The Bloody Shirt

Praise for The Bloody Shirt:
 
“Effective in showing the sheer depth and virulence of white supremacy in the South . . . Today, no one is murdered at our voting polls. But this book and the story it tells should keep us vigilant at protecting our political rights, rendered sacred in the blood of Reconstruction, and beyond.”
—David Blight, The New York Sun
 
“Budiansky’s treatment of the period illustrates with force how the South ultimately defeated the North politically. He achieves the effect by relating the experiences of several people who served or supported Reconstruction governments and conjuring the atmosphere of intimidation against Reconstruction with quotations from Southern newspapers. . . . A passionate history of the Civil War’s aftermath.”
—Booklist
 
“This impassioned account of Southern resistance to Reconstruction [reminds us that] the war was won, but the peace, up for grabs, would be lost, done in by Southern intransigence and Northern apathy. . . . If ‘Profiles in Courage’ had not already been taken, it would have made the perfect title for this linked set of portraits honoring five men who risked everything to fight for the principles that had cost so many lives.”
—William Grimes, The New York Times