Get Informed About American Racism, White and Christian Nationalism, Buy “Mine Eyes Have Seen The Glory: Religion and the Politics of Race in the Civil War Era and Beyond” at a Great Price
“With no sugar coating of America’s history of slavery and racism, Steve Dundas adds to the story of the religious ideology used to justify slavery, not as a side note but as the significant factor that it was. A very timely read as we face the growing threat of today’s Christian nationalists and white supremacists.”—Chris Rodda, author of Liars for Jesus, The Religious Right’s Alternate Version of American History, volumes 1 and 2
Good evening everyone. If you haven’t gotten a copy of my book, Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory: Religion and the Politics of Race in the Civil War Era and Beyond, or want to get one for a friend, and want to get a great deal on it go to Amazon. Their pricing algorithm has dropped the price at $4.13 a copy for a new hardcover edition. The list price is $36.95 which you will pay at any other major retailer like Barnes and Noble, or your local book store. Never mind the fact that Amazon Germany lists it for € 34.22. In the UK it is selling for £ 16.45. In France it’s € 27.12. Same company, same book, different price.
When the price dropping in May I scratched my head, and finally after feeling completely humiliated at seeing the book sell for under the price of a Big Mac this week, I did some research. Amazon is kind of shifty in their pricing.
My publisher, Potomac Books and imprint of the University of Nebraska Press is solid, but they are not a major player in the publishing industry. They have published a lot of great books by superb authors, but they are not the Penguin Group or Harper Collins. Amazon’s pricing is not done by humans, but by AI algorithms. Basically they start the book at the list price when it is published and a few months later they start dropping the price. This leads third party sellers who sell the book through Amazon to drop their price to compete, at then triggers another price drop. As the late great Kurt Vonnegut wrote in Slaughterhouse Five, “And so it goes…”
Since my book is kind of pricey when you buy it from major bookstores that do not sell on Amazon, Amazon can tank the price to up their sales. No wonder a lot of people aren’t real keen on Amazon selling their stuff, but when they are the biggest retailer around with their hands into about everything what does one do? You deal with it. The way that I am dealing with it is to tell people to save money and buy it from Amazon. I would rather have the book get into the hands of people than sit around warehouses.
Now let me say up front, this is not about the money. I am first time author and this is my first book to be published. I am grateful to my agent and the publisher, and am looking forward to my other draft books getting published and writing a lot more. I want the last part of my life since I passed the red line of 60 years old to be the most fruitful and productive of my life. You can be part that. That being said, first time non-fiction writers who don’t already have name recognition don’t make much money.
If you want to get it, the link to the book at Amazon US is here:
Since some of my readers come from the UK and Germany the I provide links to those sites below.
Amazon Germany:
Amazon UK:
By the way the book is well researched, well written, and highly praised. Unfortunately, publishers like mine don’t have the books to put a lot of money into advertising and promotion, authors have to do most of the legwork. So it didn’t get much press at all. That being said the book is almost always in the top 100 in certain categories on Amazon. Next week we are going to be visiting friends in Maryland and while there I plan on taking a day to visit a number of the museums dealing with Frederick Douglass, introduce myself to their directors, and give a copy of the the book to them so they can make the decision if they want to carry it.
Before I sign off for the night, here are some of the reviews of the book by historians, academics, civil rights leavers and others.
“A richly documented history of the ideology of racism that manifested itself in slavery, the Confederacy, the overthrow of Reconstruction, Jim Crow, and the myth of the Lost Cause that glorified the Old South and the Confederacy.”—James M. McPherson, author of the Pulitzer Prize–winning Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era
“Steven L. Dundas brings us a powerful history, not only of slavery but, and even more important, of the consequences of untruths and how twisted religious beliefs shaped America. All educators should read it and ensure that its message is delivered to their students.”—Joseph J. Levin Jr., cofounder and emeritus board member of the Southern Poverty Law Center
“Steven L. Dundas has written the definitive account of America’s onerous history with African Americans. A must-read to fully understand, teach, or discuss the institutions of slavery, racism, and religion and their current impacts. Every school library should have a copy.”—Lloyd V. Hackley, president and CEO of Hackley and Associates and former president of the North Carolina Community College system
“Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory is a book for our time. Steven L. Dundas has skillfully woven slavery, race, racism, politics, and religion into a single entity in telling this country’s complex story. Every American would profit from reading what he is telling us.”—Charles B. Dew, author of Apostles of Disunion: Southern Secession Commissioners and the Causes of the Civil War
“American slavery’s ghosts and the Civil War haunt this sweeping interpretation of how a toxic blend of white supremacy and tribal religion still shape American society. In this historical account Steve Dundas analyzes its significance for our current social and political divisions making it an especially timely study.”—Charles Reagan Wilson, author of Baptized in Blood, the Religion of the Lost Cause: 1865–1920
“Steve Dundas’s electrifying new take on the American Civil War and its continuing presence in politics, race relations, and corrosive mythology is visceral and pulls no punches. It shows military and other readers that racism is a national security issue.”—Margaret Sankey, author of Blood Money: How Criminals, Militias, Rebels, and Warlords Finance Violence
“Steve Dundas weaves the story of slavery into the larger fabric of America. Military and social historians will welcome how he peels back the layers of some of the most overlooked and critical aspects of our collective history as never before.”—Kristopher D. White, chief historian of Emerging Civil War.com
“Steven Dundas has written a powerful call for Americans to reexamine their too-often mythologized Civil War, Reconstruction, and their ongoing impact on American life. Dundas has infused his work with a strong moral and ethical clarity that is rarely seen.”—Ricardo A. Herrera, author of For Liberty and the Republic: The American Citizen as Soldier, 1775–1861
“In this concise, personal account, Steve Dundas examines religion and ideology in the Civil War era until now. Taking a broad view, Dundas analyzes the religious fervor and sermonizing in relations to slavery’s beginnings and expansion, the role of the Constitution, and the painful legacies of the Civil War, Jim Crow, and the Lost Cause from then to today.”—LeeAnna Keith, author of The Colfax Massacre: The Untold Story of Black Power, White Terror, and the Death of Reconstruction
So if you want a copy of the book cheap, and like I said I don’t care about the money, it’s not like I will make anything at the price they are selling them. But, I would like my readers to get a deal, and hopefully to spread the word to anyone that would be interested in using it in a classroom, or perhaps want me to do a presentation, do an interview or anything else.
I will have something fresh tomorrow, and I have enabled comments from everyone rather than just paid subscribers for this post.
As always, thank you for reading. Your time is valuable and I appreciate you spending some of it with me.