Links from the show:
About my guest:
Jim Stempel is a speaker, novelist, and author of numerous articles and nine books regarding history, spirituality, and warfare. For over thirty years he has had the good fortune of living with his family at a country location in Western Maryland overlooking the Blue Ridge. His wife, Sandie, is on staff at nearby McDaniel College where she is a professor of astronomy and physics, while his three children—a daughter and two sons—have moved on to professional careers.
An avid athlete for most of his life, Stempel helped coach his children in basketball and baseball while they were young, while active as a runner and handball player himself. He was born and raised in Westfield, New Jersey, and is a graduate of The Citadel, Charleston, S.C.
Jim is considered an authority on the Eastern campaigns of the American Civil War, as well as the politics and engagements of the American Revolution. His book, The Nature of War: Origins and Evolution of Violent Conflict, has been well received by an international audience for its wide grasp of human conflict, its willingness to delve into the basic motivations of human warfare, and the true prospects for peace those motivations suggest.
Stempel's other published works reflect a wide range of interests, with numerous articles appearing in such varied journals as Concepts in Human Development, New Times, North & South, History Net, History News Network, War History Online, The Edge, and New Dawn Magazine, among others. Many of his historical pieces have been selected to reappear on the highly respected, Real Clear History.
When Beliefs Fail, Jim's nonfiction analysis of science, psychology, and modern spirituality, brought high praise from fellow authors Ken Wilber, Dr. Larry Dossey, and Mark Waldman. His novel Albemarle was nominated for the James Fenimore Cooper Prize in Historical Fiction. The West Coast Review of Books wrote of his novel American Rain, “Lovers of political satire may consider this book a masterpiece because of Stempel’s sly wit and insight.”
Jim's historical novel, Windmill Point – a Chanticleer Awards Finalist – brings to life one of the most exciting and critical periods of the American Civil War. Of American Hannibal, his nonfiction account of the Battle of Cowpens during the Revolutionary War, one critic wrote: “As one who reviewed Jim Stempel’s Windmill Point, I was again drawn into a fascinating story, told by a master historian, writer, and a man with the painter’s palette that left me with a most wonderful read.”
Stempel has now followed-up the success of American Hannibal with a new nonfiction work, Valley Forge to Monmouth: Six Transformative Months of the American Revolution, due out in October 2020. Pre-Release reviews have to date been excellent. John McElroy, for instance, historian, author, and Professor Emeritus at the University of Arizona, writes “Anyone interested in knowing what America’s independence from Britain required should read this book.”
Jim’s focus for over thirty years has been to present thoughtful literature, along with historical accounts – accurately and enjoyably – to the widest range of readers possible; a mission he intends to continue.
The Enemy Harassed: Washington's New Jersey Campaign of 1777