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A Library Journal Top Ten Best Books of 2011
A Boston Globe Best Nonfiction Book of 2011 Bestselling author Tony Horwitz tells the electrifying tale of the daring insurrection that put America on the path to bloody war Plotted in secret, launched in the dark, John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry was a pivotal moment in U.S. history. But few Americans know the true story of the men and women who launched a desperate strike at the slaveholding South. Now, Midnight Rising portrays Brown's uprising in vivid color, revealing a country on the brink of explosive conflict. Brown, the descendant of New England Puritans, saw slavery as a sin against America's founding principles. Unlike most abolitionists, he was willing to take up arms, and in 1859 he prepared for battle at a hideout in Maryland, joined by his teenage daughter, three of his sons, and a guerrilla band that included former slaves and a dashing spy. On October 17, the raiders seized Harpers Ferry, stunning the nation and prompting a counterattack led by Robert E. Lee. After Brown's capture, his defiant eloquence galvanized the North and appalled the South, which considered Brown a terrorist. The raid also helped elect Abraham Lincoln, who later began to fulfill Brown's dream with the Emancipation Proclamation, a measure he called "a John Brown raid, on a gigantic scale." Tony Horwitz's riveting book travels antebellum America to deliver both a taut historical drama and a telling portrait of a nation divided—a time that still resonates in ours. | | | Product Details: | | | Average Customer Rating:
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55 of 60 found the following review helpful:
 The story of America's SamsonAug 09, 2011
By Malvin
"Midnight Rising" by renowned historian Tony Horwitz presents the riveting story of John Brown, whose attack on the U.S. armory in Harpers Ferry, (West) Virginia might well have been the first salvo of the U.S. Civil War. Mr. Horwitz delivers a fresh perspective on one of 19th Century's most pivotal events in a way that is certain to reinvigorate the debate about Brown's legacy for many years to come. Exceptionally well researched and written, this thoroughly engaging book is destined to become a must-read for serious students of U.S. history.
Mr. Horwitz vivdly reconstructs the startingly different time in which Brown was born and raised. Often living a harsh frontier existence with few luxuries and beset by personal tragedy, Brown nonetheless cared deeply for his family and worked hard for their comfort in the steadfast belief that all were made equal before God. The fact of slavery's evil coexistence alongside free, industrious people deeply affected Brown, moving him to speak out against slavery and provide whatever assistance he could to the African- and Native American peoples he met.
Mr. Horwitz reminds us that in 1850s America the southern states were often able to impose their will, if not politically then by force. We learn that Brown first gained notoriety by fighting back against southern aggression in Kansas, whereupon his life changed forever as he moved underground to avoid arrest. As Brown subsequently spent much of the decade plotting his next, more ambitious move to take the offense and strike at the heart of the slave power, he came into contact with many of the leading progressives of the era including Frederick Douglass, William Lloyd Garrison, Henry David Thoreau and Harriet Tubman. Mr. Horwitz shares how Brown's supporters admired his courageouness but differed with his tactical plans for the Harpers Ferry attack, which most believed to be foolhardy and doomed to failure.
As a historian, Mr. Horwitz breaks new ground when he argues convincingly that Brown is best understood as a Biblical Samson-like figure who sought to tear down the institution of slavery through an incredibly bold, self-conscious act of self-sacrifice. Mr. Horwitz explains that Brown's brazen foray into Harpers Ferry was not the work of a fanatic, terrorist or madman. Rather, by detailing the circumstances surrounding Brown's capture, trial and execution, Mr. Horwitz shows how Brown brilliantly parlayed the publicity about his death into a searing moral indictment of the slave system, ultimately leaving the south with little credible response but to secede from the union and engage in Civil War.
Throughout the book, Mr. Horwitz writes about the people who were swept up in these momentous events, thereby providing plenty of interest, drama and humanity to the narrative. Mr. Horwitz documents how financial hardships, mental illness and violent deaths on the battlefield severely tested Brown's long-suffering family especially as he descended down the path of guerilla warfare. Mr. Horwitz profiles Brown's recruits and reports how they and their loved ones fared, for better or worse, as a result of their adventures. The end result is an informative yet entertaining book that makes 19th century American history come alive for us today, in all its triumph, tragedy and controversy.
I highly recommend this outstanding book to everyone.
12 of 13 found the following review helpful:
 Midnight RisingAug 06, 2011
By Brendan Moody
It's a commonplace that real history is much more interesting than what's taught in American schools, but the accuracy of the observation struck me anew as I read Tony Horwitz's book on John Brown and the Harpers Ferry raid. The rough outline of those events will be familiar to anyone who retains memories of high school history classes, where they're dutifully and rapidly treated as a precursor to the American Civil War. But it's the nuances of the situation that are truly fascinating. I'm tempted simply to repeat some of the more surprising nuggets of information here, but just as the reviewer of a comedy ought not spoil the good jokes, the reviewer of a popular history ought not spoil the good "factoids." Suffice it to say that Horwitz has the gift of any good popular historian: the ability to assemble the myriad details of the historical record into a generally coherent and compelling narrative.
I gather from other early reviews that Horwitz generally mixes his history with contemporary and personal observations, and that the absence of the latter from this book, which stays rooted in the nineteenth century, is a disappointment to some readers. That's fair enough, and it's certainly true that Midnight Rising is a straightforward historical narrative lacking individual voice. However, as a reader unfamiliar with Horwitz but interested in history, I admired the book for what it was. The author handles his large cast of characters (nineteen raiders and about as many uninvolved allies, to say nothing of those, from government officials to soldiers to ordinary residents, who fought against the raid) deftly, providing enough memorable personal detail to make each player stand out. The only exceptions are male members of John Brown's extended family. An underappreciated aspect of the raid is how much of a family affair it was, with four of Brown's sons and sons-in-law participating and a daughter and a daughter-in-law providing camouflage at the farm where the raiders lay in wait, while other of Brown's surviving children also figure into the story from their distant homes. Compared to their colorful father, the sons are hard to keep track of. But most of the men and women involved are easier to distinguish, and Horwitz characterizes them well enough that when some died violent and undignified deaths in the course of the raid, I was genuinely upset.
As with any historical narrative, there are blank spots where motivations and intentions are unknown. Horwitz's approach to these open questions (Brown's mental health, Brown's real intentions for Harpers Ferry) is to put forth the available evidence without reaching any conclusions, allowing readers to make up their own minds. I couldn't help focusing on the elements of tragic farce in Brown's life and behavior. He may not have been mentally ill in the most extreme sense of the term, but he was certainly driven, confident, and (over)ambitious. That the raid succeeded even briefly has more to do with government laxness than with strategic brilliance on his part, and its quick collapse once the residents of the village realized what was going on is a testament to Brown's poor planning. Some will argue that he had foreseen what would follow, a rushed trial and public response that treated his actions as something more than the fatal bungling they were, but given Brown's lifelong habit of making extravagant plans that he was unable to carry through, I think it's more likely that the martyrdom in which he so enthusiastically participated was, from his perspective, a happy accident.
But whatever John Brown was expecting when he led his men into Virginia that autumn night in 1859, what he achieved was a national sensation that, coupled with the election of Abraham Lincoln the following year, turned what was a latent conflict into an incipient one. It would be too much to claim that John Brown caused the American Civil War-- given the forces at work, some kind of conflict was inevitable-- but he brought it on more quickly, and with more force, than might otherwise have happened. As achievements go, inaugurating that bloodshed with a small-scale disaster of his own may not be high on the list, but in the hands of a gifted narrative historian, it does make for a remarkable story.
4 of 4 found the following review helpful:
Hero, villain or madman?Jan 26, 2012
By Dienne
Tony Horwitz has written a thoroughly researched and eminently readable account of the life of one of history's most complicated and vexing characters. John Brown was a visionary hero ahead of his time. He was also a radical outlaw willing to match violence for violence and even take life in cold blood. He was also a seriously flawed human being whose inflexible nature and single-minded devotion to his cause and utter inability to manage business affairs left his wife and brood of children in near poverty and very likely imperiled his own mission. There is simply no way to reconcile this singularly complex figure into any of the neat packages history has tried to stuff him into - whether hero, madman or villain. Yet this fanatical hero-villain, in the course of a blundered raid, lit the spark that ended slavery and exploded the "Southern Way of Life".
