Book Description
The prestigious King's Cavalla of Gernia has been ravaged by the Speck plague. The deadly disease has decimated the ranks of both cadets and instructors, and the few survivors remain weak and frail. Many have been forced to relinquish their military ambitions and will return to their families to face lives of dependency and disappointment.
As the academy infirmary empties, cadet Nevare Burvelle also prepares to journey home. But far from being a broken man, Nevare has made an astonishingly robust recovery from the Speck plague. Furthermore, while in the grip of the plague, he defeated his Speck nemesis, freeing himself, he believes, from the Speck magic that infected him. As he begins the journey to his ancestral home of Widevale, he is in high spirits, expecting a jubilant homecoming, a tender reunion with his beautiful fiancée, Carsina, and a bright future as a commissioned officer.
Yet back in the shelter of his family, Nevare finds his nights still haunted by visions of his Speck self betraying everything he holds dear in his waking life, and his days tormented by a rare side effect of the Speck plague that shames his family—and repulses Carsina. Though he expected to slip back into his family fold effortlessly, Nevare finds himself instead caught between the sensual, enchanting realm of the Specks and his own ancestry, the world he has always known.
And then the magic in Nevare's blood—magic that he thought he had destroyed—roars to life, and he realizes that his most dangerous enemy, an enemy that seeks to destroy all he loves, might dwell within him. . . .
Customer Reviews:
Talent, but no Skill.......2007-09-18
I am still a huge Robin Hobb fan. I think I am going to have trouble defining and describing this book as my feelings are so mixed. So don't be surprised if I say something nice and then negate it in the next sentence; I am going to try and sort out my feelings through this review (and hope that people read it when they are looking through the series for the last book to come out in January 2008).
Let me start by saying I am a huge Robin Hobb fan. I enjoyed 9 of her 10 first books. I could not get into Soldiers Son though, and for good reason. I wrote a separate review for that book, so I won't get into it here, but it almost felt to me as though someone else was using the Hobb name and not the Hobb skill that she so artfully employed during the first three trilogies she penned (under the name Hobb at least).
Then that brings us to this book. I refused to buy it full price hard cover. I am such a huge fan I have all 10 previous books in hard cover, yet I wouldn't buy this one. Finally I caved when I found the hardcover for 4 bucks; I figured I have spent $4 on really dumb things - at least I can try this one out. And I have to say - I am glad that I bought the book. I am glad that I experienced it, I don't know if I am overall happy about the experience itself, but I did feel the hint of some of the same emotions I felt in previous books.
And so I read the book, unwillingly through the first 30 or 40 pages. Then slowly, 1 page at a time I became engrossed. I couldn't put it down after a while and sped through to the end. What had happened? I was pulled against my will into the book and read it despite my earlier reservations. So that should be the mark of a good book right? One that grabs the reader up and won't let them go? A book that makes you become deeply embedded in the characters lives so that you think you are living the choices they make? Maybe the case for most books - but not this one.
Overall I think the best way to describe my experience with this book is to say the following - as a reader you have to fight the book and see it through. I became engrossed with the character which can only mean that Hobb did a good job of writing the humanity of the character such that I empathised with their plight and wanted to see a resolution. Unfortunately I fought the character each step of the way - every single decision or action that the character made had me questioning the book and its motives. Hobb here, I think, has done the impossible. She has made me empathize with a character that I do not like, nor do I agree with any action he took throughout the entire book. I grew very tired of his antics (Nevares), yet I needed to see how he would end up becasue Hobb created a compelling enough storyline around him.
Which leads to my biggest issue with the book. The characters in general are caricatures, I think the only character that acts half human is Epiny. She at least has some gumption and spirit and does what a reader would hope of a main character - take action. And that is the biggest dissapointment of the book - that Nevare is such a disapointment. He is our protagonist, we want him to make strong decisions and be an example of the best of humanity out there. We want to see him make the tough choices, do the impossible - yet the only thing we find is that he is impossibly mired in his own simple thoughts. His repetitious musings and countless simplemindedness throughout the story really make the reader struggle with the story.
