Ask the average American who their favorite Civil War general is and you will invariably get the name of the blue-coated Union military hero Ulysses S. Grant. Victorian Yankees loved him so much they put his face on their fifty-dollar bill and made him president of the United States—twice. We in the South, however, prefer our Civil War generals in Confederate gray, and none wore it better, or more nobly and prouder, than Robert E. Lee.

Whether you are new to the “Great Virginian” or a longtime fan, award-winning Southern historian Lochlainn Seabrook’s book, The Quotable Robert E. Lee: Selections From the Writings and Speeches of the South’s Most Beloved Civil War General, will be a revelation. Writers, teachers, scholars, speakers, preachers, lecturers, and historians will find this compact book of literary gems of inestimable value, and history lovers and Civil War buffs will enjoy meandering through both the many Victorian illustrations and the veritable garden of Leeisms. The latter include everything from his private letters and military dispatches, to his personal views on education, child-rearing, Nature, religion, secession, slavery, abolition, and Lincoln’s War.

While we often learn about famous individuals through dry encyclopedic entries, overly detailed history books, and massively long biographies, in Seabrook’s The Quotable Robert E. Lee we get to know “Marse Robert”—and even relive the Civil War—through his own words, notes, aphorisms, letters, speeches, and field reports. Discover the real Robert E. Lee in the role of son, brother, husband, father, friend, devout Christian, Mexican-American War vet, Civil War general, and president of Washington College (now Washington and Lee University) in this information-packed read. Includes nearly 400 footnoted quotes, a time line of Lee’s life and accomplishments, a Lee family tree, unusual Lee family facts, Lee’s plan for emancipating and enlisting slaves, a bibliography, and dozens of rare photos and images. The author’s copious and detailed notes provide excellent context to the wealth of Lee material. A companion to Seabrook’s equally important work, The Old Rebel: Robert E. Lee As He Was Seen By His Contemporaries, The Quotable Robert E. Lee is the only book of its kind, and is sure to become a Southern classic and a standard in the field of American history.

An attractive, unique, affordable, and popular tourist-friendly work that will appeal to both casual Civil War buffs and hardcore Civil War scholars alike, The Quotable Robert E. Lee is the perfect addition to any retail outlet, including not only bookstores, but Civil War sites, historic houses, museum gift stores, antique shops, B&Bs, tack shops, motorcycle shops, and gun stores. Tennessee author Lochlainn Seabrook, a close relation of the Lee and Custis families, is the winner of the prestigious Jefferson Davis Historical Gold Medal. Known as the “American Robert Graves” after his celebrated English cousin, Seabrook is the sixth great-grandson of the Earl of Oxford and the author of over thirty popular adult and children’s books, ten of them on the War for Southern Independence.