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I visited Gettysburg years ago, and was overwhelmed with a sense of the sacredness of the grounds. It was all meticulously kept, and the acres spread with a quiet reverence and a lush green--a very fitting place to honor the sacrifices made for our republic there.
What was your impression of Gettysburg or some other historic landmark?
I'm sharing with my readers some of the photos from your research for your newest book, Widow of Gettysburg. |
| Lutheran Theological Seminary in background |
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Lee's Headquarters 
Don't forget to enter the giveaway for Widow of Gettysburg, and my new Civil War novella, Bachelor Buttons. Leave a comment below or HERE to enter
This week only, Jocelyn will send you a personalized, signed bookplate (see here for example) if you leave a request in the comments!
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order her books here:
Faith Deployed at Amazon
I would love to be entered in the giveaway for Widow Of Gettysburg. I have seen many good reviews for this novel and I'm looking forward to getting a chance to read it. I love books about this time period. Thanks for the giveaway.
ReplyDeleteKatie J.
johnsonk133[at]yahoo[dot]com
Hi Katie, thanks so much for your interest and comment! This time period is just so rich with drama, isn't it?
DeleteThanks for the chance to win this book. I enjoyed the photos of the research of Gettysburg.
ReplyDeleteI would love the signed bookplate!
pbclark(at)netins(dot)net
Terrific! I will email you in a moment for your mailing address. Thanks for stopping by!
DeleteKathleen, you are so kind to have me here! This is really fun, and we are definitely kindred spirits when it comes to our love of Civil War history. When I went to Gettysburg the first time, I was struck by two things. First, as I drove through the countryside surrounding the town, I couldn't get over how absolutely beautiful it was. Just gorgeous, serene, pastoral--the very antithesis of war! It makes the contrast between the land and the battle all the more poignant for me. As I approached Gettysburg, I got butterflies in my stomach! It was a rainy day in October, and I just felt like I was about to enter a sacred place.
ReplyDeleteSecond, my time in Gettysburg was spent sifting through archives that I felt had been closed and forgotten by most for far too long. I read stories from the people who lived through the battle and picked up the pieces afterwards, and that made it such a personal, intimate experience. I felt like I had discovered a treasure of priceless worth in these diaries. I am not the first person to read them or write about the civilians, but I still felt very honored. I also felt responsible to tell the stories. The whole experience was one of the most meaningful of my life. I can't wait to go back this summer with my husband for the 150th anniversary!
I have heard many good reviews for "Wedded To War"&"Widow Of Gettysburg" Though I have neither of these books I look foward to reading this series. I loved the pictures and the fact that you actually went there to research this special time in history. My grandaughter is a civil war re-enacter at the Wi.VA! Murray posted her picture awhile back! Thanks for the chance to be entered in this contest!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Kathleen! So happy you came by to visit the blog. How cool to have family involved in living history. I'll bet you have interesting conversations at family reunions. :) Good luck!
DeleteHi Kathleen! I hope you do get a chance to read Wedded and Widow soon, especially with the 150th anniversary of the battle of Gettysburg coming up this summer! I love that your granddaughter is a re-enactor. My husband was a reenactor in Fort Clinch, FL, when he was in high school. He played a Union soldier, though, because not many others wanted to! :)
DeleteI visited Gettysburg once when I was really young but I do remember thinking how cool it all was but at the same time being sad thinking about what happened there. Sadly I haven't been to any other really historical places but I really want to visit Washington D.C. as well as Mount Vernon. I love history and George Washington is my favorite historical figure. In high school I had to write a paper each year starting with a 5 page one, then 7, then 9, and finally a 10 page one. I ended up doing one long report on George Washington spread out over all for years that ended up being over 50 pages! And even though I'm graduated I still love reading about history especially our country's!
ReplyDeleteAlso I would LOVE a bookplate! Thanks!
gatorade635(at)gmail(dot)com
Abbi, love of history is a lifelong journey, isn't it? I'd love to pick your brain about your research. :) You'd probably enjoy checking out a blog I am involved in, Colonialquills.blogspot.com
DeleteGood luck on the giveaway!
Thanks for letting me know about that blog! It looks really cool and I just started following it!
DeleteAwesome, Abbi! Looking forward to seeing you there. :)
DeleteHi Abbi! I will email you soon for your mailing address so I can send you a bookplate! I hope you get to visit DC and Mount Vernon some day, too. I used to live in northern Virginia, when I worked at a nonprofit on Capitol Hill. Mount Vernon was such a favorite place to visit I had a season pass there. Just absolutely gorgeous, peaceful, etc., especially if you can get there between tourist seasons. :) Another favorite place I think you'd enjoy too is Jefferson's home, Monticello, in Charlottesville, VA. It might be even cooler than Mt. Vernon. Hard to say. :)
DeleteAh so jealous! Yeah Monticello is one of the other place that would be cool to visit! It would be so fun to take a trip around the US just visiting the historic sites!
DeleteI think I have these both on my Kindle, but would love to have an 'real' copy to hold in my hands!
ReplyDeleteI love historical fiction, but haven't read anything set during the civil war in a long time.
pattymh2000(at)yahoo(dot)com
Hi Patty, yep, now is the time to read Civil War stories, since we're honoring the 150th anniversary of the battle of Gettysburg this year! ;) Thanks for stopping by!
