With this colorful study, Reid Mitchell takes us to Mardi Gras--to a yearly ritual that sweeps the richly multicultural city of New Orleans into a frenzy of parades, pageantry, dance, drunkenness, music, sexual display, and social and political bombast. In All on a Mardi Gras Day Mitchell tells us some of the most intriguing stories of Carnival since 1804. Woven into his narrative are observations of the meaning and messages of Mardi Gras--themes of unity, exclusion, and elitism course through these tales as they do through the Crescent City.

Moving through the decades,...

The American Civil War caused upheaval and massive private bereavement, but the years 1861-1865 also defined a great nation.
This book provides a concise introduction to events from the secession to the end of the war. It focuses on

• the military progress of the war
• Union and Confederate politics
• social change - particularly the emancipation of North American slaves

The social history associated with the war is dealt with alongside the familiar military and political events. This inclusive approach allows the reader to consider equally the...