Soldier Boy - Hardcover

Burks, Brian

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0152012184 ISBN 13: 9780152012182

Publisher: Harcourt Childrens Books, 1997

Synopsis

The orphaned son of a prostitute, Johnny "the kid" is forced to face great challenges in life, but even after he achieves a respectable position in the cavalry, he stills finds things difficult as he now poses questions to himself with regard to his new duties.

About this title

About the Author

Brian Burks' published works include Runs With Horses, Soldier Boy, and Wrango, which was awarded the Western Writers of America Spur Award for Best Western Juvenile Fiction.
 

Reviews

Grade 6-9. When prizefighter Johnny McBane's life is threatened, he flees Chicago and joins the U.S. Cavalry, even though he is underage. The new recruit has never ridden a horse, nor fired a rifle; nevertheless, he acquits himself well during an unduly severe training period. Ultimately assigned to serve under the legendary Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer, Johnny harbors mixed emotions about the army's Indian policy and the impending confrontation with the Sioux. In a predictable climax, Johnny and the entire Seventh Cavalry fall at the Battle of Little Bighorn. Though this sober tale seems to illustrate the saying that "life is hard and then you die," Johnny's indomitable spirit adds an inspirational dimension. The plot is simplistic and the characterizations of military personnel are generally stereotypical, yet readers will care about Johnny and be saddened by his fate. The strongest feature of this easy-to-read novel is the realistic portrayal of a 19th-century cavalryman's harsh existence.?Pat Katka, formerly at San Diego Public Library
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Johnny ``The Kid'' McBane, forced to flee from his crooked bare-knuckle boxing promoter in Chicago, enlists in the cavalry by lying about his age. After some initial hazing, he is posted to Custer's Seventh Cavalry at Fort Lincoln. There he makes a few friends, endures some pranks, and gets ready to move against the Indians in the spring. This exciting story from Burks (Runs With Horses, 1995) is marred: Readers who seize upon the introductory note's mention of ``thoroughly researched historical data'' will come away from the novel with the impression that army life of the period consisted mainly of vicious hazing and dangerous practical jokes and little in the way of training, duties in camp, barracks life, planning, or strategy. The ending is shockingly abrupt: The first Indian encounter and first battle occur only in the final three pages, and Johnny is killed in the last two paragraphs without firing a shot. It's a realistic ending, in a narrative not driven by realism; it may show how pointless war is, but it may also make readers feel as if they've been taken for a ride. (map, bibliography) (Fiction. 12+) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Gr. 6^-9. Johnny "The Kid" McBane is developing into one of the toughest boxers in 1870s Chicago, but when he refuses to throw a fight, he has to run for his life. After a recruiting officer tempts him with promises of steady food, good pay, and plenty of adventure, Johnny signs on to fight Indians, even though he's underage. As he proved in Runs With Horses (1995), Burks can write gripping, thoroughly researched historical fiction. Here, he mixes humor with the day-to-day detail of a soldier's life in a fort, and he shows his character maturing into a thoughtful man, more perceptive than his fellow soldiers. Although it seems Johnny's wisdom will be wasted (he joins Custer at the Battle of Little Big Horn), Burks' neatly ambivalent ending may tempt readers to do some research of their own to find out whether Johnny could have survived. Susan Dove Lempke

Edition details

• Publisher: Harcourt Childrens Books
• Publication date: 1997
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0152012184
• ISBN 13: 9780152012182
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 151