Dear Sarah: Letters Home from a Soldier of the Iron Brigade

Over 80 letters from Corporal John Pardington to his wife paint a vivid portrait of the life and everyday concerns of a Union soldier and his transformation from simple Michigan country boy to seasoned fighter. His touching love letters are made even more poignant because the reader is aware of the young soldier's impending death at the Battle of Gettysburg.

The author was born in Michigan in 1930. After moving to Massachusetts with her family, graduating from Boston University with a degree in psychology, and marrying, she taught sixth grade for a few years until motherhood became her full time career. It was during her teaching years, while teaching history, that she gained an appreciation for the Civil War letters that had been in her family for generations. She is the mother of two, the grandmother of two, and lives with her husband on Cape Cod.