Review: The Civil War and PTSD
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 10 2, 2013
Review of Soldier's HeartPTSD. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Soldiers of the Civil War called it "Soldier's Heart".In this historical romance, author Tamera Lynn Kraft takes us inside the hearts and minds of a returning Civil War veteran suffering from "Soldier's Heart" and his wife.Noah Andrews left Ravenna, Ohio in April 1861 and returned home July 8, 1864. During his three-year stint as a Union soldier, few in the Ohio Seventh Volunteer Infantry Regiment escaped injury or death, and many suffered psychological wounds that kept the battles going in their minds long after the war ended.As the story opens, Noah returns home and his wife, Molly, only wants to forget about the war and proceed with farm life. When Noah "sees" graybacks and hurts her by trying to protect her from the phantom foe, Molly fears for her own safety.Soldier's Heart tells a gripping story of rift and reconciliation as this young couple learns to cope with the emotional aftermath of war.In addition to the fictional tale, the introduction includes many interesting facts about the Ohio unit that served with bravery and suffered extreme casualties and losses throughout its brief history.I highly recommend this gripping tale for lovers of Civil War stories, and those who, like myself, would not normally choose a war tale as their pleasure reading. The story grips your heart and draws an emotional connection between what happened then, and what is happening to our present day veterans.