Escape from Andersonville: A Novel of the Civil War

by Gene Hackman, Daniel Lenihan

An explosive novel of the Civil War about one man’s escape from a notorious Confederate prison camp---and his dramatic return to save his men. July 1864. Union officer Nathan Parker has been imprisoned at nightmarish Andersonville prison camp in Georgia along with his soldiers. As others die around them, Nathan and his men hatch a daring plan to allow him to escape through a tunnel and make his way to Vicksburg, where he intends to alert his superiors to the imprisonment and push for military action. His efforts are blocked by higher-ups in the military, so Parker takes matters into his own hands. Together with a shady, dangerous ex-soldier and smuggler named Marcel Lafarge and a fascinating collection of cutthroats, soldiers, and castoffs, a desperate Parker organizes a private rescue mission to free his men before it’s too late. Exciting, thoroughly researched, and dramatic, Escape from Andersonville is a Civil War novel filled with action, memorable characters, and vividly realized descriptions of the war’s final year.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Civil War, Fiction, Book Club, Novels

342 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 2008

About the author

Eugene Allen Hackman was an American actor and novelist. In a career that spanned six decades, he received two Academy Awards, two British Academy Films Awards and four Golden Globes.

Hackman's two Academy Award wins were for Best Actor for his role as Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle in William Friedkin's action thriller The French Connection (1971) and for Best Supporting Actor for his role as a villainous Sheriff in Clint Eastwood's Western film Unforgiven(1992).

He was Oscar-nominated for his roles as Buck Barrow in the crime drama Bonnie and Clyde (1967), a college professor in the drama I Never Sang for My Father(1970), and an FBI agent in the historical drama Mississippi Burning (1988).

Hackman gained further fame for his portrayal of Lex Luthor in Superman (1978) and its sequel Superman II (1980). He also acted in: The Poseidon Adventure (1972), Scarecrow (1973), The Conversation (1974), A Bridge Too Far (1977), Under Fire (1983), Power (1986), Loose Cannons (1990), The Firm (1993), The Quick and the Dead (1995), The Birdcage (1996), Enemy of the State (1998), Behind Enemy Lines (2001) and Runaway Jury (2003). He retired from acting after starring in Welcome to Mooseport (2004).

Together with undersea archaeologist Daniel Lenihan, Hackman wrote three historical fiction novels: Wake of the Perdido Star (1999), a sea adventure of the 19th century; Justice for None (2004),a Depression-era tale of murder based on a real-life crime in his boyhood town of Danville; and Escape from Andersonville (2008), about a prison escape during the American Civil War.

His first solo effort, a story of love and revenge set in the Old West titled Payback at Morning Peak
His final novel Pursuit, a police thriller, followed in 2013

Reviews

[Nick · Rating 2 out of 5]

George Witte and Marc Resnick, editors. Sarah Lumnah, assistant editor. Rafal Gibek, production editor. Charles Haecker and Art Gomez, historian advisors. These people have much to answer for.
While Escape from Andersonville had an interesting premise, the actual execution failed in ways that could have, and should have been fixed during the editing phase, and the historical research was either very sloppy or mis-edited out of all comprehension.
The basic idea, that a military commander would be so obsessed with the safety of his men that he would attempt a raid to rescue them was fine. The thing is, as he goes up the chain of command to try to get the Union Army to rescue the prisoners at Andersonville, he is met with refusals, none of which contained the important, factual information: "We tried that, and it didn't work."
So, with the aid of a Louisiana freebooter with an odd sense of priorities, he puts together a private army and tries on his own. No plan, just ride up to a guarded prison, grab his own former troops, and escape, just like that. No, really.
As far as the historical parts, Tuscaloosa's capture and the burning of the University there were moved forward by a month from reality for no apparent reason. The timeline is already pretty bizarre, even without that. The central character rides hundreds of miles in a couple of days [offstage, of course] during the climactic chapters, and there is a phantom sharpshooter of almost supernatural nature and strange goals who is disposed of [off-stage], after a big build-up. In fact, several key scenes just aren't in the actual book. They happen when the reader's back is turned.
Then there's the editing. Odd word errors and incorrect word substitutions run rampant. On a revolver, the cylinder and the barrel are not the same thing. A copperhead and a carpetbagger are not the same thing. Fort Sumter and Camp Sumter are not the same place. No, really, they're not. A steamboat cabin is made to "look used" by having everything removed [?!?].
Worst, though, are the characters. Other than Captain Parker, a man who is obsessed, murderous and not very likeable, the cast consists of cardboard cutout characters, most of whom are defined by their own disreputable behavior, and get killed off almost randomly. Parker's quixotic quest kills off far more people than he was trying to save.
Gene Hackman and his co-author had a really good story idea, and a few really good scenes which kept this from receiving only one star, but overall it should have been better.

