lt Ineeded more familiarity with what happened. The first book I read was What Hath God Wrought. There was a lot of coverage on abolitionism and and slavery so I decided I needed to know more on that. I chose to read all 1600 pages of The Road to Secession by
William Freehling. He taught for a bit at my college though after I had graduated. There was a lot of detail but he writes very engagingly so it was enjoyable. After making my way through to secession, I realized I didn't know much about the Civil War, beyond what I remember from Ken Burns 20 years ago. I read Battle Cry of Freedom by James McPherson. 
This is an excellent book. He teaches at Princeton and is a coauthor on the textbook by Murrin. I was worried that it would just be a list of battles but, while there was some of that, it was much broader. The toughest part of reading books on this period is that the Republicans are the good guys and the Dems are the racist proslavery party. The Irish come off pretty badly too. For all of the talk about being at the bottom of the social hierarchy --"No Irish Need Apply"-- , they were virulently anti-black and were responsible for the draft riots in NY City which killed lots of free blacks.
As I am taking an urban history course in the fall, I thought I should read some urban history. I chose Gotham- A history of NY. This is massive: 1300 pages and I probably won't finish it. It is too heavy to travel with. Again, it is very readable. My guess is the books I am reading for the class will be shorter and more focused.
Finally, I chose a smaller book to read when I travel in
two weeks. It was referenced quite a bit in Battle Cry so I thought it would be worth reading if for no other reason than to confirm my opinion of 19th century Southerners as villains.
