Famous Confederate Generals and Leaders of the South: A Myreportlinks. COM Book FROM THE CRITICS
Children's Literature - Greg M. Romaneck
Between 1861and 1865 a separate American nation sprang up, fought a destructive war, and eventually plummeted to defeat. That country, of course, was the Confederate States of America and the stories of some of its more renowned leaders are told in this title in the "MyReportLinks.com" series. Like the other books in this cleverly constructed series, this study of Confederate military and political leaders includes a tightly woven text, many resource web sites and publications, and attractive illustrations. Indeed, many of the illustrations take the form of slides drawn from specific web sites. In this way the author and publishers provide youngsters with both a colorful image and an easy-to-locate source of Internet information about the featured subject. The material covered in the text focuses on illustrious Confederates such as Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson, PGT Beauregard, Jefferson Davis, and Alexander Stephens. In each instance, the snapshot biography not only reviews the major accomplishments of the featured leader but also discusses their post-war life. The compact descriptions of these Southern leaders provide readers with a good jumping-off point for further study. Younger readers with an interest in Southern history will find this book useful and interesting. 2005, Enslow, Ages 10 to 14.
School Library Journal
Gr 4-8-The pages of these books have the look of a computer screen, with icons running along the top and scroll arrows along the side. Each title has a four-page listing of Web links. To access the site, students must use a password, which is given on the first page of links. Following this webliography, each book gives a brief introduction to the featured military figures. Succeeding chapters focus on the perspective of each side, explaining the reasons for entering into the war and the political leaders, and the final chapter introduces the key military figures. The sites are good, and the publisher's pledge to keep all links active for three years beyond publication of the books makes them quite serviceable. The question becomes the use of these volumes. Most students would rather go straight to a computer, bypassing the extra step of reading a book of links, to search online for themselves. The books might appeal to librarians and teachers looking to create their own set of hyperlinks for students.-Elizabeth M. Reardon, McCallie School, Chattanooga, TN Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.
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