*Spoilers* Nevare gets kicked out of home for being fat. Fine, but he tries to explain himself to his father in a reasonable manner by telling his father about the magic. Reasonable? Nevare thinks the world is out to get him and just keeps on trucking down the impossible path of trying to explain himself to a world that just doesn't care. He floats along the world, the magic continues to try to make him do things, he whines about not knowing what the magic wants, we are confronted with the main story about halfway through the book (road going through sacred groves of trees) and Nevare all but ignores it for the entire 2/3 of the book. Some main character! Some hero! He is contnet to dig graves, be reviled throughout town and do nothing about it.
I just can't see how he would act like this. I hate that I care how he acts, but every single choice, every single conversation, and every single decision he made I took issue with and would have done something different. So although I wanted to see what would happen to the storyline, I started to not like the main character. And what book will succeed if the main character is not liked by the reader? What the point of a book then!
I still didn't feel quite right the entire story, but at least I got out some of the thoughts I was feeling. I think Hobb has written a compelling storyling, and maybe we will see some characters step up next book and take over for the stumbling Nevare. We will see. I will probably end up buying it in hardcover though.
Sobfest the second........2007-08-12
I Love Robin Hobbs previous books, but this trilogy does nothing but dissapoint, sure the writing is still wonderful and Williams style is essentially unchanged. However the main character is just so unlikable. He is whiny, melodramatic and annoying. This made it really hard to get in to the book because you just don't care whats going on. All of the genuinely likable characters seem to throw themselves in the way of the often well deserved troubles of the protanginst. All in all the books well written imagary and well rounded characters just can't save this book from its protaginist.
Absorbing and Painful.......2007-08-11
I love Robin Hobbs' books. She writes wonderfully and attaches you to the characters in her story. When I started reading Forest Mage I was once again pulled in by her first person writing and attention to detail. I could feel Nevare's pain and humiliation. Unfortunately, the pain was to acute and I could not make it past page 200 when I realized that he would never loose the weight that he had been cursed with from the Speck plague.
Hobbs writes this tale of a man cursed with majic fat. This fat cannot be lost through diet or excercise. The fat changes the way people perceive him, gets him kicked out of the Academy, and disowned by his family. I would love to know all that happens but the first person telling of this poor man's distruction was to difficult. I stopped reading this book several months ago but I can't get Nevare and his plight out of my mind. I mourn the loss of this book and hope that one day I will be able to confront Nevare's life again.
I highly recommend her other three series. I could not put them down.
Book 2 of a trilogy.......2007-06-27
This was an interesting book, which like many 2nd books in a trilogy leaves a lot hanging. I will be glad to see the concluding book when it is published.
I don't have the words for how good this book is, but I wrote a lot of them anyway........2007-06-26
Robin Hobb, Forest Mage (Eos, 2006)
In all the pictures I've seen of Margaret Astrid Lindholm Ogden--aka Robin Hobb--she is slender, almost elfin, with a glint in her eye and an open, welcoming smile. After reading Forest Mage, I find myself wondering if the person in those photos is, in fact, Robin Hobb. Why? Because I have a very hard time believing that anyone that thin can write a fat guy, and write him with the fabulous, if unsettling, dead-on precision with which Hobb gives us Nevare Burvelle.
Now, those of you reading this and remembering Shaman's Crossing might be wondering what on earth I'm on about. Nevare? The fighting-fit cadet kid? Is a fat guy? Surprise! When we last left Gernia, the Speck plague had finally loosed its hold on Old Thares, thanks in no small part to Nevare and his dream-battle with Tree Woman. Nevare survived, of course, as did some of his friends, but this is a Robin Hobb story. No one gets out unchanged. While most of the Speck Plague survivors are weakened and thin as rails, Nevare's recovery goes the other way--without eating, and while still doing the same amount of exercise, Nevare becomes grossly fat. (Well, not grossly fat by today's standards. When he despairs that he's developing a second chin, I actually snorted.) The Academy's doctor says it's not an unheard-of side effect, but it's a rare one. Nevare has a chance to get himself back into trim, though; he's taking a month off from the Academy to head back home to his brother's wedding. And from there, his troubles really begin...
