What are You Reading?

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Most of my reading is in the American Civil War field, but I have already read widely in other areas, including ancient history and World War II. Right now I am reading three books actively, and a couple others passively (which means they are strategically located around the house, if you get my drift).

1. Robert Citino's The Death of the Wehrmacht, 1942. Nearly done--simply first-rate. I really understand now, for the first time, the full breakdown of German logistics from Operation Blue onward to Stalingrad and into the Caucasus. Can't wait for his new release The Wehrmacht Retreats: Fighting a Lost War, 1943, which I just ordered.

2. Brian Holden Reid's America's Civil War: The Operational Battlefield, 1861-1863. This is an interesting book, generally well done, but it is not keeping me up at night like Harsh's Taken at the Flood or Freeman's Lee's Lieutenants.

3. Stephen Fritz' Ostkrieg: Hitler's War of Extermination in the East.  Another "could have had a V-8" slap on the forehead epiphanies. An outstanding synthesis of existing research brilliantly written. The scope and breadth of this aspect of WWII, where 4 out of every 5 Germans who died in the war perished, is required reading for anyone with even a passing interest in this topic.

So . . . what are you reading?

-- tps

Some People Are Just . . . . [Fill in the Blank]

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We got this email this morning to our customer service box. It speaks for itself:

Boy, I am really tired of Savas pushing back the release of [TITLE] by [AUTHOR]. It was originally scheduled for release a year ago, but, according to Amazon.com, you've changed the date no fewer than 4 times! It better be released this April, as Amazon now lists, or the trade journals will hear. -- Paul

Our reply:

Hi Paul,
Thanks for writing. There was a death in the family, sudden and unexpected. And then the author's wife grew very ill and was hospitalized for an extended length of time. Feel free to take your threats wherever you wish. I am sure that will make the [AUTHOR] family feel just wonderful.

Have a great day.

-------

So let me get this straight: A book is delayed, and without knowing a damn thing about why you threaten the publisher and the author? Yes, Esmeralda, that man wins the jackass award.

But God my friends has a wicked sense of humor and justice and balance, does he not? Right above that nasty email came this one

Hello, SB and crew!

I am eagerly waiting the arrival of two new titles: Tom Clemens' second volume of The Maryland Campaign of 1862 and Cap Beatie's fourth volume of Army of the Potomac.

I just this evening finished Beatie's vol. 3 of Army of the Potomac. Couldn't put it down! I am fighting terminal colon cancer and hope to get these two books read before my time comes.

When will they be released?

Most sincerely,

[SIGNED]

I wrote back and told this man, who has been a customer for a long time, that I will do whatever I can to see that he gets unedited printed copies ASAP from the authors so he can at least hold them, read them, and enjoy them.

(sigh)


--tps

Savas Beatie E-Book Trailer

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We took the plunge into the digital world two years ago, getting in as early as we could to position ourselves on top of the growing wave rather than wait to get buried by it and raked across the coral.

CLICK HERE to see a brief trailer about our e-books and what we are up to at Savas Beatie. It takes a minute or so to load, so sit back let it rev up, and then give us a shout as to your thoughts.

As of the date of this posting, fully 9 out of 10 of our books are available in digital format (iPad, Kindle, Barnes and Noble Nook, Sony Reader, and all android platforms.)

This will be up on YouTube and in all the usual places soon.

Thanks for your continued support.

--tps

A Third Major Award for Wynstra's "The Rashness of That Hour"

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Robert Wynstra's evocative The Rashness of that Hour: Politics, Gettysburg, and the Downfall of Confederate Brigadier General Alfred Iverson (2010) has garnered its third major book award. They are as follows:

1) Bachelder-Coddington Award for the year’s best new work interpreting the Battle of Gettysburg;

2) Dr. James I. Robertson Literary Prize for Confederate History Award; and now . . .

3) Gettysburg Round Table's Distinguished Book Award.

If you have not yet read Wynstra's first Civil War offering--which is perhaps best described as part battle history, part unit history, and part memory study, I highly recommend it.

Click HERE to see our press release about the earlier awards.

Click HERE to jump to our website and read more about the book, an interview with the author, an excerpt, and much more.

Click HERE to order an e-Book copy;

Congratulations Rob. These are well-deserved. Now get cracking and finish your study of Rodes' Division at Gettysburg. . . .

--tps

The CSS Hunley, in All Her Glory

Confederate Civil War vessel H.L. Hunley, the world's first successful combat submarine, was unveiled in full and unobstructed for the first time on Thursday, capping a decade of careful preservation. I am proud to say I was on the 1994 11-day expedition with Cussler, Newell, and the rest of the (very fractured) team. There is still a lot of mystery surrounding the discovery. I will leave it at that.

Click HERE and enjoy.

(Thanks Kevin)