Bull Run

The Battle of Bull Run springs to life through the lives of several participants. An elegant Southern lady speaks of seeing her family off to battle. A slave weighs the possibilities of freedom. A photographer marvels at the phenomenon captured by his camera. In Fleischman's book each observation is a separate chapter. In the recording these are defined by the different readers. The actors in this extraordinary production perfectly characterize various individuals through dialect, vocal quality and mannerism. Each individual is readily recognizable as a particular story is taken up again in a new chapter. These marvelous readers become very real voices amid the din of the Civil War. S.B.S. Winner of AUDIOFILE Earphones Award (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine

May 29, 1995
In the words of PW's starred review, Newbery Medalist Fleischman's fictional treatment of this Civil War battle ``relies on individual voices to give a human face to history. The result is at once intimate and sweeping, a heartbreaking and remarkably vivid portrait.'' Ages 10-up.

A superb symphony of 12 voices will both delight and move the listener in this marriage of evocative text and remarkable characterizations. Paul Fleischman's Civil War tapestry is hung to wonderful advantage as the author, portraying James Dacy, joins 11 other readers to render the stories of 16 common men and women: soldiers, leaders, observers, sisters, mothers and children. The story is rich with Northern and Southern cadences, dialects of race and region, a thick German accent, and a sonorous Scottish brogue; each voice is entirely distinct, offering the listener a strong advantage over the print reader of this complex book. The occasional crack of gunfire or lyric of a Civil War melody dresses up the compelling reading. Fleischman's author's note, read at the end of the production, sheds additional light on the creation of this remarkable book. T.B. Winner of AUDIOFILE Earphones Award (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine