Book of The Month: “The Demon of Unrest”, by Erik Larson

Larson adds great research to his ability as a great storyteller. He makes actual history more interesting. While it is not his best book, partly due to comparing that period to today, he covers a five-month period I knew nothing about.

Instead of favorite excerpts this month, here are three things I never knew before reading this:

· Secession by southern states was a threat for many, many decades, not years

· The tipping point was very specifically Lincoln’s election

· Even then, it took five months from his election to a month into his presidency for Fort Sumpter to become the immediate cause of the Civil War

Read it for yourself here