And the War Came received an excellent write-up in Michael Humphrey‘s blog Techno-Tainers on Forbes.com:
“Byliner’s third Original, “And the War Came,” marches readers chronologically from just before Abraham’s Lincoln’s election to the doorstep of war. We arrive byway of every imaginable thought direction – the passionate abolitionist and adamant slavery defender, the brave-savvy leader and insipid-spineless type, reasoned editorials and rants – they all get a say. Malanowski, a well-respected magazine editor and author of the political novel The Coup, aspires to place us in the minds of contemporary observers, but perhaps the greatest triumph of his writing is we don’t feel forced there. He prefers understatement to breathlessness. If there’s going to be fire spewed, Malanowski puts it in the flaming mouth rather than the narrative. Consider a mob scene outside Virginia Governor John Letcher’s mansion:
Denied a bravura ending by the governor, the crowd devised one on its own. They stormed the Capitol building and scaled its roof, where they raised the Confederate flag. After more boisterous singing and speechmaking, the mob drifted off.
“It works, because the stakes are as unmistakable as the outcome is inevitable. But the point of “And the War Came” is that none of it was inevitable, that false conceit of history class, which only deepens the poignancy of the story. Against that weight, Malanowski’s light touch is just right.”
The write-up includes a brief Q&A with yours truly. Thanks, Michael–I’m glad you liked it.