I've covered maybe the first thirty pages of the seven hundred plus in Forest Mage, and I'll warn you: like most of Hobb's books (Fool's Fate being the sterling exception to the rule), Forest Mage gets off to a slow, slow start. It took me five times as long to get through the first fifty pages as it did to get through the last six hundred sixty-eight. That, too, is typical of Hobb; once the book sinks its claws into you, food and sleep become secondary considerations. You just have to pay a small price to get there. And in this case, "there" is definitely somewhere you want to be. I liked Shaman's Crossing, and I liked it a lot better than many of those I know who have loved Hobb's previous trilogy of trilogies, but it never got to that point where it just ran roughshod over me the way Fool's Fate or, going back a bit farther, Ship of Magic, did. Forest Mage ended up eclipsing both in my estimation, and a large part of that has to do with what I referenced in the first paragraph. I'm a fat guy. I get it. And when Hobb, who has long been an exceptional worker of characters, turns her eye to Nevare's plight, she depicts it better than any book I've read with a fat character. That includes nonfiction books on eating disorders. The details she comes up with are things that research won't tell you; you have to be there. Having to hold your breath when bending over to tie your shoe? That detail, however, small, stopped me in my tracks. Who thinks about stuff like that?
The fat guy, that's who. I think about it every morning. I have no choice in the matter.
One interesting--and probably far more relevant to the average-sized fantasy reader--side effect of Nevare suddenly becoming a fat guy is that the book enters a whole new realm of sensuality for Hobb's writing. Seriously, there are times when this book borders on food porn. If you've attended any wine-tasting classes, or watched specials about that sort of thing on TV, you'll respond when Nevare is discussing the sensation of eating bread. (Amusingly, a few minutes after I finished this, I flipped on the TV, and there was a segment on HRTV's show Inside Information about jockey Alex Solis' new vineyard. So I had a chance to double-check. It was eerie.) And this, too, is a fat-guy obsession; things do get a lot more physical. You notice things more. Maybe it's the latent sensualist in all of us coming forth, I don't know. But it's there. The ability to smell the ingredients of a stew, or to taste perfume in the air. Yeah. That's real. I could keep going, but I'll just say to trust me on this--Hobb nailed that character. I couldn't have written him better, and I AM the fat guy. (This is, of course, assuming any fiction I turned out were of a high enough quality to black Hobb's boots. I put away such childish fantasies long ago, which is the main reason I write poetry.)
Okay, fat guy aside, this book also flays open any pretense we had about the idea that Nevare and Fitz are fundamentally different characters. (For those of you just joining us, Fitz--FitzChivalry Farseer--was the hero-ish type from the Farseer and Tawny Man trilogies.) Whereas Nevare was something of a self-obsessed idiot in Shaman's Crossing, he never got anywhere near the level of self-obsessed idiocy that Fitz comes to realize he's displaying roundabout the end of the second book of the Farseer trilogy. (I'm sure any of you who read it remember exactly what I'm talking about, and its rather severe consequences.) He gets there in this book. And a hundred fifty pages from the end, I was sure I knew where Hobb was going with this, and that it was going to be a replay of the Farseer books, and that as much as I was stunned and grateful that Nevare existed, I was going to end up blasting this book for its ending. I should have known better. In fact, it wouldn't surprise me if Hobb was going for that exact reaction. She's too good at setting the reader up to expect one thing, and then dropping another on him. After all, she does it to her lead characters. Every single time. When someone in a robin Hobb novel attempts a selfless act, there are always unforeseen, and sometimes vast, consequences. Do something selfish, and jeez, you're up the creek. Nevare, self-obsessed idiot that he is, and just like Fitz before him, does a wealth of things in this book, of both types. (If anything, Nevare strikes me as a touch less selfish than Fitz; that could be the differences in the early years. You see what I mean about the level of detail Hobb works with?) And, yeah, you're reading Robin Hobb. You know what's coming. Nevare, though, achieves a level of self-awareness here that Fitz never found, though one gets the idea that Hobb subscribes to the idea--in fact, one of the characters, Buel Hitch, comes within a hair of saying it--that one first actually learns something when one admits one knows nothing at all. Knowledge, in Robin Hobb's universe, is an onion that's been sitting out for a few days. Not only does getting through one layer just make you realize how much more there is to go, but man, the thing stinks.
