BEST-SELLING AUTHOR STEPHANIE
GRACE WHITSON PAINTS COMPELLING PICTURE OF WOMEN DIVIDED BY THE CIVIL WAR IN
NEW TITLE DAUGHTER OF THE REGIMENT
“Whitson
celebrates the strong but unknown heroines who marched off to war with their
men, as well as those who maintained the home front in this Civil War-era
inspirational...Based on true events, [Daughter of the Regiment] will
capture the hearts of historical fiction fans.” —Publishers Weekly
“Whitson explores the atypical subject of different
women’s roles during the Civil War. The author’s gift for multi-dimensional
characters and tight plotting shines through. Romance, family drama, immigrants
and dueling factions in the same town add action and intrigue.” –RT Times
Nashville, TN, March, 2015—During the American Civil War, thousands
of women organized to join the war efforts, turning their attention from household
to battle in support of the soldiers. In her new novel, Daughter of the Regiment, Stephanie
Grace Whitson describes this tumultuous time in history through life-threatening
encounters and action-filled romance, sweeping readers into the world of Irish
immigrant Maggie Malone and her privileged neighbor, Elizabeth Blair.
Inspired by
women known as “vivandièeres” or “daughters of the regiment,” Whitson studied a number of women in both the Union and the Confederate
armies who earned the title. Although "daughters" were probably
initially seen as a kind of mascot, "guardian angel," or nurse, the
realities of war expanded their roles. Daughters of the Regiment did much more
than carry water and tend the wounded. Some rallied their men to fight, and some
carried the regimental colors on the march and in the field. Others took part
in battles.
“Seeing how integral women were in the conflict [moved me]. One period
newspaper article [I read] was seeking the identity of a deceased soldier who
was discovered to be a woman only after she died on the battlefield. Women
loyal to the Confederacy and accused of helping "the enemy" were
actually imprisoned in St. Louis. There were so many fascinating,
diverse stories,” Whitson said. “They were extraordinary women and they deserve
to be remembered.”
The book’s
cover art is based on a historic dress in the Smithsonian Institute’s costume
collection. FaithWords worked with a costume designer
who used the original for inspiration and created a historically accurate
garment for the cover model to wear during the cover shoot.
Whitson’s
extensive historical research led her to choose the setting of Missouri—a
border state in the war and a hotbed of division, with both pro-Union and pro-Confederacy
sympathies. This
riveting tale of two women caught in the crossfire represents the complexity of
tensions and humanity when opposing sides of war clash.
DAUGHTER OF THE REGIMENT demonstrates that we all have
potential for determination and courage in times of uncertainty and will appeal
to American history buffs, inspirational romance readers, and fiction audiences
alike.
Review copies, hi-res
images, and author interviews are available upon request.
Pub date: March 24,
2015 | 978-1-4555-2903-2| 336 Pages | $15 | Trade Paperback Original |Available
wherever books are sold.
MEET-THE-AUTHOR
Saturday, April
11 at 2:00 p.m. @ Barnes & Noble Southpointe Pavilions (Lincoln, NE)
Friday, April
17 @ 11:00 a.m. @ Crete Public Library (Crete, NE)
Program lecture
‘Women in the Civil War: From Homefront to Battlefield’
April 24-25, Panel & keynote address @ Wordsowers Christian Writer's Group Conference (Omaha, NE)
April 24-25, Panel & keynote address @ Wordsowers Christian Writer's Group Conference (Omaha, NE)
Tuesday, April
28 at 7:00 p.m. @ Wisner Heritage Museum (Wisner, NE)
Program lecture
‘Women in the Civil War: From Homefront to Battlefield’
Saturday, May 2, time TBA @
Chapters Book Store (Seward, NE)
Thursday, June 11 at 7:00
p.m. @ Lexington Public Library with Plum Creek Quilt Guild (Lexington,
NE)
Program lecture
‘Women in the Civil War: From Homefront to Battlefield’
Additional events TBA.
DAUGHTER OF THE REGIMENT: A Novel by Stephanie Grace
Whitson
Faithwords | Hachette Book Group
March 24, 2015 | 978-1-4555-2903-2
336 Pages | $15 | Trade Paperback Original
About the Book: Maggie Malone inevitably
experiences the effects of war firsthand—first, with her brothers joining the
Missouri Irish Brigade and again when a group of unknown bandits attack her
farm. Desperate to hear news from her brothers, Maggie sets off to find them at
the Federal Army camp. There, she quickly captures the admiration of Sergeant
John “Colt” Coulter, who immediately notices her skill and dedication. When
circumstances require that Maggie remain with the brigade, she discovers that
there’s a lot a good woman can do to help the brave men she comes to think of
as “her boys.”
