Good review on the Cannonba!! Civil War blog

Frances Clayton in her cavalry uniform. She was a badass.

GUYS! Take a look at this review for my book. Scott L. Mingus Sr., Civil War author (dang, he has a lot of books to his name), says good things about my book, Courageous Women of the Civil War: Soldiers, Spies, Medics, and More.

He writes, "Cordell has effectively used primary source documents, as well as period accounts of battles, events, and the sociopolitical climate to craft this well-written, fast-paced collection of individual stories, which she places in their proper historical context."

I am very much relieved to hear this from a proper Civil War historian. Careful scholarship and a good understanding of the age was crucial to me, because I have an eye toward the adult market as well as the YA market -- and remember, I was most recently a horticulturist and then a proofreader, with no schooling whatsoever in writing history! I'm glad my book as passed the test so far.

Mr. Mingus wraps up the review with these lines: "This is sure to be a popular seller among teens who are looking to learn more about the role women played in the Civil War and, hopefully, will cause several readers to seek a deeper understanding through perusing some of the more comprehensive works that Cordell suggests as further reading. The author is to be complimented for a job well done in this fine new book, which she dedicated to her late father, a combat engineer in Vietnam."

That last clause might have made me a little bit teary-eyed.

 A thousand heartfelt thanks to Mr. Mingus for his excellent review.