Customer Reviews:
found it at a library, now planning on buying it.......2006-03-29
I got this book a week ago at the local library (an older copy, probably from the first printing) and thought I'd check it out. I figured that if it gave me ANY ideas on stuff to do with my 3 year old, 2 year old, and 2 month old during this rainy weather we are having that it would be a good choice. So I got it home and read through it, and I LOVE this book! I've used several things in it for my 3 year old and my 2 year old, and found that there's a lot of stuff in the 2 sections that line up really well for the different ages. I'm not too creaative when it rains too much so this book has come in very handy, and its given me ideas that I may not have come up with at all if I hadn't checked the book out from the library. After 2 days of referencing this book I told my husband that I was buying it as soon as I could find a copy of it. He agreed with me after looking through it himself. I am very impressed with this book and am suggesting it to everyone I know with little kids, its already becoming a lifesaver and I dread taking it back to the library if I don't have my own copy beforehand.
If you don't have it, GET IT!.......1998-04-02
This is the best of the best for new and old parents. I didn't read this until my 3rd and still found out all kinds of new things. The book is well thought out and planned. Easy to understand but most of all PRACTICAL. The ideas presented in this book don't require you to have a PH.D to apply. Nor does it require a six digit income to supply the items suggested for use. The women who wrote this book are obviously mothers. Which doesn't seem to be a requirement anymore for giving advice. (ha ha).
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Parents' Guide: Entertaining and Educating Your Preschool Child: Combined Volume: Young Children / Babies and Toddlers (Parents' Guides)
Manufacturer: Usborne Publishing Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
 Pregnancy & Childbirth
| Women's Health
| Personal Health
| Health, Mind & Body
| Subjects
| Books
| Baby Names
| Fertility
| Fetal Drug & Alcohol Syndrome
| General
| Sears, Dr. William
Parenting
| Parenting & Families
| Subjects
| Books
| Babies & Toddlers
| Child Care
| Discipline
| Emotions & Feelings
| General
| Health & Nutrition
| Morals & Responsibility
| School-Age Children
| Single Parents
| Teenagers
| Twins & Multiples
ASIN: 0746001347 |
Book Description
This remarkable biography traces the life and times of Joshua L. Chamberlain, the professor-turned-soldier who led the Twentieth Maine Regiment to glory at Gettysburg, earned a battlefield promotion to brigadier general from Ulysses S. Grant at Petersburg, and was wounded six times during the course of the Civil War. Chosen to accept the formal Confederate surrender at Appomattox, Chamberlain endeared himself to succeeding generations with his unforgettable salutation of Robert E. Lee's vanquished army. After the war, he went on to serve four terms as governor of his home state of Maine and later became president of Bowdoin College. He wrote prolifically about the war, including The Passing of the Armies, a classic account of the final campaign of the Army of the Potomac.
Customer Reviews:
A true American Hero.......2006-03-29
In the Hands of Providence is a very well researched look of the life of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain. Alice Turlock presents a definitive biography of this modest professor from Bowden College, who met challenge after challenge to become one of the greatest leaders in Civil War history. Chamberlain had extraordinary observational and superb writing skills. His persistence at recording the historic events, which included his emotional reactions, gave Trulock's wonderful historic accounts for her book.
The book starts by giving us an in depth look at his obscure Christian upbringing in rural Maine, and follows his processes of becoming a great young man. He was an exceptional college student, receiving the praise of his instructors. He was also highly regarded by his neighbors and towns' folk alike. Many considered him to have the highest moral and ethical standard. He was so trusted and respected as a young man in his home town that an older business man of Maine, who was an acquaintance of Chamberlain's, entrusted him with the dealings of his estate.
While finishing his studies at Bowden, Chamberlain married his sweetheart Frances Caroline Adams. They had a very close and loving relationship. But during the war, the constant distance between them put a great deal of strain on their relationship. After graduation, he accepted a position as a professor at Bowden, and held that position for several years. Chamberlain maintained a very close relationship with his family, and he was especially close to his father in law George Adams.
When the war broke out in 1861, Chamberlain ask for a leave of absence from Bowden to enlist, but was turned down. Not to be left out of the war, he again applied for a sabbatical to study in Europe, and this time it was granted. He had no intentions on going to Europe, and instead immediately enlisted in the army as a lieutenant colonel, and never looked back. He played a huge role in the recruitment of the men for a regiment, which would later come to be known as the 20th Maine.
