Growing up in west Tennessee, I have been interested in the history of the Civil War from my first trip to the Shiloh National Battlefield Park when I was 10 years old. I could sense the hallowed nature of the ground even then — decades before I would choose a warrior’s way of life. The two books listed below represent only a tiny glimpse into the lifetime of research, study, relic recovery, battlefield tours, and public speaking that I’ve done regarding the conflict. What you will notice about my work is that I try to bring new information to my readers about battles, leaders, and campaigns often overlooked my mainstream authors of martial history. Frankly, I’d be bored to death writing the 13th analysis of Pickett’s Charge at Gettysburg or some other over-analyzed event or person. So, I hope you will find my work interesting, different, and informative.

The Raiders of 1862 by James D. Brewer

During 1862, a pivotal year in the War Between the States, Southern cavalry leaders Brig. Gen. Frank C. Armstrong, Brig. Gen. Nathan B. Forrest, and Brig. Gen. John H. Morgan conducted cavalry raids that had both an immediate tactical effect and a long-term strategic impact upon Federal offensive operations in the Mississippi Valley, central Kentucky, and western Tennessee. The Raiders of 1862 examines the tactics that made each raid more or less successful, as well as how the leadership style of each commander impacted the mission. Using detailed map studies, diary accounts, official records, memoirs, and even battlefield relic recoveries, this book presents new information—never before published—on each commander and how he executed his particular mission. By getting into the mind of the commanders, this book examines their decisions and actions in light of current and past operational terms, for example, decisive engagement, the approach march, and so forth.

No other book covers the important battles and consequences of Armstrong’s raid into west Tennessee, the Battle of Parker’s Crossroads as it affected Forrest’s first West Tennessee Raid, or the story of Morgan’s Christmas Raid. Brewer has established that Armstrong fought to avoid defeat rather than to win; that Forrest used artillery well forward in his assault—a technique unheard of at the time; and that Morgan employed one of the first effective uses of electronic warfare. By examining the correspondence of Federal commanders, Brewer also demonstrates how the Confederate cavalry leaders were able to get into the decision cycle of their enemies, and thus influence the outcome on the batlefield. But the individual soldier’s view of the war also comes through clearly as diary accounts and regimental histories describe the attitudes of privates and sergeants, both North and South, in the midst of these three history-making cavalry raids. Grant’s offensive against Vicksburg was derailed, Federal garrisons in west Tennessee learned their very real vulnerability, and Rosecrans’ supply lines were laid to waste—all during 1862—all by the daring Confederate Raiders described in this book

The Raiders of 1862 is available at the following link:

The Raiders of 1862 by James D. Brewer, Hardcover | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)

The Tom Worthington Story:

Shiloh, Sherman, and the Search for Vindication

by James D. Brewer

In 1807, Thomas Worthington was born into a wealthy and powerful Ohio family. Though his path in life should have led to fortune and prestige, he died alone and penniless, having spent his life and his fortune trying to remove the stain of shame from his reputation and name. This is the previously untold story of Worthington, West Point graduate, leader of men in both the Mexican War and War Between the States, and bitter enemy of the man who would ruin his life–General William Tecumseh Sherman. As commander of the 46th Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Worthington valiantly led his men into battle at Shiloh, but his knowledge of Sherman’s blunders, both before and during the battle, resulted in his being illegally court-martialed and cashiered out of the Army. The last twenty years of his life were spent in a desperate quest to tell his side of the story, the true events of Shiloh as he saw them. Colonel Worthington’s story is one of war, both public and personal, honor, and a quest for vindication. Photographs and maps illustrate Worthington’s dramatic life and struggle.

The story of Tom Worthington is available from the following link:

Tom Worthington’s Civil War – McFarland (mcfarlandbooks.com)

The Danger from Strangers: Confronting the Threat of Assault

by James D. Brewer

The Danger from Strangers: Confronting the Threat of Assault is the ideal handbook for self-protection; it acutely examines current trends in criminal behavior and victim response and explains practical techniques citizens can use to avoid harm. James D. Brewer, an experienced victimologist and self-defense consultant, presents the best and most recent psychological, criminal justice, and security research available, in particular the mind, motivations, and methods of an assailant; the “street-proof” precautions needed to avoid a confrontation; the changes in behavior of victims or near-victims; the “vincibility scale”: measure how attractive you are to a criminal; the dangerous threats to children, the aged, and the handicapped; the differences between forceful and non-forceful resistance; and the pros and cons of carrying or using weapons for self-defense.

The Danger from Strangers is available from the following link:

The Danger from Strangers: Brewer, James D.: 9780306446429: Amazon.com: Books