Filled with gossip, stories, laughter and tears, it points up gaieties and tragedies of a nation at war with itself. Entertaining yet constantly reflecting the gravity of these years, this holds much interest for the thoughtful reader and deserves a glance from historians seeking to interpret this tragic era.
-- Library Journal

It is hardly too much to say that what Samuel Pepys's diary is to the reign of Charles II, Mary Boykin Chesnut's is to the Confederacy. To thousands now and in years to come it will be a fascinating source of information, an invaluable aid to the understanding of a great period, and a lasting delight.
-- Saturday Review

Mary Boykin Chesnut steps out alive from the pages of her journal as beautiful, vivacious, flirtatious, warm-hearted, cool-thinking, astonishingly frank and wonderfully articulate…The book is very quotable.
-- New York Times