With no military experience, Chamberlain showed great promise in his leadership shills and military expertise. He became friends with his unit's commander, Colonial Ames, who became his tutor. According to Trulock, Chamberlain held a great deal of respect and admiration for Ames, and he gave Ames credit for his military success.
Trulock's description of Chamberlain's military life is extraordinary, and she supplies us with great details about the battles in which he was involved. At the battle of Antietam, Chamberlain was not directly involved in the fighting but was brought up in reserve the next day. Trulock gives a very vivid description of horror that Chamberlain witnessed upon arriving at the battlefield that day where 22,000 lay dead or wounded on the field. It was the bloodiest, one day battle in the Civil War.
Next, she transports us to the Fredericksburg, and the final assault by the North on Marye's Heights - the charge that involved the 20th of Maine. All the other divisions that day were either driven back, laid dead or wounded on the field. She describes tremendous courage that Chamberlain and his men showed as they made their charge on the now famous wall at Marye's Heights, the wall that was heavily guarded by Confederates. The division suffered great loses that late afternoon. They remained among the dead or wounded for 2 days and nights before the order was given to retreat.
The episode in history that Chamberlain is most remember for is the courage and heroism he displayed at the battle of Gettysburg. He was ordered to the top of a hill known as The Little Round Top where he was placed at the far left flank. There, Chamberlain was instructed to hold that position at all cost. The 20th Maine repelled assault after assault by the Confederates that day. When ammunition ran out, Chamberlain ordered a bayonet charge, an event that many historians say was the turning point of the Civil War.
Trulock also gives a very detailed account of the battle of Petersburg, where Chamberlain was horribly wounded. After hearing of his heroic actions during the battle, General Grant immediately promoted Chamberlain on the battlefield to Brigadier General. This was the only battlefield promotion ever issued by Grant. Somehow, Chamberlain survived his wound, due to the skilled surgery that was preformed on him that night and next day. Chamberlain's two close friends, Dr. Shaw and Dr. Townsend worked for hours repairing the damage inflicted by the mini ball. The wound he received that day would trouble him all of his life and required numerous surgery's to repair the damage.
His persistent heroism and outstanding leadership were the deciding factor when Grant chose Chamberlain to receive the Confederate surrender at Appomattox. He showed great respect for his fellow countrymen that day when he gave the order to his men to give a solders salute to the surrendering confederate men. His honorary actions that day were later critized by many people.
This book contains a lot of historic photos of Chamberlain's family, friends, fellow soldiers and numerous battle maps. The book also gives a great account of Chamberlain's life as Governor of Maine and President of Bowden College, but these accounts do not compare to the bravery and patriotic devotion that Chamberlain displayed during the Civil War. His actions made him a hero to his men, and the country he served.
Trulock has given us a great biography, not only one of the Civil War's greatest commanders, but one of the United States most distinguished citizens. The book flows very smoothly while covering details of battles that would interest even the most die hard Civil War enthusiast.
Finally, a book that does justice to an astonishing person. I highly recommend this book.
Man of character, man of faith whose story should be proclaimed!.......2006-01-25
Chamerlain's heroism is similar to Teddy Roosevelt, Alvin York, and Audie Murphy who came behind him, but have been better publicized.
The difference is that his act of confidence, courage and decisiveness may have been the one that changed the outcome of the Civil War, the 1864 election and the future of America.
In The Hands of Providence is the story of Chamberlain's exemplary character before, during and after that momentum changing moment. All Americans should read and learn this story.
- Richard V. Battle - Author of The Four Letter Word That Builds Character
Well rounded biography.......2005-05-10
I found Alice Trulock's biography on Joshua L. Chamberlain to be quite readable, well researched and well grounded. Considering the length of the book, Trulock's book read quite well for most readers of any level. Well, it may not be good as the one written by John Pullen but it definitely is superior to the one written by Edward Longacre. I put that in just for comparison purpose.
I think this biography may served as a good introduction to Chamberlain who's name have definitely reached near mythological level nowadays among Civil War readers thanks to Jeff Daniels and his role in that movie "Gettysburg". Of course, most readers would probably be disappointed that Jeff Daniel's portaryal of Chamberlain will not jive with Joshua Chamberlain of Trulock's book.
The biography covers all aspects of Chamberlain's life. The book does a good job covering Chamberlain's military career which proves to be the most important period of his life from which Chamberlain's life will be centered around until his death. I do wish to make a point here. He died at the age of 86, a very ripe old age and I doubt if his wounds he got from Petersburg really hasten his death, it may have cause him a lot of pain but even in modern days, most people don't live that long!
Overall, an very good biography on one of Union's more natural soldiers. A non-professional who performed better then most professional soldiers.
Excellent Title of an Excellent Leader.......2005-03-13
The Duke of Wellington supposedly stated that it is impossible for a Christian to serve in the military. Too bad he wasn't around during the American Civil War! Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson from the South and Joshua Chamberlain and Otis Howard from the North are notable exceptions to Wellington's thesis.
Trulock has written what is the best account of the hero of Little Round Top and who personally oversaw the surrender of Confederate troops at Appamattox.
Among the important events in Chamberlain's life covered include:
1. Birth and Christian upbringing in rural Maine.
2. His days as a student and adminstrator at Bowdoin College.
3. His early Civil War service including the formation of the famous 20th Maine Regiment.
4. Fascinating accounts of his involvement in major Civil War battles: Fredericksburg, Gettysburg, Petersburg, and other engagements.
5. The horrible wound suffered at Petersburg that eventually killed him some 50 years later.
6. His loving yet strained marriage to Frances Caroline Adams.
7. Postwar public service as President of Bowdoin College and Governor of Maine.
Reading the book was a joy - the narrative flowed smoothly while covering several details of a fascinating character. The author managed to keep the story from becoming too bogged down in dry detail without insulting the reader's intelligence. Oh, how I wish more biographies were written like this!
The book also contains excellent battle maps and numerous photographs of the main characters: Chamberlain, his wife, parents, sister and brothers, many Civil War officers, and other important people in Joshua Chamberlain's life.
All in all, an excellent and highly recommended read. Read and enjoy!
Well Researched Look at a Major Civil War Figure.......2004-10-02
Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain was the epitome of the American citizen-soldier. Since the birth of the republic, American soldiers have left home and hearth to serve the nation and many of them have come home physically shattered and haunted by what they have seen while still others have not come home at all. Thrown into the breech, some of the citizen solders found they did not have the fortitude for what was asked of them while many others have excelled, performing better than graduates of West Point or Annapolis, America's most prestigious military academies. Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain was a citizen soldier who became a great hero of the Civil War, a man who met challenge after challenge and became a great leader of men and afterward, the course of his life was forever altered. An academically inclined young man, Chamberlain left Bowdin College and his studies and teaching in theology to accept a lieutenant colonel's commission in the 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment. The modest young professor took part in most of the important battles of the North's Army of the Potomac. He was a participant in the Battle of Antietam, still the bloodiest single day in American history. Today, we can walk the battlefield off Sharpsburg Pike, in rural Maryland and see "Burnside's Bridge and the cornfields where so many men fell and get some small measure of what men like Chamberlain went through. We can also visit the battlefield at Fredericksburg and see the heights that he and his 20th Maine and the Union Army tried to take in bloody frontal assaults into the teeth of Confederate guns and under the pounding of their artillery on the hills. Today Chamberlain's comrades - as well as the fallen Confederate troops - are buried on the commanding heights they failed to take, one of the Civil War's bitter ironies. Colonel Chamberlain then immortalized himself at Gettysburg's Little Round Top where he anchored the Union left, repelling assault after assault and winning the day by leading a charge down the slope that broke the Rebel troops. He was given a general's star by General Grant at Petersburg and was honored to receive the Confederate surrender at Appomattox. His heroism and leadership qualities helped him win the Governorship of Maine no less than four times, after which he retired to the Presidency of Bowdin College, his alma mater. Alice Trulock who wrote this book, was not a professional writer and after her retirement from civic affairs, this book took her ten years of careful research, writing and rewriting to complete. She based her work on a great deal of new research and handles the account of infantry combat beautifully. Unfortunately, Trulock died before the book was released and so she wasn't able to accept the accolades that were due to her for such a well-written and moving biography of an emblematic Civil War figure.
Customer Reviews:
Very Good........2003-10-26
A regimental history that really reflects the combat history of the Army of the Potomac from Antietam to Appomattox, this piece of Civil War literature is well worth your time.
Pullen puts you in the action so effectively that you really begin to wonder how regiments like the Twentieth Maine were able to perform so heroically for so long. Credited with single handedly saving the Union flank the second day Gettysburg, this unit produces one of the finest battle field commanders of the war: Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain.
With a combat record second to none, the Twentieth Maine just may have saved the Union. It is because of their efforts that the United States owes such a deep sense of gratitude to the State of Maine.
