We Have the War Upon Us
The Onset of the Civil War, November 1860-April 1861

A riveting look at the weeks and months leading up to Fort Sumter, this book delivers in a big way. The author introduces us to some of the pivotal political players involved in the rush to war. We learn of the schemes and subplots that could have potentially changed history. We also learn something......more

My impression of Cooper's book is a mix of good news/bad news. The good news is that this book is extremely well-written & it does an excellent job of portraying the frantic, but ultimately unsuccessful, efforts of Congress to find some sort of workable compromise during the period of time covered i......more

William J. Cooper - South Carolina-born, LSU professor of history, emeritus of the (US) Southern Historical Association - gives us a fine, modern, Southern view of the events and tensions between Lincoln's election and the cannonade of Fort Sumter. His scrutiny of the United States, of DC, of the Re......more

By focusing on a very short period of history, between the election of Lincoln and the attack on Ft. Sumter, this book fills in many details that at least for me were known only in broad outlines. Much of it is of course the interactions between the three main factions - the hard-line secessionists,......more

An even-handed approach to the months between the 1860 presidential election and the bombardment of Ft Sumter. It focuses perhaps a bit too much on the Republican Party and Seward; more attention to the Confederates and the states would be interesting. Better written and broaded in scope than Detzer......more