I give out very few five-star reviews per year; I can't check any more (thanks to a hard drive crash), but I'm relatively certain the highest number of five-star book reviews I've given in a single year is four. (Again, for those who have just joined us; in a typical year, that's one to two percent of the books I read.) It wasn't that long ago that Fool's Fate got one of those five-star reviews. It's my favorite Hobb novel, and it's just about perfect in every way. Or, until about five-thirty last night, it was my favorite Hobb novel. As I said, I enjoyed Shaman's Crossing. But it did not, in any way, prepare me for the tour de force that is Forest Mage. If you gave up on this trilogy because of Shaman's Crossing, I implore you to give Forest Mage a try, because I guarantee it will restore your faith in Robin Hobb. Claws and kicks its way to the title of the best book I've read (so far) in 2007. *****
Customer Reviews:
What a great book!.......2007-08-26
Vividly descriptive throughout. The research that Robin put into this brilliant work is amazing. I can understand how someone with a short attention span might become bored and not understand the many intricacies craftily woven throughout the story. The world that Navare and the other character live in in this book is harsh and very realistic.
Robin has taken the time to develop a thorough understanding of every aspect of the world she created -- everything from the society class structure to the most acurate and realistic portrayal of a military academy I have read.
Throughout the book I tried to guess what may happen next, but there are no routine plots here -- robin truly is a master at her craft in the way she builts her multifaceted plot that will keep you guessing up to the end.
I highly recommend the Soldier Son Trilogy to anyone who truly appreciates great fantasy and looking for something a little different than the tipical Lord Of the Rings rewrites.
Marred only by a horrid main character........2007-03-04
I've been an enthusiastic fan of Robin Hobb for ten books now; the first nine of those books being the fantastic and captivating tales of Fitz-Chivalry and the Six Duchies.
I went into this book expecting the usual mesmerizing ambiance and deep, interesting characterizations that marked all nine of her previous books. I was on the whole not disappointed; while Hobb's new world of Forests and Plains and Cavalla, Shamans and Magics warring against each other, schoolboy drama and teenaged antics reminds me of a weird cross between Harry Potter, a Civil War re-enactment and a really long game of Magic: The Gathering, she actually pulls it off, and her world comes alive and envelops you into it just as much as the Six Duchies ever did. Hobb is truly a master of descriptive writing and she has never been stronger on that account.
Her characters for the most part are equally good. The Six Duchies and the Liveships were stocked with amazing, vibrating, and most of all truly LIVING characters, that felt like actual people that you could love or hate for their own unique personalities. From Caulder to Epiny to Spink to the Tree Lady, this remains true in this book; all but for one gigantic, hideous, glaring exception: The protagonist.
As in the Assasin's Trilogy, the reader is firmly captured inside the persona of the main character. But where Fitz was deep, complex, captivating and a joy to follow along with, Nevare Burvelle is the single most boring, insipid, horrifically predictable piece of cold turkey ever to be coldly slapped across my eyes.
I mean, it's really quite amazing. As you read the book, you simply will NOT believe the depths of shallowness, contrivance, and predictability that you are excrutiatingly subjected to as you ride on this mumble-drone's shoulder for the entire duration. The image I had in my head for pretty much the entire book was of the Tree Lady actually physically materializing before him in a brazilian carnival costume and dancing the conga in front of him while slapping him repeatedly in the face going, 'I'm controlling you! I'm controlling you! I'm controlling you!' and afterwards Nevare putting his hands on his hips and going 'Gee willickers, what a strong daydream I just had.' What is really sad is that this is, pretty much literally, what goes on through the entire book. His reactions and decisions to everything going on around him, from fights between his roommates to finding Caulder drunk, are so deliciously and moronically boring that you will find yourself wondering if Hobb is actually mocking you on purpose.
