The March: A Novel

Book review by Jane
I must admit I am new to reading about Civil War stories, but this one may just be among the better written—especially in what I would think would be plotting, with the many characters and events it covered. The book follows several characters on a march that came towards the end of the Civil War, when a Union general, General William Sherman, went through Georgia, burning and tearing up the place, then marched towards North, doing about the same. As General Sherman is a character in the book, it can be assumed that there are real people represented by some of the better-known characters, but they are fictionalized and so most of the characters are fiction. From what I can tell, there are real events that are portrayed in the book, but I am not a big war buff and was not entirely sure what was fiction and what came from true events. I imagine that the author’s background topics were factual, but it was a work of fiction. I am guessing a good history war buff would enjoy this fiction and would know more than me about what was true and how authentic the war picture was. As far as I could tell, and how the book made me feel when reading--the medical procedures at the makeshift hospital were real. Two of the characters were let out of jail to fight, and that was written to where it seemed real. From my standpoint outlined above, it appeared to be authentic and rolled with each page.

My favorite character was Pearl, a product of a slave owner and a slave, whose skin was as white as her name reflected. She shows great strength in dealing with the war and its effects at a very young age. She meets Stephen, a soldier, while working in the makeshift military hospital. It is the only good love affair in the book, and it is put together very nicely.

I found that the author worked into the war stories a very human side. Each character had a distinct reason for being in the book, which always helps with a good book. But also, the characters had a certain kind of grit or refinement, depending on their placement—and sometimes, both. They seemed to bring you back to that time as if they were real and right in front of you. This book would make a good miniseries, which you don’t see anymore on TV.

Mr. Doctorow was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for this historical fiction. It won the Pen/Faulkner Award for Fiction and National Books Critics Circle Award for Fiction. Mr. Doctorow has written several other titles.

I would recommend this book.

Jane.