Overview

For a generation, scholarship on the Reconstruction era has rightly focused on the struggles of the recently emancipated for a meaningful freedom and defined its success or failure largely in those terms. In The Ordeal of the Reunion, Mark Wahlgren Summers goes beyond this vitally important question, focusing on Reconstruction's need to form an enduring Union without sacrificing the framework of federalism and republican democracy. Assessing the era nationally, Summers emphasizes the variety of conservative strains that confined the scope of change, highlights the war's impact and its aftermath, and brings the West and foreign policy into an integrated narrative. In sum, this book offers a fresh explanation for Reconstruction's demise and a case for its essential successes as well as its great failures. Indeed, this book demonstrates the extent to which the victors' aims in 1865 were met--and at what cost. Summers depicts not just a heroic, tragic moment with equal rights advanced and then betrayed but a time of achievement and consolidation, in which nationhood and emancipation were placed beyond repeal and the groundwork was laid for a stronger, if not better, America to come.

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9781469664071

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Reviews

Summers's rich and careful new history of Reconstruction stands out in a crowded field....[His] mastery of the sources has allowed him to write an impressively thorough history of the period, and to pull together diverse strains with uncommon sophistication.--H-Net Reviews Summers has devoted almost half a century to a study of the period, and it shows.--Blue & Gray Magazine Skillfully written and a benefit to students, scholars, and those fascinated with the postwar years.--Southwestern Historical Quarterly Readers interested in Reconstruction will find Summers' book to be a rollicking, deeply researched overview....[A] colorful guide to the politics of the era.--Journal of Interdisciplinary History No short review can do this rich book justice.--Arkansas Historical Quarterly Marvelously written.--CHOICE Effectively captures the turmoil and frustrations of the era. . . . [and] shows how economic woes affected Reconstruction's prospects.--Publishers Weekly A valuable resource for scholars who teach in the field of Reconstruction.--Register of the Kentucky Historical Society A superb spinner of tales. . . . An important book, full of details and insights, and it deserves serious attention.--Journal of Southern History A new narrative of the period featuring novel interpretations and sparkling insight.--North Carolina Historical Review An overall framework for understanding the key problems of the period. . . . This is an important book, providing food for thought, if only because, tonally as well as substantively, it offers a counterpoint to the dominant narrative.--Journal of the Civil War Era

An overall framework for understanding the key problems of the period. . . . This is an important book, providing food for thought, if only because, tonally as well as substantively, it offers a counterpoint to the dominant narrative."" - Journal of the Civil War Era ""A valuable resource for scholars who teach in the field of Reconstruction."" - Register of the Kentucky Historical Society ""No short review can do this rich book justice."" - Arkansas Historical Quarterly ""Summers's rich and careful new history of Reconstruction stands out in a crowded field....[His] mastery of the sources has allowed him to write an impressively thorough history of the period, and to pull together diverse strains with uncommon sophistication."" - H-Net Reviews ""Readers interested in Reconstruction will find Summers' book to be a rollicking, deeply researched overview....[A] colorful guide to the politics of the era."" - Journal of Interdisciplinary History ""Summers has devoted almost half a century to a study of the period, and it shows."" - Blue & Gray Magazine ""Effectively captures the turmoil and frustrations of the era. . . . [and] shows how economic woes affected Reconstruction's prospects."" - Publishers Weekly ""Skillfully written and a benefit to students, scholars, and those fascinated with the postwar years."" - Southwestern Historical Quarterly ""A superb spinner of tales. . . . An important book, full of details and insights, and it deserves serious attention."" - Journal of Southern History ""Marvelously written."" - CHOICE ""A new narrative of the period featuring novel interpretations and sparkling insight."" - North Carolina Historical Review

An overall framework for understanding the key problems of the period. . . . This is an important book, providing food for thought, if only because, tonally as well as substantively, it offers a counterpoint to the dominant narrative. - Journal of the Civil War Era A valuable resource for scholars who teach in the field of Reconstruction. - Register of the Kentucky Historical Society No short review can do this rich book justice. - Arkansas Historical Quarterly Summers's rich and careful new history of Reconstruction stands out in a crowded field....[His] mastery of the sources has allowed him to write an impressively thorough history of the period, and to pull together diverse strains with uncommon sophistication. - H-Net Reviews Readers interested in Reconstruction will find Summers' book to be a rollicking, deeply researched overview....[A] colorful guide to the politics of the era. - Journal of Interdisciplinary History Summers has devoted almost half a century to a study of the period, and it shows. - Blue & Gray Magazine Effectively captures the turmoil and frustrations of the era. . . . [and] shows how economic woes affected Reconstruction's prospects. - Publishers Weekly Skillfully written and a benefit to students, scholars, and those fascinated with the postwar years. - Southwestern Historical Quarterly A superb spinner of tales. . . . An important book, full of details and insights, and it deserves serious attention. - Journal of Southern History Marvelously written. - CHOICE A new narrative of the period featuring novel interpretations and sparkling insight. - North Carolina Historical Review

Author Information

Mark Wahlgren Summers is professor of history at the University of Kentucky and author of A Dangerous Stir: Fear, Paranoia, and the Making of Reconstruction.

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