Novel Addresses the Struggles of Women In the Military during Civil War
Pretty Boy and the Bugler is a ground-breaking book that tells the fictional tale of two women who joined the military during the Civil War. While the story is fictional, the description of conditions the women could have encountered during the Civil War are true.

/Virginia News Articles/ - VIRGINIA BEACH, VA, February 04, 2006 - "Please, Colonel, allow me to stay with the army. I have nowhere else to go." Heavy tears intermingled with her words. "My husband was killed at Fredericksburg and I have no family." ...Finally, the colonel spoke, "Young woman, I find it difficult to keep from sending you to the brig, and it is your plight only that softens my heart." He choked out his next words. "And, of course your courage under fire." There was a pause. "However, I feel you can no longer stay here." The woman's distressful wail caused many of the nearby men to scamper from the sound. "You are to leave this area and go to wherever you call home."

Pretty Boy and the Bugler is a ground-breaking book that addresses the roles women played during the Civil War. Women not only "kept the home fires burning" at the time, many secretly joined the military disguised as men. Because of the attitude toward women at the time of the Civil War, much of this sacrifice was never reported, and to this day it is not part of the curriculum of American history in public schools.

Mr. C. Patrick Schulze, author of Pretty Boy and the Bugler believes that the role of women during the Civil War has been downplayed significantly and states that "The Civil War was more than battles, weapons, and politics; it was one of the most significant internal struggles in our country's history. People's lives were irreparably changed, families were torn apart and fortunes were ruined. Women were key players in this time period, left to defend their home and family. Some brave women masqueraded as men to join the military. Not only did they have the same risks as men on the battlefield, but they broke the law by being in the military. These women, if discovered, suffered severe ramifications for their unconventional actions. Thousands of women joined the military during the Civil War, but this fact is not taught in our schools."

Pretty Boy and the Bugler tells the fictional tale of two women against a true depiction of conditions at the time. Says Schulze, "Women will appreciate the lives, the loves gained and lost, as well as the raw struggles for survival during America's most trying of times. Men on the other hand, will enjoy the accuracy of historical information, presented without the veil of political correctness."

C. Patrick Schulze was born in a family heavily steeped in the heritage of their Texan ancestry and has been an avid Civil War enthusiast since childhood. He is a nationally-known speaker who is an authority on many diverse Civil War topics including period music, weapons, military tactics and spying, as well as women's roles.

Pretty Boy and the Bugler is the author's second novel. His first novel, Amid the Ruins, garnered superb reviews. Both books are available online at Barnes and Noble.com and at Amazon.com.

Press Release Contact Information:

Jill Watkins
Write On Target Communications,
President
Virginia Beach, VA
Voice: 757-463-3085