Bayonet!.......2000-12-28
This is one of the best regimental histories written about a Civil War outfit on either side. It is also a story of high valor and drama, of lost youth and heavy, heartbreaking losses. It is also the story of the maturing of a good man, Joshua Chamberlain, into a good soldier who does more than his assigned duty and ends the war with a general's stars, and more than one wound.
The regiment doesn't start with promise, however, and its first commander, Colonel Adelbert Ames, a hardened regular, is somewhat dismayed at his new command. However, hard work and professionalism pay off, and the 20th Maine does evolve into 'a hell of a regiment.'
The payoff is at Gettysburg on the second day on the far left flank of the Army of the Potomac on a wooded hill known locally as Little Round Top. Now commanded by the Lieutenant Colonel, Joshua Chamberlain (Ames being deservedly promoted to Brigadier General and brigade command), the regiment becomes the focus of the southern effort to capture Little Round Top and flank the Union Army. If one man could lose the war in the afternoon, it was Chamberlain and his homespun regiment from Maine.
They rise to the challenge, at heavy loss to themselves, execute a bayonet charge down the hill after running out of ammunition, sweeping up 400 prisoners and saving the Union left flank. It is the stuff legends are made of.
This is only one episode in this superb volume, and this book belongs in every Civil War collection. It is written with wit, verve, and accuracy, and it stirs the soul that our country was fought for and saved by men such as these.
The definitive account of this brave regiement.......2000-08-25
John J. Pullen is to be commended for writing a masterful and interesting account of the famed 20th Maine led by Colonel (later Maj. General) Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain. From the founding of the regiment made up of fishermen, lumberjack and regular men of various towns in Maine, Pullen describes the unorganization and various other problems the regiment encountered when it was first formed.
Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain was made Lt. Colonel when he first arrived to join the regiment and soon afterwards the regiment was becoming disciplined and effective, also under the command of Col (later Gen) Aldebert Ames.
From the first battles the unit fought in to the carnage of Fredericksburg and thus to Chancellorsville and finally to the 2nd of July 1863, Pullen describes vividly the heroic stance the 20th Maine made against the brave attack of the 15 Alabama and 4th and 5th Texas under Col. William Oates. The suprizing bayonet charge by the 20th Maine, when all seemed lost was a daring and bold moved that quite possibly saved the Union line and thus ultimately won the Battle of Gettysburg. The heroic regiment also fought bravely for the rest of the war especially at Petersburg where Gen. Chamberlain was seriously wounded.
Pullen does an outstanding job describing the everyday life of the regiment and describing various soldiers and the routine that made life away from home very tough to bear, however this regiment is to be commended for their commitment to the Union, to the state of Maine and to their families most of all.
This book is HIGHLY recommended to all Civil War Readers and once you start reading it, it will be hard to put down.
Single best Civil War unit history I've read.......1999-07-01
Pullen did a masterful job of researching the history of the 20th Maine. He backed his research with clear, concise, powerful writing. He follows the unit from its inception in Downeast Maine, all the way through its "mustering out", touching on all the high and low points in between. His ability to clearly describe event through the eyes of often illiterate country boys is hard to match. He gives details most other histories assume the reader knows, such as what an average day in the field might be like, or how the men learned the mundane but necessary skills of formation movement. He never skimps on the thrill or the horror of battle. This book is a must read for anyone interested in the Civil War on a human scale. I have read this book many times, and will reread it many more, always finding fresh deatil.
On Campaign - Army of the Potomac.......1998-07-21
What would it have been like to have been there, on campaign with Lincoln's Army? Anyone with even a casual interest in the ACW has asked that question - for the most part any available answer is most unsatisfying. We can walk the battlefields, read the histories, even re-enact with reconstructed materials, but we can never really feel what those soldiers felt. The closest we may ever come is Pullen's The Twentieth Maine. Pullen writes as a Mainer about Mainers, but he maintains his objectivity, despite the closeness of the subject matter. Drawing extensively from primary sources, as well as his own experiences with infantry in Europe during WWII, Pullen draws us into the regiment made famous by its "end-of-the-line" stand on Little Round Top while serving under COL Chamberlain on the second day at Gettysburg. Pullen's strength is his ability to relate the men of the Twentieth Maine as individuals throughout their ordeal, each with their own hopes and fe! ars to be realized. Little Round Top was their first face-to-face, knock-down engagement and the results were beyond any realistic expectations. Chamberlain was a man constantly in the right place at the right time and so was the Twentieth Maine, several times saved from being fed into suicidal attacks and in the end honored with participation in the final surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia at Appomattox Courthouse. This is without question one of the finest three or four unit histories of the ACW. A thoroughly enriching, rewarding experience for anyone with an interest in the ACW or the conduct of everyday men under far from everyday circumstances. Pullen reminds us that the true depth and breadth of the human spirit can only be guessed at, never really known.
