Abraham's Battle: A Novel of Gettysburg

by Sara Harrell Banks

Book Overview

"Four score and seven seven years ago..." Before Abraham Lincoln uttered these immortal words, Union and Confederate soldiers met in the bloodiest battle of the Civil War. The year was 1863, and the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0439283027
• ISBN13: 9780439283021
• Release Date: February 2001
• Publisher: Aladdin
• Length: 96 Pages
• Weight: 0.19 lbs.
• Dimensions: 7.7" x 0.3" x 5.1"

Customer Reviews

Good Morgan Freeman Role

Abraham's Battle: A Novel of Gettysburg by Sara Harrell Banks told the story of a former slave, Abraham Small. He had escaped the South through the Underground Railroad and was living as a freedman in Gettysburg. The story opens in late June 1863 immediately before the Battle of Gettysburg. We discover that Abraham misses the South through his encounter with Lamar, a wandering Rebel whom he reminisces with after getting to know him. Lamar, a white, mountain man, apparently has never talked to a black man before and bears no prejudice toward him. This was a bit unbelievable. Abraham has a revelation prior to the battle that he should join the Union army as an ambulance driver. He does so and once again encounters Lamar, wounded on the field. He brings Lamar to a Yankee hospital, but Lamar subsequently dies of his wounds. At the end of the book Abraham receives a packet of okra seeds from Lamar posthumously through a convoluted channel of soldiers, sister, etc. Abraham also meets President Lincoln when he is in town for the Gettysburg memorial dedication. Lincoln hitches a ride to the battlefield with Abraham and his mule Charity. Some fairly incredible events occur out there. For example, President Lincoln stretches himself out on the ground and embraces it. In a historical novel like this, I expect most episodes to be based on fact. Perhaps this happened, but in my years as a genealogy/history librarian I never heard about it. This was, however, a very good introduction to the Battle of Gettysburg. The characters were sympathetic and believable, although Lamar might have been whitewashed. I did appreciate the author's attempt to present both Union and Confederate soldiers as human and compassionate. The descriptions of landscape and Southern memories were on target and well written. If this was a movie, Morgan Freeman would be perfect as Abraham. I would recommend this book to students wanting to know basic facts about Gettysburg.

The story of a president and a runaway slave, both equals.

& #65279;Abraham's Battle, by Sara Harrell Banks, is about the Civil War, more specifically, The Battle of Gettysburg. But that is only skin deep, it is a novel about equality, about hate, and about love. The story centers around a white northern girl, Ladybird, and a runaway slave man, Abraham, the best of friends, despite the time in which they are living, which may frown on such friendships. They are perfectly happy together, and enjoy walking with the mule, Charity. But their simple existence is complicated when a soldier for the south arrives at the farm, asking for food. Abraham, despite himself takes a liking to this homesick young man and is almost sorry when they part at the end of the day. Later on, Abraham saves his life. Throughout the entire book, Banks is constantly reinforcing the message that all men are created equally but in such delicate and subtle methods that the flow of the story is never once interrupted. For example: Ladysmith's friendship with Abraham, Abraham saving a man fighting on the opposite side in the war, and Abrahams conversation with the president that shares his name. Abraham's Battle is a flowing and poignant tale that is subtle and yet a still powerful narrative that should be enjoyed for generations to come.