Fandemonium: Jeff Shaara

I confess I haven't actually read one of Jeff Shaara's books yet, but that shall change shortly! I'd figured his books were too war-and-battle-oriented for me, and they may be, but I've committed to at least reading the book I bought and had him autograph for me, Rise to Rebellion, about my favorite period in history, the American Revolution. Regular readers of my blog will know that my husband is a Civil War buff and reenactor, and Gettysburg and Gods and Generals are two of his favorite movies, so even though Erin's not much of a reader, he came along with me when Jeff Shaara made an appearance at our local Borders.

Jeff was a fantastic speaker! He talked a little about his father, Michael Shaara, who wrote the Pulitzer Prize winning The Killer Angels. He talked about what he's working on now and a trilogy coming up in honor of the Civil War sesquecentennial. He's a busy guy and he has tremendous passion for history and finding interesting stories and different angles.

Fredericksburg played a significant role throughout the Civil War, playing host to Grant and Lee, Longstreet and Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Clara Barton, Walt Whitman and Matthew Brady. Fredericksburg does a great job of keeping history alive and just about everyone who lives here has an interest in history, and so there was a pretty good turnout for the event. Plus Jeff's huge, but I still hadn't anticipated having to stand for two and a half hours in my 3-inch heels. (Went straight from work and didn't think to bring more comfortable shoes!) We got there 45 minutes early and still had to stand. There were a lot of veterans and active duty military there and we got to hear from some of them during the Q&A session. If you ever have a chance to meet him, go! You won't be disappointed!

A few titles from Jeff Shaara: