From the Bookshelf of The Roundtable…

Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy: Four Women Undercover in the Civil War

Karen Abbott

Start date: February 1, 2016

Finish date: February 28, 2016

Discussion: New Book Group Read

Discussion leader: Sera

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New Book Group Read

* New Book Read - July 2016 - A Little Life
By Dawn , Loves a Challenge · 95 posts · 41 views

last updated Sep 21, 2016 07:37AM

New Book Read - February 2016 - Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy: Four Women Undercover in the Civil War
By Sera · 93 posts · 39 views

last updated Nov 13, 2016 12:01PM

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What Members Thought

Jan 12, 2016 Susanna - Censored by GoodReads rated it it was amazing

I cannot help but visualize Belle Boyd as Erica Kane in crinolines. Her chapters inevitably had me laughing my head off.

11 likes · Like · see review

Feb 07, 2016 El rated it really liked it

Shelves: library-borrow, hear-me-roar-and-gender, american-civil-war

About five years ago I read They Fought Like Demons: Women Soldiers in the Civil War. It was a fine book, but on the dry end. What was exciting to me was the discussion of women in a position that was filled primarily by men, and the education most of us receive in schools about the American Civil War keep women out of the lectures pretty much entirely, except when talking about women in a feminine role during the war (nurses, teachers, prostitutes, mothers, sisters, wives, etc. etc.).

The realit About five years ago I read They Fought Like Demons: Women Soldiers in the Civil War. It was a fine book, but on the dry end. What was exciting to me was the discussion of women in a position that was filled primarily by men, and the education most of us receive in schools about the American Civil War keep women out of the lectures pretty much entirely, except when talking about women in a feminine role during the war (nurses, teachers, prostitutes, mothers, sisters, wives, etc. etc.).

The reality is that women did play a sometimes very important role. In They Fought Like Demons we learned that some women went to great lengths to fight alongside men on the fields. In Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy, Abbott focuses on four different women (two who supported the Confederates, two who supported the Union) and discussed their undercover roles in the war.

Each woman had a reason for their actions, and whether or not the reader agrees with every single one of them, the fact is that to these women (just like the men who signed up to fight) felt what they were doing was important for the greater good. It was impressive reading about what some of these women went through and what they further put themselves through to do their part, to prove their point, to do what they felt was right and good.

I was impressed by Abbott's attention to detail. She did a shitload of research for this book, and I honestly felt it could have been longer. Just flipping through the extensive notes at the end of the book made me realize just how much information Abbott went through to write this book.

I read this as part of a group, and someone mentioned they were concerned that there was a bit too much fictionalization happening. I hadn't thought about it at first until it was brought up, but after that I couldn't stop thinking about it. Abbott does mention in the introduction that this is attributed to what she was able to pull from primary sources and family stories, etc., and that was enough for me initially. But as someone else pointed out, it's hard to know for sure the veracity of the primary sources - I believe each of the women kept detailed journals about their experiences, but it's possible that some of them wrote an exaggerated version of their lives in order to make money later, or whatever.

So that's something to keep in mind.

However, the readability of the book, and the amount of information Abbott provided, was enough to keep me fascinated throughout. I highly recommend this to anyone interested in the American Civil War, especially for those (like myself) who are especially intrigued by women's roles. ...more

6 likes · Like · see review

Jan 30, 2016 Wendy rated it really liked it

Shelves: non-fiction, audiobooks, memoir-biography, girls-rock-the-boys

I found this to be a highly readable and eye-opening account of the unsung role of four women "spies" in the Civil War. The narrative alternates between Emma and Elizabeth (both Union supporters), and Belle and Rose (Rebel sympathizers), and follows a chronological trajectory through the war and beyond. I recently read one of Karen Abbott's other books, Sin in the Second City: Madams, Ministers, Playboys, and the Battle for America's Soul which was teeming with interesting historical characters, ...more

6 likes · Like · see review

Jan 31, 2016 Sera rated it really liked it

Shelves: kindle, own, non-fiction

I really enjoyed this book about 4 women who had an impact on the outcome of the Civil War on both sides of the Mason Dixon line. These women had such courage and a passionate belief in their political views that they were willing to put themselves at risk over and over again to help their cause. Interestingly, 2 out of the 4 women also were desperate for getting recognition for their achievements, indicating that notoriety was an additional important part of their mission.

Abbot does a nice job ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Jan 28, 2016 Rachel rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: history, feminism, nonfiction

This book took a hit from my having to take a break in the middle...I couldn't remember any of their names, although I could figure out who was who through context. Also, I didn't like that there weren't any connecting footnotes that I could go to, they were just all at the back. ...more

2 likes · Like · see review