North and South
John Jakes, 1982
★ 4.21 from 63k ratings on Goodreads
West Point friends from North and South watch a country divide, and their families pay the price. A broad, dramatic family saga that moves from West Point friendship to open war, with a steady undercurrent of dread and bursts of violence.
Feels like dread, serenity and curiosity. About war, family and love.
Who it’s for
You may like it if you enjoy long historical sagas that follow families through a country splitting apart. Be warned, though: readers often find it overlong and melodramatic, with uneven pacing and characters who can feel stereotyped.
Why read it
It gives you the sweep of the Civil War through two families on opposite sides, mixing battlefield tension with domestic drama and a satirical eye on the era.
A page from the book
How fast a quiet street becomes a firing line.
They had taken no more than a dozen steps away from the cottages when a musket barrel came smashing through an unbroken window in one of the cottages ahead. The door flew open, three more muskets poked out. The muskets boomed, killing two of the surprised soldiers a yard to Orry’s left. What readers say
Readers are split: many enjoy the sweeping family saga and its Civil War backdrop, praising the characters and historical detail, while others find it an overlong, melodramatic soap opera with uneven pacing and hollow or stereotyped characters.
John Jakes.North and South (1982) was the first book in John Jakes's trilogy; its 1985 ABC miniseries became a major television event.
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Questions readers ask
- Is North and South for me?
- You may like it if you enjoy long historical sagas that follow families through a country splitting apart. Be warned, though: readers often find it overlong and melodramatic, with uneven pacing and characters who can feel stereotyped.
- What is North and South like?
- A broad, dramatic family saga that moves from West Point friendship to open war, with a steady undercurrent of dread and bursts of violence. Feels like dread, serenity and curiosity. About war, family and love.
- What should I read after North and South?
- If you liked North and South, try Chesapeake (James Michener), The Nightingale (Kristin Hannah) and Cold Mountain (Charles Frazier).
A taste of the feed
What it costs to leave before they name your punishment.
It took him only a few moments to reach that decision. The council would not act hastily; it never did. There would have to be long speeches, condemning him, but if this child’s father had actually used the word punish, a much more serious penalty than outlawing might be in store. His enemies had grown so outspoken that some might even demand death; if they convinced themselves that he was indeed a spy for the northern tribes, this would be logical.
Chesapeake · James Michener
What we keep in boxes when we can't admit we're letting go.
I see the rocking chair I used when my grandchildren were young, then an old crib and a ratty-looking rocking horse set on rusty springs, and the chair my daughter was refinishing when she got sick. Boxes are tucked along the wall, marked “Xmas,” “Thanksgiving,” “Easter,” “Halloween,” “Serveware,” “Sports.” In those boxes are the things I don’t use much anymore but can’t bear to part with. For me, admitting that I won’t decorate a tree for Christmas is giving up, and I’ve never been good at letting go. Tucked in the corner is what I am looking for: an ancient steamer trunk covered in travel stickers.
The Nightingale · Kristin Hannah
A soldier wonders whether the human race deserves the world it is destroying.
Men were the only animals that slaughtered their own kind by the million, and turned the landscape into a waste of shell craters and barbed wire. Perhaps the human race would wipe itself out completely, and leave the world to the birds and trees, Walter thought apocalyptically. Perhaps that would be for the best.
Fall of Giants · Ken Follett
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