When Fort Sumter falls, nineteen-year-old Charlie Dickey convinces his father to let him join the Union army. The novel traces Charlie's Civil War service in the 4th Illinois Cavalry as General Sherman's bugler, member of General Grant's escort and fighting alongside African American troops. When the army moves into Mississippi, Charlie falls in love with a beautiful southern belle, but brutal warfare threatens to destroy his happiness. Journal of a Cavalry Bugler is historical fiction based on the real-life experiences of a young Illinois soldier who grew up in Ottawa, Illinois, and knew Mr. Lincoln as a family friend.