The Other Side: A Novel of the Civil War - Hardcover

In the tradition of Michael Shaara's THE KILLER ANGELS, the author of PRAYING TO A LAUGHING GOD takes an epic look at the Civil War through one man's harrowing journey from the innocence of Ohio farm life to the violence of the battlefield. It was a lesson he would come to learn all too well: in the midst of any fiercely contentious and violent conflict, you must choose a side- or else become the enemy of both. As the impending struggle between North and South approaches fever pitch, seventeen-year-old Jacob Wilson remains largely indifferent to the situation, content to continue working on his family's small Ohio farm just across the river from Kentucky. But when the local militia discovers the runaway slaves who have been hiding with his family, Jacob's world is irrevocably turned upside down. Forced to watch the militia men abuse his mother and destroy his home, he finally responds in anger, killing one of the soldiers and then fleeing for his life. Now a solitary rencgade on the wild frontier, Jacob encounters a wild group of pillagers led by none other than the legendary William Quantrill. Drawn into the frenzy of brutality these men foster, Jacob finds himself becoming more and more inured to the gory violence that saturates his new life.

Kevin McColley is the award-winning author of PRAYING TO A LAUGHING GOD as well as several critically acclaimed novels for young adults. He lives in Bemidjii, Minnesota.