After a brief prologue setting the stage for the raid on Harper's ferry, Horwitz returns to the beginning to trace what is known - and what Brown himself reported - of Brown's childhood and early life. Brown was raised by a strict Calvinist who espoused hard work, piety, strident punishment of sins, and the equality of all people, including blacks - a radical idea at the time, even among abolitionists. John, left motherless at age eight by his mother's death in childbirth, seems to have emulated his father in both temperament and action.
Early in this life, Brown "consecrated" himself to the cause of ending slavery, and he enlisted his wife and sons as a sort of independent army. While his business affairs careened up and down, Brown's passion, determination and independence brought him the attention - and financial support - of wealthy Abolitionist backers from Gerrit Smith to William Lloyd Garrison.
Brown's initial cause was keeping Kansas a free state during the fierce "Bleeding Kansas" period when both pro- and anti-slavery interests were pumping settlers into the new territory. Brown believed, rightly, that there was too little check on the pro-slavery forces who were using violence and intimidation to enforce their way. Brown came to believe that the non-violent response of the anti-slavery movement was inadequate, so in the middle of the night Brown, several of his sons and some allies abducted, killed and apparently mutilated six men believed to be important leaders of the pro-slavery faction. Brown and his allies both denied responsibility and claimed self-defense, but Horwitz dissects these defenses and concludes that the killings were likely carried out to inspire fear and deter future violence. Such an act could justifiably be labeled terrorism, but then, one man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter. But regardless of the effect on Kansas, the effect on Brown's men was devastating. In addition to some physical wounds, some of the participants suffered mental breakdowns and life-long impairment. Brown himself, however, was unscathed and ready to do further battle.
Following the massacre, Brown, now an outlaw and a wanted man, retreated back east where he carried on his crusade in various forms while planning his attack on "Africa", Brown's code word for the slave-holding South. While imploring money from his benefactors and recruiting soldiers to his cause, Brown spoke of raids along the Southern border to free slaves (who would, it was believed, join Brown's band), strike fear into the hearts of slave owners, and make slave holding economically unviable. But little by little, through both coded references and open admission, Brown began to make it clear that something bigger was in the works, although what the something was, and what was the ultimate aim, remained rather muddy even as Brown and his rag-tag band of diverse followers began the march on Harper's Ferry.
Often throughout his life, Brown proclaimed that he received his orders from God. If that were true, then God is a pretty lousy general. Horwitz presents a masterful portrayal of the raid on Harper's Ferry, the bungling involved, the sheer luck that it succeeded as well as it did, and the tragedy along the way. Inadequate men, lack of communication and poor coordination of supplies hampered efforts from the beginning. An early and unintended shooting of a free black man (ironically, by white men seeking to liberate blacks, as Horwitz points out) was an ill omen and aroused the anger of the town. Brown failed to take into account the arrival of a train on the bridge to Harper's Ferry, and he wildly underestimated the support he would receive from both the townsfolk and the freed slaves (what few slaves he actually freed, that is). Furthermore, even once he captured the arsenal, Brown failed to use any of the federal arms or ammunition.
But as big a failure as the raid seemed to be, the aftermath of the raid brought much of the success Brown appeared to be seeking. Brown comported himself with composed dignity and did not flinch at the prospect of death. He willingly, even eagerly, met and spoke with all who sought him out (except his own wife, that is), especially pro-slavery advocates. Through inspired and eloquent speeches, writings and conversations, Brown sought to propound his vision of a just and equal society without the evils of slavery and oppression. He sought to make Southerners see the error of their ways and convert to Abolition. He largely failed on that count, but he did impress his opponents with his courage and conviction. He also appealed to Northern Abolitionists to bring pressure to bear against the iniquity of slavery.
Horwitz speculates - compellingly - that this platform to speak and be heard is what lay beneath the raid all along. Brown could never have expected to hold Harper's Ferry or free very many slaves. And ultimately, despite his violent acts, Brown was too conflicted and ambivalent about using violence to end slavery. Brown claimed not to want to take life, but the one life he could offer was his own. Through his martyrdom, Brown hoped to achieve what he and his meager band of followers could not otherwise achieve. And through is dignity and courage in his final days and his clarion call to the decency of all humans, he did in fact, in many ways, achieve what his violence did not.
