Fallen Soldier: Memoir of a Civil War Casualty

Rating:
Summary: Interesting but badly edited
Review: Fallen Soldier is a portion of the Civil War diary of Andrew Roy. It is interesting as a portrayal of what happened to badly wounded men both on the battlefield and in later life. It certainly works as a story of medical incompetence (the result of low medical technology, not necessarily doctors' negligence). It really isn't particularly gory or harrowing to read -- very few Civil War memoirs are and this is consistent with the genre. What I found annoying about this book was the editing. The text has been cut down so as to only mention Roy's wounding and medical treatment, but the original document, as the editor admits in passing, was much longer. Some segments are given as appendices. Why not just give the entire diary as it was written, or at least include all the material not related to the wound as one appendix?

Rating:
Summary: Unique, compelling
Review: I am not generally a reader of Civil War books, but found this work to be an amazing insight into the life of a soldier, and into the human condition. Highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: No Ordinary Soldier
Review: What a pity that Miller was so narrowly focused that he did not even mention the important reforms brought about by this early proponent of mine safety and the formation of labor unions in the United States. Roy, the first mining inspector for the state of Ohio, was the author of A History of the Coal Miners, The Coal Mines, and the Practical Miner's Companion.

This self-taught Scottish immigrant went on to change the face of coal mining in America because his wound gave him the time to write and speak up for his friends underground in the mines.