[Anup Sinha · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a Civil War tale that does a good job putting you in the time and making you live and breathe from the fringes of the War Between the States. If you’re looking for character development or great prose, you will be disappointed. And while there was some mystery and anticipation, there wasn’t nearly enough created by the narrative as there could have been.

Being a Civil War buff myself and one who has visited Andersonville, I found those descriptions of great interest. I just didn’t think the plot twists were all that great.

Admittedly, I am a huge Gene Hackman fan, he has been my favorite actor since he played Lex Luthor and that alone made me curious to read one of his books.

As far as I can tell, it is well-researched and serves as a quality period piece.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite being just a tad on the grisly side....because it's about the worst war we've ever had....this is a great read because it's about history with enough romance and humor to make the grisly stuff tolerable.

[Greg Chesser · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad, slow in some parts, rushed in others, but a good story.
A union captain escapes from Andersonville and puts together a gang to get the rest of his men out.
They do a really good job of explaining just how horrific Andersonville was.

[Jane · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was one of the worst books I have ever read. It was unnecessarily inappropriate at various points, which did not add to the story at all. I was disgusted by these in-detail, corrupted, and descriptive scenes in the story. Yes, it depicted Andersonville's conditions correctly, but we aren't really inside Andersonville at all other than in the very beginning. I found myself very lost for a large portion of my time spent reading. I am doing a project on this book which requires a long summary, and it was extremely difficult for me to put anything into words because of how dysfunctional the plot was. Almost the entire plot was about two men walking around and running into people. It was far too dragged out and not significant. If I were to know about this book beforehand, I would have never chosen to read it.

[Dawn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is the story of Captain Nathan Parker, a Union leader whose capture, escape, and then attempt to rescue his remaining company men from Andersonville's notorious Camp Sumter led to a bright future for himself and his children. Unfortunately, the horror he and his men experienced was something from which no man could truly recover. Co-written by actor and former Marine Gene Hackman, the book is full of colorful characters, intense fighting, and calm, touching moments. We listened to the audio book on a trip to the site of Andersonville prison and national cemetery, and it just added a more personal experience to the somber historical site.

[Jeri Stockdale · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent historical fiction novel about the Civil War and moments of hope during a terrible time. The hero, Captain Parker, is a likeable man whom we cheer on throughout the story. Not much of the story takes place in Andersonville, which makes it easier to read, since the atrocities of how prisoners were treated there are well documented. Instead, we see a soldier committed to helping his men, persevering against all odds, and inspiring us that whatever happens in our own lives, we can persevere too.

[Joe Stack · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an entertaining Civil War road story of an assortment of ne’er-do-well and shady castoffs lead by a straight arrow former Union Army captain and a smuggler. For the first, say, two thirds of the story it’s an adventure on the road with characters working out their relationships as the story works its way to a tense and action filled climax. For the two leading characters, Nathan Parker and Marcel Lafarge, it is buddy road trip story.

Even though there is some predictability to the story, the authors do a nice job with the page turning pacing.