Wrestling with the morality of the life of John Brown is no easy task. Is violence ever acceptable, even to end a great injustice? What about the men Brown lured into his fanatical plot without fully informing them of his plans - was it right to make martyrs of them too? What about free black porter Heyward Shepherd and the other innocent victims? And what right did Brown have to make his wife a widow and leave his children fatherless? Furthermore, this wrestling has to take into account the conditions and realities of Brown's time. It's easy now to point to the actual end of slavery as justification, but Brown had no way of knowing when or if slavery might end or how his actions might affect those bound in slavery. Following Brown's raid, life for slaves got a good deal harder, as slave owners became even more fearful of rebellion. Had the Civil War not ended slavery, Brown's actions would have been no favor to blacks bound in that "peculiar institution".
These issues and many more will never be neat and clean, but Horwitz does an excellent job of wrestling with them. Horwitz rules out the madman option, but wavers somewhat between the hero and villain, ultimately landing on the hero side. However, he pulls no punches and makes no attempt to tidy up history or present Brown as an unblemished hero. Horwitz closely examines the historical facts, dissects them this way and that, and paints a painfully honest and detailed portrait of villain-hero John Brown against the ugly backdrop of the times in which he lived. Highly recommended for all adults as well as kids who are mature enough and ready to wrestle with weighty, ambiguous moral issues.
4 of 4 found the following review helpful:
Harpers Ferry resident: A Great Read!Dec 07, 2011
By C. S. Huddle
"reading beats watching"
It's easier to enjoy a book when you can walk around looking at the scenes described in Midnight Rising. I loved this book and found it absorbing all the way through.
As someone who attended elementary school in the 1950s in northern Virginia and was taught the KKK did good works and John Brown was a crazy man and a traitor, I appreciated the care taken by the author to set the story straight. A very fine writer indeed.
8 of 10 found the following review helpful:
Fascinating, exciting, reads like a novelOct 04, 2011
By J. Silva
As the USA commemorates the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, Tony Horwitz's thoroughly researched and wonderfully written account of how John Brown came to plan and carry out the attack on Harpers Ferry adds to a complete understanding of the roots of the War Between the States. Brown was a complex, fiercely intelligent, deeply religious (perhaps fanatically religious) man whose fevered brain developed scheme after scheme, only to see each one defeated by his own blindered grandiosity and lack of attention to basic detail. Brown's powers of persuasion stemmed from his abiding faith in his plans and in his convictions, so he was able to raise considerable money for his business ventures. He also won the support, both political and financial, of many northern abolitionists who shared Brown's hatred of slavery.
His passion to free enslaved blacks was the driving force in Brown's life, superseding all others. He viewed slavery as a grave sin, and, as Horwitz writes, "Brown's ardor in the cause of racial justice was a powerful source of his ability to inspire others. But," Horwitz continues, "it may have clouded his strategic judgment." Brown firmly believed that black men "were not only desperate for freedom but ready and able to fight." In some cases, that proved true, but more often, enslaved blacks were too fearful of their owners and the consequences of rebellion to join up with Brown. That failure, as well as Brown's inexplicable lack of attention to some details at the expense of those he planned obsessively, doomed his attack on Harpers Ferry, as well as his own life and the lives of his supporters, including his own sons.
Horwitz tells the story of Brown's life, his few successes and many business failures, his devotion to the family he kept impoverished with unfulfilled schemes, his writings, and his years-long plan for an uprising against the government and slaveowners by arming and freeing blacks. Horwitz's research is impeccable -- he has accessed not only the letters and papers of Brown and his family, but also those of his many "soldiers" and supporters. The exchanges with his wife and family members stand out for their determination and tenderness, and, when Brown has lost his sons in battle, their raw grief. He has also found excellent illustrations from the time, including photographs and drawings, that personalize the story and bring the characters and events to life.
Horwitz makes it clear that, while a good case could be made for Brown's unstable mental condition, he always remained sharp and focused on his primary goal. Above all, Horwitz tells the story of John Brown not only thoroughly, but also with excitement. One knows that Brown and his compatriots were hanged for their part in the Harpers Ferry, but Horwitz maintains the tension of each moment so well, the foreknowledge is forgotten. Some of his details are grim, but war and its aftermath are unavoidably grim. This is great history that reads like a novel.
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