As the
hostess of an acclaimed Missouri plantation, Miss Libbie Blair has learned to
play her part and remain uninvolved in the business affairs and political
aspirations of her brother, Walker. When his endeavors lead him to organize the
“Wildwood Guard,” a group of locals in support of the Confederacy, Libbie must
gracefully manage the house with officers camped out on the lawn. With war
drawing closer to her doorstep, she must find a way to protect those who depend
on her.
When
military maneuvers and a subsequent battle bring the Irish Brigade (and Maggie)
to Wildwood Grove, Libbie's home is commandeered as a field hospital. The two
women whose brothers have fought on opposite sides of the same battle come face
to face while tending the wounded in the aftermath of a battle won by Union
troops.
Author
Questionnaire
1 Why did you pick Missouri as the setting for your book?
I've
lived in Nebraska since 1975, but I have many connections to Missouri and have
made the trip "home" to southern Illinois dozens of times. Finally, I
took time to investigate one of those interstate signs. It mentioned a
Confederate Cemetery in Missouri. The idea that there were plantations worked
by slaves a short drive east of Kansas City astonished me when I first followed
those signs. I had no idea that Missouri had been such a hotbed of division
during the Civil War. As one author wrote, "The Civil War came early and
stayed late" in Missouri—it was a slave state that never joined the Confederacy.
Missouri had two separate governments at one time—one pro-Union, one
pro-Confederacy.
2Any interesting
discoveries along the way?
Dozens. One that stands out
resulted from an exhibit called “Missouri in the Civil War” at the Missouri
History Museum in St. Louis. The curators did a superb job of showing how
integral women were in the conflict. They even included a period newspaper
article seeking the identity of a deceased soldier—discovered to be a woman after
her death in battle. Women loyal to the Confederacy and accused of helping
"the enemy" were actually imprisoned in St. Louis. I discovered
countless fascinating and diverse stories about women from all walks of life.
What inspired you to write this novel?
Reading about the real
Daughters of the Regiment. Their heroism. One replaced a fallen color-bearer
and stood throughout the battle with the colors held high so that her regiment
knew who was where in the heat of battle. After a battle, one's skirt was
riddled with bullet holes. She’d carried on, calmly tending the wounded with
bullets whistling about her. Men wrote about these women with affection and
respect. One earned a pension for her service, and another is buried at
Arlington National Cemetery. They were extraordinary women, and they deserve to
be remembered.
4 How did the cover shoot come about?
There is an original vivandièeres
costume in the collection at the Smithsonian Institution. (The word vivandièeres comes from the women who
were important in the French army during the Crimean war.) FaithWords
worked with a costume designer who used the original for inspiration and created
a historically accurate garment for the cover model to wear during the cover
shoot. It's a stunning piece made of soft, dark blue wool—very faithful to what
a Daughter of the Regiment might actually have worn, complete with the shorter
skirt that is pictured in so many period photographs and drawings (not all of
these are military women, some are just in bloomers, but there are still some
that are obviously military).
5. What about the timeliness of the book?
On the 150th anniversary of
the end of the Civil War and Women’s History Month, it is only fitting to laud
the role women played. They worked in munitions factories, organized
fundraising events to feed the hungry wives and children of soldiers who were
off fighting, collected thousands of quilts to keep soldiers warm (neither
government was prepare for the
magnitude of the war and neither was
able to supply their troops adequately), made countless shirts and
"drawers," knitted socks and destroyed household towels and garments
to make bandages. They took up the farm work in the men's absence, delivered
clandestine letters (and were imprisoned for it), and supported "the
cause" in every way imaginable. Such rich stories from real history are better
stories than anything I could ever make up!
6Tell us about the crossover between your quilting experience and
Civil War research.
Quilting is a multi-billion dollar
industry in America, and many of those women do love the history and stories
about the women who made antique quilts.
Antique textiles in general and quilts
in particular have been a topic of personal study for decades. I've taken
several classes in dating both antique quilts and fabric history from
recognized experts in the field. I volunteer at the International Quilt Study
Center and Museum in Lincoln, Nebraska. Researching the real stories behind
antique quilts has inspired more than one of my historical novels, and I
always enjoy being able to include some tidbit of quilt history in a story. The
interest is high for this topic, as evidenced by the many Civil War exhibits at
state history museums and historical societies, not the least of which is the
American Textile History Museum’s Homefront
and Battlefield: Quilts & Context in the Civil War, which premiered in
June, 2012, and which tours across the U.S. through 2015.
I give a program titled
“Women in the Civil War: From Homefront to Battlefield” that includes
information about quilts gathered and made for soldiers, ladies' aid societies
established to benefit the troops, and the Sanitary Fairs conducted to raise
money for the cause. Women's production of textiles was a vital part of the war
effort for both North and South.
Visit Stephanie Grace Whitson on the web