[Ron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gene Hackman needs to stick to acting, although he is retired. This book leaves a lot to be desired. It tended to be slow paced until about two-thirds of the way through. The last third was okay. Unless you are hard up to read something, try skipping this one. Sorry Mr. hackman. You are a great actor but leave the writing to the professionals.

[Backoff51 · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really good novel about the 5th Michigan federal soldiers who ended up in the Confederate prison in Andersonville, living in dreadful and life ending circumstances. The hero of the story is Captain Nathan Parker who managed to escape from the prison with the pledge to get his men out as soon as possible.

The novel is full of adventure.

[Deb Millett · Rating 2 out of 5]

I struggled to finish this book. Despite a promising start (in the bloody aftermath of battle), the book hardly spends any time after capture in Andersonville. Once Capt, Parker escapes, the book slows down and meanders.

[William Richardson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started this book wondering just how good it could be. It was amazing, really loved it. It struck me with being how I would have seen the civil war and what it did to people. So much truth to be found in this, wonderful characters, great plot and really believable. Great read.

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once again I enjoyed Gene Hackman's writing. This one is co-written with his friend and neighbor Daniel Lenihan. It's a great story, emotionally moving and difficult to put down. Thank you to Mr Hackman and Mr Lenihan. I'll look for more of your stories.

[Gregory Van Den Berg · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had high expectations for the story. However, I was greatly disappointed by the story. The story, in my opinion, strayed too much from its original premise. The authors needed to stay focus on the one story line but went off on too many tangents. Read at your own risk.

[Albert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was good. Different almost like historical fiction.

[Mark Luongo · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fanciful tale of escape, evasion & rescue by none other than actor Gene Hackman and his co-author Daniel Lenahan. Pure "escapism", if I can be allowed the pun.

[Jimmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fair...found it a bit repetitive and drawn out.

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book started out amazing, and I really enjoyed Nathan, but then quickly went downhill.

For the first half of the book, things both went too quickly, then too slowly:
Nathan's prison time was fascinating and he was there for quite awhile, but the book skims over a lot of his stay and before I can get good and settled in, he has already escaped.
Then, while I am shouting for him to hurry up and get help for his men who are in horrible conditions, he takes his time recovering and traveling until over half a year has passed before he gets together a rescue party. I know that this is based somewhat on fact, but there was no sense of urgency from anyone but myself.

Then he meets Marcel. Marcel is an interesting secondary character, but then it felt like he was taking over the book. We started to get things in his viewpoint when there was no reason to be there. Nathan had tracked down some of his men for the first time and instead of knowing Nathan's thoughts while this was happening, we were in Marcel's viewpoint as he watched Nathan. This made no sense!

Book started out a solid 5 stars. Dropped to 4 for the hurried pacing, dropped to 3 for the lack of urgency, then poor POV dropped it to 2 stars.

I wouldn't mind reading another book by the same author because the writing was really good and interesting. Just too many poor decisions along the way for this one.

[Katharine Ott · Rating 3 out of 5]

"People say the smell of blood is reminiscent of copper." With the words "Civil War" in the title and the name "Gene Hackman" on the cover, this novel has probably garnered quite a bit of attention. It's not a book for the serious Civil War student interested in battle details and weapon and troop deployment descriptions, but should appeal to readers casually interested in that time period.

Hackman and co-author Daniel Lenihan have an authentic voice for the period and obviously did their research as they describe the horrific conditions at the Confederate prison Andersonville. "The stockade brought to mind a cheese box full of night crawlers..." Their hero, Nathan Parker, is a driven man whose goal of breaking his men out of the prison makes for lots of action. We encounter "...the excitment, the terrible energy of battle, and the closeness of men in arms against a common enemy."

Some of the writing in "Escape from Andersonville"seemed amateurish, and the progression was not as tightly plotted as it could have been, but all in all, Hackman and Lenihan wrote an entertaining rescue adventure.

