South Carolina's Civil War provides a much-needed synthesis of a wealth of work by social, cultural, and military historians. Using a narrative approach to his controversial topic, the author makes the central issues of the conflict in the Palmetto state accessible to the lay reader. The book explores some of the more colorful personalities of the Civil War era, including Francis W. Pickens, Lucy Holcombe Pickens, Wade Hampton, Robert Smalls, and Robert Barnwell Rhett. Together, these very different figures' personal stories tell a larger story of a state whose white leadership chose treason over the end of slavery and slaves became free people. Ideal for classroom use, this well-written narrative is concise, readable, and insightful, delving into the Civil War history of the state where the war began. Never has such a balanced and thorough look at South Carolina's part in the struggle been made available.