'Far, Far from Home'

This is a selection of compelling wartime letters describing the coming of age of two young enlisted men in the midst of war. Dick and Tally Simpson, two well-educated, intelligent, thoughtful young men, cared deeply for their country, their family, and their comrades-in-arms and wrote frequently to their loved ones in Pendleton, South Carolina covering events from the capture of Fort Sumpter in April 1961 to the battle of Chickamauga in September 1863. The letters read like a good historical novel, complete with plot, character development, suspense, tragedy, and even more than a little romance, offering both a vivid picture of war at the battlefront and the texture of the home life of a Southern family during the Civil War. These are letters that "tell it as it is," written from army camp, the battlefield, the hospital bed, and the picket line. Beautifully and stylistically crafted, these letters convey a moving picture of war as it was actually lived and described in the South as the Civil War unfolded.