Escapism

Mark Grimsley has me thinking:

... men read books on military history the way women read Harlequin romances, as escapist entertainment.

This exposes the root of problem with Civil War publishing. Waves of history-innocent readers wash into this field seeking strong non-fiction storytelling. Some read a lot of this nonfiction entertainment and then imagine themselves "experts."

What looks like the truth
is truth enough for fools.
- Guillaume Sulpice Chevalier

And "truth enough for fools" is big business.