A hard-hitting no holds barred novel of the war that created the United States, and the two days in December 1862 when it almost came undone and the Confederacy had its last great opportunity to win the Civil War.
"For me, I want a book to grab me early on and never let me go. The Wastage does just that. The author adds to the historical story of the Civil War endless personal specific insights and experiences from all the key players and does so in a very believable way. Students of the Civil War will see in this book dimensions that will give depth and a broader understanding of the successes and numerous failures and mistakes of the key leaders from the top all the way down." -John Carlin, former Archivist of the United States and Governor of Kansas
"The Wastage is destined to be a classic. It is as if we are meeting anew the familiar characters of the great Civil War, as if the events are unfolding for the first time. The author brings them to life with originality and energy. Superb dialogue...Smith has written a compelling novel." -Debbie Goodrich Bisel, author of The Civil War in Kansas: Ten years of Turmoil
"The Wastage is aptly named, for the author doesn't sugarcoat the misery and the awful bloody, gut-wrenching inhuman waste of lives in war. This is not a novel for the light reader...an excellent book for the Civil War buff and other more serious readers interested in this terrible time in our American history." -Eunice Boeve, author of Along Shadowed Trails and the sequel Along Winding Trails