DeleteIf you read one Civil War novel this year, this is the one. Best one I've read in a long time.
ReplyDeleteWhen we went there I felt the same things - a sense of quiet reverence and goose bump feeling of awe. The landscape is beautiful and you can picture the armies coming through the fields. The solemn reality hits also when you realize what those fields hold - blood, sweat and tears. It seriously washes over you like the air is charged. I know it sounds funny, but I really did feel all that standing there! A great historical place to visit.
ReplyDeleteSusan P
farmygirl at hotmail dot com
Isn't president Eisenhauer's estate right nearby, too? It is beautiful land. It does have a presence about it. Lincoln called it hallowed and consecrated ground. It truly is.
DeleteSusan, that doesn't sound funny to me at all. I don't believe in all the ghost stories surrounding Gettysburg but I do think there is a certain presence with the land. I can't explain it logically, but it's a precious place.
DeleteI remember feeling that same sense of awe and sadness standing there. It is so beautiful and so hard to imagine all the lives that were changed there. So many died and no one was ever the same. I would love to read both of these books.
ReplyDeleteBetti
bettimace(at)gmail(dot)com
Betti--you will love either of these books. Or better yet, both. :) Good luck on the giveaway.
DeleteHi Betz, yes, you're right, no one was ever the same. Neither the men who fought, nor the townspeople themselves. Some townspeople couldn't stand to live there any more and moved out west. But all the citizens agreed that war is horrible, not glorious, and should be avoided at all costs. We can certainly understand and appreciate their perspective!
DeleteYes! I'd love to have an autographed book plate and I hope I win this delicious book.
ReplyDeleteThanks for coming by, Karla. Best of luck to you!
DeleteHi Karla, I would love to send one to you! Please give me your email address OR email me with your mailing address so I can pop one in the mail to you. My email is Jocelyn@jocelyngreen.com. Thank you!
DeleteHave been hearing a lot about your books.
ReplyDeleteI was at Gettysburg many years ago. It was hard for me to look at and hear details. But isn't all war sad.
Hi Martha, I understand completely. Yes, all war is sad. I remember visiting the Dachau concentration camp in Germany and just feeling literally sick to my stomach the entire time. And in Rome, I just broke down and cried--not because of war that time, but because of the persecution to the early Christians. Sometimes my research gets to me too. But praise God, He is bigger than it all, and His healing is complete.
DeleteHi Kathleen. I need to win this book. I love listening t about history now that you girls make it interesting. Please drop my name in.
ReplyDeleteMAXIE mac262(at)me(dot)com
Hi Maxie, I love seeing your comments pop up everywhere I am! :) ha ha I have heard from several people that historical authors make history interesting, but I would venture to say that history is interesting all by itself, and its only when we reduce it to names, dates, locations, and bland summaries (as in many textbooks)that it is boring because it's stripped of everything personal. I love that people who read the Heroines Behind the Lines series become very interested in the Civil War, even if they weren't before--even if they aren't from the U.S.A.! :) Thanks for stopping by, Maxie!
DeleteHey Kathy and Joyceln! Waving at you from South Carolina! Ladies, those are some beautiful pictures you chose to put up. My impression of a landmark. I think the one that probably is burned into my memory (and part may be because I come from a line of military men) would be Arlington National Cemetery. The white headstones that go on endlessly for the men and women who have died for our freedom, some of them my family members. I won't get political here but it does break my heart to see the mockery that our leadership is making of their sacrifice. Our own government robbing us of our freedom. I saw a picture recently that also made me angry, a young woman at Arlington near the sign that said 'Silence and Respect', she is using obscene hand gestures and has her other hand up to her mouth screaming. So sad that these men and woman would be disrespected by ANY American.
ReplyDeleteHi Debbie Lynne! I agree with you, Arlington is such a special place. Another example of hallowed ground worthy of all our respect. The sight of the endless rows of headstones is enough to make me cry. I was privileged to be able to participate in the ceremony laying a wreath on the tomb of the unknown soldier there once when I was in high school. And Rob and I got married at the Ft. Myer chapel right next to Arlington. A special place indeed.
DeleteI would love to visit Arlington some day. Not only is it the famous resting place of so many servicemen and women, but also, it is Robert E. Lee's home. It is unfortunate that not all people comprehend the sacrifice there, and offer fitting reverence. We're trading freedom for temporary freebies, like Esau selling his birthright for a bowl of soup.
DeleteYes, Kathleen, you're so right, it was Lee's home! I read quite a bit about his wife for my book Stories of Faith and Courage from the Home Front, and it was really heartbreaking that when she and her kids evacuated at the start of the war, it would be the last time they'd ever live there. They tried so hard to get their home back, for years. Mrs. Lee had quite a struggle in her faith over that trial, but ultimately trusted God's sovereignty even in that painful situation.
DeleteBeen reading Southall's biography on Lee, and the more I learn about the "Marble Man" the more I admire him. Would love to follow that up by learning more about his wife.
ReplyDeleteAnd the winners, selected by random.org are:
ReplyDeletefor Widow of Gettysburg
Katie J.
johnsonk133[at]yahoo[dot]com
and for Bachelor Buttons
Betti
I will email you both shortly
Thank you so much to everyone for coming and making this week so special. I appreciate all the new followers and the great enthusiasm for great Civil War fiction! Happy Memorial Day to all.