"Landsman is the intriguing story of a young Jewish street tough, trying to navigate his way through the Civil War and the raucous demimonde of antebellum New Orleans. It's both an impressive debut and a captivating read."

—Kevin Baker, author of Paradise Alley, Dreamland, and Strivers Row

“Elias Abrams is many things: Confederate soldier, gifted cardsharp, quick-fisted member of the thieving Cypress Stump Boys, lover of Miss Nora Bloom, and both friend and nemesis of the seductive yet brutal gang leader, Silas Wolfe. You don’t have to be a history buff to appreciate this engaging tale of rough times and search for belonging. With the Civil War as backdrop and poignant reminder of our shared mortality, Melman’s debut is one to enjoy and savor.”

—Frances Sherwood, author of Night of Sorrows, The Book of Splendor, and Vindication

“People who loved Cold Mountain will find themselves drawn into Peter Melman's spell. Just when you thought you could not learn anything new about the Civil War—or New Orleans—along comes this rich story of the Jewish Confederacy. This is an auspicious debut that heralds the arrival of a unique American voice.”

—Luis Alberto Urrea, author of The Hummingbird’s Daughter

“To what should we aspire, and how do we atone for those occasions when we have willfully fallen short? What do we owe those with whom we interact? These are questions that Elias Abrams, Jewish by birth, amoral by practice, deals with in the contradictory context of being a Confederate soldier—a Jew defending the right to oppress a people—an accessory to a horrific crime, and a man unexpectedly overtaken by love. This book is about love, literature, redemption and atonement. It is about the very personal violence of New Orleans and the impersonal horror of the Civil War—all delivered in sentences as casually devastating as anything shot from a howitzer.”

— Russ Lawrence, Chapter One Book Store

“I am always overjoyed to discover a novel that I love personally and feel like I can recommend to pretty much anyone, male, female, age 17 to 90. Landsman by Peter Charles Melman is just such a novel. While Melman's novel evokes the horrors of war and the grueling conditions of a starving confederate soldier, and though Landsman has its share of sociopathic and purely evil characters, humanity shines through. Honestly rendered redemption is hard to pull off, and the end of this novel leaves the reader with hope.”

— Cathy Langer, The Tattered Cover

“Landsman is both earthy and mythic with themes of patricide, betrayal, redemption, reconciliation and hope brought to satisfying and human resolution.”

— Julia Cowlishaw, Shaman Drum Bookshop

“A young Jewish man flees from his New Orleans gang that is implicated in the murder of his father, knowing that he’s likely next. He joins the Confederate army, not knowing that this troop is not just his escape, but his circuitous route to redemption. The story may be violent and a bit racy, but this just adds to the authenticity of this powerful first novel.”

— Daniel Goldin, Harry W. Schwartz Bookshops

“It's a novel that expresses so much that is uniquely American: its immigrant background, its opportunity and injustice, the filth and agony of its only internal war, the widely divergent people who settled it—plus its characters become part of your imagination, living there for better or for worse. It's truly a fine novel.”

— Janet Brown, Elliott Bay Book Company

“Southern Louisiana in 1861 is a place of difficult choices for Elias Abrams, a 21-year-old Jewish soldier in the Confederate Army. The harsh beauty/intrigue of New Orleans and the country of the South is skillfully portrayed in this intense chronicle of a devastating war, reluctant faith, and self-doubt based on a destructive childhood. Ultimately, a friendship borne of trust and a journey to youthful love direct him to the land he treasures. Unforgettable scenes of battles and human frailties highlight this wonderful debut novel.”

— Kathleen Dixon, Islandtime Books and More