed out on being able to stop and make notes and underline parts of the book for reference.  

This is no hard science book, but more a book for the everyday person looking to work on cultivating a better life through habits.  It is true for me that having a schedule and forming habits that are life-long are good for me.  It gave me some food for thought.  

Rating:  6/10 for an interesting look at habits and how we succeed or fail at them.  I did tune out every once in a while, and I would have preferred a print copy to take notes.  I found myself getting impatient for the end of the audio because it seemed a bit repetitive after awhile. 

Available in hardcover, paperback, audio, and e-book.

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Better Than Before: Mastering the Habits of Our Everyday Lives by Gretchen Rubin