ladders
jacobs ladder a story of virginia during the war
duncan gatewood seventeen and heir to gatewood plantation falls in love with maggie a mulatto slave who conceives a son jacob . maggie and jacob are sold south and duncan is packed off to the virginia military institute he will eventually fight for robert e. lee . another gatewood slave jesse whose love for maggie is unrequited escapes to find her . jesse finds his freedom and enlists in mr. lincoln s army ; in time he will confront his former masters . in his award winning novel of the interlocked lives of masters and slaves donald mccaig conjures a passionate and richly textured story in the heart of america s greatest war .