Civil War Reflections

I have stated and written in other places that I write in order to produce good quality work and to inform and to move people in a positive way. I like to make people think and to consider such things as their heritage and the sacrifice of their ancestors.

Civil War Novels often concentrate on the blood and battle, a romance back home, or the brother against brother theme. In Scarecrow in Gray, I tried to create a book that first of all honors the sacrifice of my ancestors, but secondly tries to inform the reader of just how desperate and full of poignancy was the America's holocaust.

I used a few thematic devices, especially the imagery of the crow and the owl, both harbingers of death. The image of the Scarecrow is seen as one who seeks to somehow defeat or delay death.

I tried to elevate the common man not to the stature of super hero, but to a plain where dwells honor and basic fidelity. I wanted my primary characters to behave in honorable ways while facing the most intolerable of circumstances. I hope by doing so I elevate both the memory of our forebears as well as the outlook of the reader. Doing the right and honorable thing is always the best path.