And Yet Another!

 Just received word of yet another review of "An Arch Rebel," this one on a website entitled "StrategyPage." It appears to be a slightly modified version of the review published in the NYMAS Review last noted on this site--but still a very good one, and many thanks to whoever this contributor may be!

The StrategyPage review can be viewed on their website here.

It's quite gratifying to see that our work is still being read, considered and reviewed in so many places.

 Still an Occasional Review!

Our publisher, McFarland, is kind enough to send on copies of reviews of "'An Arch Rebel Like Myself': Dan Showalter and the Civil War in California and Texas" as they occasionally come in -- and those that come up are still good ones. The latest received is from the New York Military Affairs Symposium, from their Spring 2020 Review. The page is reproduced below for any who might care to read. Many thanks again to those who have taken their time to write reviews for such diverse organizations!

Sad news

Over this past weekend I found out that my colleague, friend and co-author, Gene C. Armistead, passed away peacefully on March 9. It was one of the great privileges of my life to have known and worked with Gene, and had it not been for his continued enthusiasm, encouragement and perseverance, our "Arch Rebel" would never have come to fruition. He will certainly live on in the hearts and minds of those who had the pleasure to know him and count him a friend.

Another good review

Another nice review has come out regarding "'An Arch Rebel,'" this time in The Civil War Monitor. Written by Evan Rothera, a history professor at Sam Houston State University (Huntsville, Texas), he kindly acknowledges the thoroughness of our research on Dan Showalter and commends the picture we've painted of him -- as well as acknowledging that we have been forthright in indicating where we as well have had to resort to conjecture based simply on the paucity of remaining evidence.

Rothera's sole criticism is that our focus on Showalter has limited the extent to which we could expand our work to include various related events and other pivotal personalities of the time. I, frankly, agree -- what is interesting is that he's hit upon an issue we ourselves confronted: limiting ourselves so closely to Showalter's biography was in fact a conscious decision we made when writing and editing this book. There was more than enough fascinating collateral material discovered in our research that could well have extended the book far past the biography it was intended to be.

It's an extreme honor to have received the very kind and commendatory reviews and comments we've received from the Civil War community so far. You can read this latest review at:

https://www.civilwarmonitor.com/blog/armistead-arconti-an-arch-rebel-like-myself-2018

Favorite biography of the year!

I'm pleased to announce that "An Arch Rebel Like Myself": Dan Showalter and the Civil War in California and Texas has been given the rare distinction of being named Favorite Biography for 2018 by Civil War Books & Authors! Co-author Gene Armistead and I were very pleased to read Drew Wagonhofer's very detailed review of our book earlier in the year; if you missed that interview you can get to it through this link to CWBA's list of favorites for 2018:

https://cwba.blogspot.com/2018/12/2018-civil-war-books-and-authors-year.html

You'll find us down the listing under "Biography."

Many thanks to those who have followed this blog and "An Arch Rebel" and wishes for a very happy and prosperous 2019!

Oops!

A small error has been pointed out to us on Pg. 57 of "An Arch Rebel Like Myself." In the discussion about the 1861 legislature's ballots to elect a U.S. Senator, we mistakenly show Dan Showalter being joined in support of Joseph Lancaster Brent by State Senator Pio Pico. In fact, it was not Pio Pico, but his younger brother Andrés, from Los Angeles, who was the State Senator at the time. Both Pico brothers had substantial roles to play in early Los Angeles and California history. Our thanks for this oversight being pointed out to us.

A first review

So the first review of "An Arch Rebel Like Myself" has been published -- and it's a fine one! Written by  Drew Wagenhoffer on his Civil War Books & Authors blog site, it can be found at https://cwba.blogspot.com/2018/08/review-arch-rebel-like-myself-dan.html. Please do take a look! It is truly an honor to receive this sort of mention.