Company Aytch by Samuel R. Watkins Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Company Aytch
Book Review: Indespensible for the re-enactor
Summary: 5 Stars
I was introduced to this masterpiece a few years back when I was a novice to re-enacting and I wanted to know more about the soldier's experience. It is a true treasure-trove of information regarding the frontline experiences of a Confederate soldier.
Watkins gently takes the reader by the hand and leads them through the horrors of day to day life in the Army of Tennessee (and even in the Army of Northern Virginia for a small portion of the book). The nightmare of their day-to-day existence is softened by Watkins' gentle humor, making the journey a wonderful read. True, there are some 'politically incorrect' passages relating to his opinions on slavery, African-Americans in general, and even regarding the Confederate hiearchy (if you're a dyed-in-the-wool Confederate, your feathers may get ruffled a bit), but remember: this is the first person account of a man who was there. There was no Civil Rights March in Waktins' day, only a Civil War.
If you are a re-enactor of the War Between the States, this book is a must for you. IF you're not, this is still one of the best (i.e.: most entertaining) books on the subject of the Army of Tennessee. Enjoy!
Book Review: One of the best Memoirs of the Civil War.
Summary: 5 Stars
One of the best Memoirs of the Civil War.
Superb at all levels. Written in 1882 by private Sam Watkins of Company H, 1st Tennessee Infantry Regiment, Private Watkins was involved in all the major fighting in the West and even some in the East. He experienced the grit of battle at its most basic level: The common soldier in the ranks. Not interested in upper command strategy or middle command tactic, Private Watkins tells his simple story of daily life and combat of the lowly "grunt". He relates the dreary day to day activities of the soldiers when not in combat. His personal tales of camp life gives the reader a true insight into how the common soldier lived for those long brutal 4 years from 1861 to the bitter end in 1865.
His personal reminisces of combat are both striking and in some cases extremely poignant. He tells of the blood and guts of battle as it happens, but also of the great sadness and sorrow as all his friends and combat buddies slowly fade away through years of bitter conflict.
Strongly recommended for anyone who wants to know and taste what it was like at the common soldier level during the Civil War. Required reading for all Civil War buffs. Simply a terrific, insightful memoir from an unpretentious common solider of great valor. Nothing more need be said.
Book Review: Pretty Darn Good!
Summary: 4 Stars
I have to admit to being an unabashed lover of truly good personal narratives on the Civil War. They help us get away from the big picture to see what really happened and how the experiences impacted the participants. Sam Watkins' work is as good as it gets.Sam's experience, stretching the entire span of the war, is quite simply amazing. Joining the Maury Grays, First Tennessee Regiment, he fights in all its major battles from Shiloh to Nashville. This is the story of combat, told by a veteran who not only fought hard but consistently. No shirker here, it is a wonder that he survived. His description of the action at Kennesaw Mountain will take your breath away.
Book Review: Sam Watkins would have been an amazing guy to talk to!
Summary: 5 Stars
This book lives up to its reputation. If you have any interest whatsoever in the Civil War, whether you're from the North or South, you need to read this book. It has an immediacy that's lacking in history books, because the author was there and lived through some of the most hellish events in the war. And the kicker is that he was a great writer... Imagine if Mark Twain had fought in the Civil War and then wrote about it afterward. He has a gift for making you feel the exhiliration, terror, heartbreak, and drudgery of life as an infantryman in the Civil War... with a degree of literacy and introspection that raises the writing above merely a 'this happened and this happened' sort of account. His writing style is very accessible, too- this book is timeless.Book Review: The best firsthand account of the war
Summary: 5 Stars
Sam Watkins is amazing and a part of you wishes he were still around signing books.
There are primarily two first hand accounts of the Civil War that get qouted a lot this one and Eliha Hunt Rhodes's "All for the Union." I like this one the best because unlike the guy who wrote "All for the Union" Watkins never moved beyond the rank of corporal. When Sam Watkin's joined the "glorious cause" in 1861 1,200 marched away from his home town 65 returned including Watkin's himself. Sam states many times that this is not a history of the war, just a few things that have stuck in his memory 20 years later.
The book flows in a mostly chronological order and includes personal observations of Jackson, Bragg, Johnstone, the Honorable Jefferson Davis (who shook Sam's hand) and many others. These accounts are extremely insightful and even eloquent.
There are the accounts of battles in which Watkins fought 1861, Murfreesboro, Shiloh, Corinth, Perryvile, Chattanooga, Missionary Ridge and the darkest of all Frnaklin.
There are also extremely entertaining elements of social history that are not directly related to battles but give you a good idea of how an average solider of the south lived and how they had fun; of these the segment "pass the butter" is probably the most hilarious. Then there is also the story of how Sam was arrested while on leave and one of his old friends from his home town got him out of trouble.
Overall-This book has something for everyone and if Watkin's is correct and this book was not intended as a history it is definatly one of the most entertaining not-histories that I have read.