War Diary of Rodney Webster Torrey: 1862-1863 (Expanded, Annotated)

Rodney Torrey's diary during the American Civil War is interesting because it is such an exemplar of the common Civil War Union soldier. You'll get a sense of the life of a Union soldier that you can't get in many of the more prosaic diaries of the period.

"I went upon the jump and zigzag, with the bullets zipping all around. While I lay behind a beech stump I had a duel with a rebel. We exchanged four or five shots apiece. I think I must have hit him, as I fired last and never could see him afterwards."

In the diary, he exhibits what became a lifelong habit: recording the weather. Mundane as this may seem, Torrey effectively describes the suffering experienced by the troops due to weather. And he was a farmer, so it made all the sense in the world to him to record the rain and sun.

"Weather fair. Mind calm. Picked some roses."

For less than you'd spend on gas going to the library, this long out-of-print volume is available as an affordable, well-formatted book for e-readers and smartphones.

Be sure to LOOK INSIDE by clicking the cover above or download a sample.