This link ( below) takes you to Amazon US. Sweet Glory is also available on Amazon UK and through other booksellers.
Sweet Glory by Lisa Potocar
Years ago, while reading about the American Civil War, I
came across an item that I found very interesting even for that heartbreaking,
fascinating time. I retired soldier,
living on a government pension and in a home for retired veterans, had been
discovered to be a woman rather than a man.
This soldier had fought during the war, had suffered all the privations
that were experienced by soldiers in that time, and had been mustered out at
the end with an honorable discharge.
Naturally, the authorities were horrified and canceled the
soldier's pension. A woman? She was not a real soldier - she was an
impostor! I was not surprised to read of
this. It was the late 1800's when
'women's work' was officially circumscribed and severely limited, regardless of
what women of that era had to do to survive.
I was thrilled to read that the 'disgraced' soldier's comrades rose up
and came to her defense She WAS a
soldier, they said. She fought alongside
them, suffered all they suffered, and had her share in securing their
triumphs. A woman? Well, they hadn't known. One man said that that certainly explained
the soldier's modesty on the subject of going to the 'sinks' -a word for
latrine. The pension was reinstated, as
was her war credit.
This was not an isolated incident. Something like this happened more than once. And not just with women serving as
soldiers. Anyone with imagination starts
wondering Who would do this? How? What hindrances would they face? What temptations? And how would they feel.
Sweet Glory tells the story of one of these soldiers.
Jana Brady, from upstate New York, is an accomplished horsewoman,
experienced with treating the ailments of humans and animals alike. Sweet Glory follows her experiences s she
joins a Cavalry unit - will she be able to get away and sign up in time? - learns
about soldiering, becomes 'one of the boys' and finds a way, when it appears
that her service must be at an end, to continue to serve.
I don't need to outline the plot of Sweet Glory. The narrative draws you in, and you follow
it. I don't mind saying that there is a
twist toward the end that startled me and made me think, 'How on earth will she
get out of this?' You'll have to read
Sweet Glory to find out what I mean.
Lisa Potocar writes well, catching conversations in an
authentic voice from that mid-Victorian era.
Her characters have human emotions and conflicts - one scene shows the
two sides in a post-battle truce caring for the wounded. It contains a very touching scene that had me
choked up. A description of a cavalry
clash, with fighting in a ditch, was deftly handled, the emotions of the
combatants believable and realistic.
Sweet Glory is not a long book. It tells the story of Jana's service with the
army - how it came about, how it progressed, and how it ended - and what it did
to her. Jana is a very 'together' young
woman of intelligence and resolution.
The story follows her timeline, and while it could have paused to dawdle
over details of day to day existence, that was not necessary to the intent of
the novel, which shows how a woman can engage in a war and emerge from it with
her feminine abilities and characteristics intact and deepened by the
experience. Jana uses her abilities and
experience to cope ably with all that is involved in war.
Physically speaking, Sweet Glory is a satisfying book. And it is pretty. The cover is beautifully conceived - note the
top of the cover with a view of a lady's slippered foot descending a step - and
below it a scene from a battle - the woman stepping into war. The typeface used is reminiscent of that you
might find in a novel of that period.
I have no hesitation recommending this book for just about
any age. I would have loved it if I had
encountered it in when I was in elementary school. I graduated from college a long time ago and
I enjoyed it. YA readers would enjoy it,
too. There is a love story in it, but I
don't classify this as a romance novel, though Jana's emotions are well
handled. This is a reread, and I will be
loaning it to my niece, aged fourteen, when I see her next.
I was given a copy of Sweet Glory by the author as a thank
you for some assistance with electronic media - blogs, postings and the
like. It was a gift. I was not asked to review it, nor was it
implied that I was expected to. I read
it because the subject interested me, and I am writing this review to reflect
my impressions.
This is, for me, one that I will reread. Sweet Glory has won awards. They were well-deserved. Well done, Ms. Potocar.
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