The opening chapters are scattered across the United States, from Ohio to Arkansas. From different states and from different social backgrounds come the characters who will figure in the upcoming battle. They are drawn toward Washington, D.C., although one girl journeys there only in her thoughts —her beloved older brother has gone there as part of a regiment of volunteers. For most of the novella, none of the characters know anything about Bull Run, a small stream to the west of Washington. They are for the most part naive about what warfare is like, and people on both the Union and Confederate sides hope for a quick victory; they dread a war that might last all of three months.

By beginning his account in several different parts of America, Fleischman conveys a sense of the enormity of the powers that are shaping America's destiny. People leave...