Smell of Battle, the Taste of Siege: A Sensory History of the Civil War

I actually really liked this book. I was required to read it for my college level history course on the Civil War Era. Typically, I really hate reading, but this book was full of all first hand accounts of what people went through during different wars during the Civil War and was mostly easy to understand. The book is quite literally the title, A Sensory History of the Civil War. Smell, Taste, Hearing, Feeling, and Sight. Charleston represents the hearing aspect, The smell at Gettysburg, The taste at Vicksburg, The feeling of the people on the submarine, and of course sight for all of the battles combined. The ending of the book goes into detail how the burning down and ransacking of Sherman's march through Georgia represented total war; fire represents affecting all 5 sensory inputs at once. Overall, a good read and good source to use when teaching U.S History.

I have had an abiding interest in the War between the States since I was a child. My roots go back to General Wade Hampton of South Carolina, so my interest is constant.This short book does an amazing job of capturing the sights and smells of the Civil War. I was impressed with the background work done by Mr. Smith and how it was translated in the book as something you could almost taste. From the shelling of Fort Sumter to the siege of Vicksburg, it is a difficult book to put down. I give it 5 stars for sure!

This book was interesting but it felt like the author struggled to find enough to write about and the examples needed fleshing out. I realize however that in our modern world with the sanitation many of us enjoy it is not easy to elaborate on the sensory experiences of the past. All in all and enjoyable book but a little diappointing.

Great book to learn about the civil war. It was foe my history project, I thought it was going to be bored but it was a good piece to read

Very interesting and could not put it down. Great reading of the sounds and sights of the Civil War.