TWO REVIEWS OF HIRAM'S HOPE

Two reviews of Hiram's Hope, the sequel to Hiram's Honor have been received. To see the reviews, click here.

HIRAM'S HOPE: THE RETURN OF ISAIAH

The rough draft of Hiram's Hope is out for review and comments.

I hope to have it published by September 2014.

Civil War vet talks to Abraham Lincoln

I had the pleasure of becoming my ancestor Private Hiram Terman as he talks with President Abraham Lincoln. I played Hiram as he would have appeared in the 1880's as a Civil War veteran. It was fun. See

http://tinyurl.com/mqwvrgg

 for video of the event staged in Avon Park, Florida. Chet Damron was Abraham Lincoln.

 

The Andersonville Survivors Trek to Vicksburg To Be Paroled

 

 

I am writing the later chapters of Hiram's Hope and have needed an historical account detailing the experiences of Andersonville survivors leaving the prison in late March 1865 on their way to Vicksburg for parole and freedom. I found some first hand accounts (such as the very good account by Chester Berry and a diary by Smith) and a useful book entitled TRANSPORT TO DISASTER by James W. Elliott (published in 1962). Written by a descendent of an Andersonville survivor, the book provides a very readable account of the ordeals of prisoners from Cahaba and Andersonville as they make their way by rail and steamboat across Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi, eventually winding up in Vicksburg only to board the ill-fated Sultana that exploded north of Memphis killing most of those aboard.  These are challenging chapters to write as I try to imagine the sights, sounds, thoughts, and conversations that occurred. 

12 Years A Slave Movie and Book



Illustration from 12 Years a Slave by Solomon Northup (published 1853)

I went to see the movie "12 Years A Slave" in hopes of learning more about slavery from the perspective of a slave.  I may incorporate a former slave as a charaacter in the sequel to Hiram's Honor.  I was so taken by the story that I looked up the original book published in 1853. I read the first person account with images from the movie in my mind. For the most part the movie follows the book. The written account has much more detail and is thus more valuable to understanding the author and thus building a character for my story.  I was amazed at how Solomon Northup, an educated free black man kidnapped into slavery, was able to experience the trials of being a slave and yet retain hope for returning to freedom.  The injustice of the story overwhelms you but in the end you rejoice with Northup as he rejoins his family after 12 years in the most brutal of circumstances. 

 

Reunion and reconciliation

In my search for ideas on how Private Hiraqm Terman might have dealt with his Civil War battle and prisoner of war experiences, I read Caroline Janney's new book REMEMBERING THE CIVIL WAR.  I found the book to be well researched and written in a way that held my attention.  The theme of the book centers on the difference between reunion and reconciliation and explores the perspectives of Union and Confederaate men and women. As I write the sequel to Hiram's Honor, I hope that the things I learned in this fine book will show up in the story.  

How Did Hiram Cope?

 

I came across a book entitled MAN'S SEARCH FOR MEANING by Holocaust survivor and psychologist Victor Frankl. In this fascinating book (it has sold over 10 million copies) Frankl describes how he was able to survive the test of the German concentration camps by looking on his suffering as an opportunity to find his identity and give meaning to his life. I read his emotional but reasonable descriptions hoping to find some ideas on how to write about how my ancestor might have coped with being an Andersonville survivor.  We will see what comes out when I write about Private Terman after Andersonville.