Product Description
Katharine Butler Hathaway (1890-1942)
was born in Baltimore and lived for much of her youth in Salem, Massachusetts. She suffered from spinal tuberculosis, and though she was strapped to a board for 10 years in an effort to cure her deformed spine, she remained physically crippled, though mobile, throughout her life. After attending Radcliffe College, she lived and wrote in Maine (buying a house in Castine in 1921), and later in New York City and Paris, where she was a part of the vibrant artists' culture of the 1920s. In the early 1930s she returned to settle on the coast of Maine with her husband, Daniel Hathaway.
The Little Locksmith, which she called her "bread and butter letter to God " and which details both her suffering and her triumphant spirit, was published a year after her death (1943/2000). The Little Locksmith was chosen by NPR's Fresh Air Book Critic Maureen Corrigan as one of her six Best Books in 2000.
In 1946 a collection of her writings and drawings was published as The Journals and Letters of the Little Locksmith. This book is composed of the unfinished manuscripts, letters, journals, and notes which she left, including letters to Catharine Sargent Huntington (1887-1987).
Book Description
This volume is the first in a series of four which treat various aspects of the labor movement in Maine in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The history of organized labor in Maine has been largely ignored by the State's historians. This volume represents an effort to correct this deficiency and to add to a more complete understanding of the forces, events, and personalities that have shaped Maine's history.
Customer Reviews:
Terrific detailed survey of the crucial early years of labor in Maine.......2007-04-01
Charles Scontras is considered the "dean of labor studies" in Maine, and this book is a good example why. The book covers, in very great detail, the founding of the American Federation of Labor in Maine in 1895 to roughly 1910. The book begins where Scontras' two previous books ("Organizing Labor and Labor Politics in Maine, 1880-1890" and "Two Decades of Organized Labor and Labor Politics in Maine, 1880-1900") left off. In many ways, the book is an example of the "old labor history," and focuses heavily on leaders and unions. That is not a criticism, however: These are the best-documented aspects of the labor movement, and union leaders were the most prominent actors in the period.
Scontras does not neglect common workers, however. In many ways, his book is reminiscent of the style of the legendary labor historian Philip Foner, in that he litters his text with terrific, apt details about the state of working conditions in Maine. Scontras' labor history is not one of men in suits in offices in Portland, but "on the ground" labor history -- lobstermen, textile workers, lumberjacks, sausage makers and others who struggled against incredible opposition to form unions and improve their lives. The book contains a wealth of information about Maine at the turn of the century, and is a real resource.
The footnoting is terrific, with sources and comments at the bottom of each page for easy reference. For a footnote hog like me, that was a huge plus. The book also has a large number of photographs, and reproduces key documents, fliers, advertisements and other ephemera throughout. That, too, is a big plus, and gives the reader a real flavor of the times.
The book also contains two important appendices. One is a history of the important and near-forgotten Lobster Fishermen's International Protective Association. The other is a near-complete listing of every union (local, regional and statewide) in Maine, along with information on dues, officers, membership and more. Both are major contributions to labor history in and of themselves, but serve as mere capstones to this otherwise pathbreaking and eye-opening work.
My only criticism of the book is that Scontras sometimes jumps around chronologically. In a paragraph about child labor laws in 1900, for example, the reader may find Scontras dicussing child labor statistics from 1907 or AFL political expenditures from 1914 to help support his point. It's disconcerting. It would be one thing if Scontras were using the "future stats" to document how effective the legislation was, but that's usually not the case. The information is interesting, but serves more as a distraction and raises the feeling that perhaps there isn't as much support for Scontras' arguments as the author would have the reader believe.
Despite this, Scontras' "Organized Labor in Maine: Twentieth Century Origins" is a readable (even exciting), wonderfully detailed and vibrant history of the origins of the modern labor movement in Maine. For anyone in Maine -- and for anyone interested in labor history -- it really is a must-read.
Product Description
Collection of Stories Published in 1958 and is the 1st Edition. Stories are "Green Helmet, Dunbar's Cover, The Twentieth Maine, Life At Happy Knoll, Horsecatcher, Sharks and Little Fish".
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Reminiscences
Arthur B Church
Manufacturer: Arthur B Church
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Maine
| State & Local
| United States
| Americas
| History
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ASIN: B000P1SE66 |
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