[Sheila · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wanted to read this book about the Civil War because I had ancestors who fought in it. As a Canadian, I knew very little about the American Civil War. Captain Nathan Parker was in charge of a small group of mounted soldiers known as Parker's Rangers. When they are involved in a battle where they are out numbered and out maneuvered, Parker orders them to surrender. They are taken to a prison named Andersonville where the conditions are filthy and the food is almost non-existent. Parker has his men create a diversion so he can escape. He then tries to encourage the 'higher ups' to lead a force to rescue his men and the other Yankee Union prisoners. When all his attempts fail, he takes matters into his own hands. A good story, and I achieved what I wanted; to learn more about this piece of American history.

[Sam Pauley · Rating 1 out of 5]

While the writing was well done, the story was not. It was action packed in the beginning, the nothing. Where there should have been a climax, there wasn't. The book really could have been 1/2 of what it was and been a lot better.

[Nan Hawthorne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is nothing less than a "bromance novel". Yes, I meant to put the B in that. It is one of those novels where the two main male characters, though decidedly heteerosexual, have a clear courtship and usually a tragic appotheosis. Marcel is a scoundrel who agrees to help Nathan rescue his soldiers from the brutal prison camp near Andersonville, Georgia. Marcel comes to see Nathan as a model for manliness, and in a vision sees a tragedy and warns nathan. The novel is rather repetitive in making its points, is entertaining and certainly interesting history, but it amuses me that there are all these bromance novels about war.

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Union Captain and some of his men are captured in battle and sent to Andersonville prison. The Captain is able to stay with his men by telling them he is a Sergeant as officers were sent to Cahaba. Okay so this Captain escapes and makes a promise to his men to return and break them out. When he gets to speak with the Union command it seems they have different ideas. While not a bad book I did find my attention wandering as I read this one. The authors seem to let a bit of rambling take over here and there. You may want to take a look at it and give it a try if it looks interesting to you. Like I say it is not a bad book just one of those I found was a bit long winded here and there.

[Heather Modzelewski]

I'm curious... I had no idea Gene Hackman was an author. Apparently this is his third collaboration with Dan Lenihan. I like mysteries and historical fiction, so I am intrigued. Plus, I am surprised to read that Hackman has "retired" from his successful and entertaining acting career to concentrate on writing. (a recent interview with Hackman: http://www.newsobserver.com/105/story...)

See http://us.macmillan.com/escapefromand... for more info. about the novel.

[Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

The setting of this book is all over the U.S. during the civil war. The genre is historical fiction Great book about what the civil war, has great battle descriptions and also seeing the fight through a captains eyes. All of the planning that goes into war and battles. Very slow beginning but gets really exciting at the middle/end. Seventh graders would like this book if they like historical fiction and little suspense with tons battles and journeys. I read this book in five days. Awesome book!

[Ross Rawnsley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this story. Was not aware that Mr Hackman was actually an author, but thought it was pretty well written, in particular the battle scenes and the planning thereof.

That said, I only gave it 3 stars, because IMO, it was very slow in spots, with a little too much extraneous detail.

Good, easy read, with a couple of great (though flawed) "heroes" in Nathan and Marcel.

Overall, not great, but pretty good!

[Laurie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I chose this book to learn more abt Andersonville.My grt grt Uncle was held prisoner in the Civil War.The first half of the book is a good build up,but the last half was just anti-climatic.I had some issues with editing.Overall this was 340 pages,it could have been shorter,it seemed like there was filler was added to fill in gaps in the story.Good character development.”

[Lee · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was so disappointed in this book. I read both of the authors' previous collaborations and enjoyed them thoroughly. I found this story to be dull and repetitive. I am a modest Civil War buff and have read much on the subject as well as visited many Civil War sites, Andersonville being one of them. Too bad.

[Rebecca]

My first book by these authors--it was recommended by my son who went to the book signing and obtained an autographed copy for me. So far, I am really enjoying the book and the follwoing the geography.

[Sam]

I liked it, my Kima checked it out from the Library for me. This is a story of the Confederate Prison Camp in Andersonville at the end of the civil war in 1865. Good - but not sure how much is story and how much is history. Good read in any case.