Now, it might sound like I didn't enjoy Shaman's Crossing, which is far from true. I immensely enjoyed being swept up into Robin's mind and world through her excellent narration and descriptions one more time, and will certainly read the next book. Just please, Robin, ditch the Harry-Potter-imitation-wannabe and make Epiny the protagonist instead.
Zzzzzzzz........2007-03-01
I am happy that this is not the first Robin Hobb book I picked up. Her other series have been a delight, but up to this point, (about 190 pages in) Shaman's Crossing has been a tedious chore to read. The characters are uninteresting and the world she is developing does not have the same flair as her other works. I want to know more about the people and their backgrounds, not because I need more description (far from it), but because I think something is missing.
I am encouraged by those who say it will pick up the pace, but so far I have seen glaciers that move faster. I will finish the book hoping for a change and out of a sense of loyalty to an author who has provided me with many hours of entertainment, but if it retains the same flavor throughout, I doubt that I will read the next installment.
Horribly Slow and Boring.......2006-12-13
I've read most, if not all, of Robin Hobb's work: the Farseer Trilogy, Liveship Traders Trilogy, and the Tawny Man Trilogy. Hobb is not my favorite author, but I've come to expect a certain level of intrigue, adventure, and character development in her books. Shaman's Crossing is not par with her other work, in my opinion. The book follows Nevare as he ages and matures, from his life at home to his first year at the Cavalla Academy. The main problem with this book (as others have said) is that it's painstakingly slow. Even the good parts aren't terribly exciting, like when he meets Dewara or finally makes some friends when he gets to the Academy. A secondary problem, which bothers me even more, is that Nevare isn't even remotely interesting. The entire book seems to be devoted to developing his character and yet there isn't much substance to him. He's completely devoted to being his father's soldier son and is entirely oblivious (in denial) about his other self and that the Tree Woman is real and not some hokey nightmare. The end of the book is very predictable and I find myself apathetic to whatever happens in the next book. That being said, I probably won't buy Forest Mage unless I'm incredibly bored or if I happen to find it at a used bookstore.
Starts slow but ends up wonderful!.......2006-11-13
Robin Hobb's "Shaman's Crossing" is a wonderful book. I admit that it started slow but once Nevare reaches school the story picks up and becomes a wonderful tale that is continued in the second book. Worth getting through the beginning and sticking with it!
Book Description
Nevare Burvelle was destined from birth to be a soldier. The second son of a newly anointed nobleman, he must endure the rigors of military training at the elite King's Cavella Academy—and survive the hatred, cruelty, and derision of his aristocratic classmates—before joining the King of Gernia's brutal campaign of territorial expansion. The life chosen for him will be fraught with hardship, for he must ultimately face a forest-dwelling folk who will not submit easily to a king's tyranny. And they possess an ancient magic their would-be conquerors have long discounted—a powerful sorcery that threatens to claim Nevare Burvelle's soul and devastate his world once the Dark Evening brings the carnival to Old Thares.
Customer Reviews:
The Wonderful Worlds of Robin Hobb.......2007-07-19
Robin Hobb has created a fabulous series of worlds in her writing career. This new world is strangely distressed. It echoes our own current environmental problems, and has definate undertones of present day politics. It is fascinating to see how Robin has woven all this together with magic (of course) and a practical story of coming of age. I can't love the characters the way I have in some her other books so I am exploring why I feel the way I do about them as I read through the series. Robin Hobb often reminds me of Sheri Tepper the way she makes us think deeply about the inner workings of her characters, how militaristic thinking colours our world,the environment; and this series is definately of this type - it is not a comfortable read - and I am challenged by it! I love this about Robin ... read and think!!
MIlitary Academy Woes.......2007-04-08
Premise: Nevare is a second son. And as such, his future has been decided since birth - he will be a soldier. But when his well meaning father gives him over to an old enemy to learn their ways,Nevare's path takes an unexpected turn that will work at destroying that expected future. As grows older and joins the academy, not only will he find that the structured world he has been led to believe exists, is not as black and white as he'd been told, but that he could be used as a weapon to destroy all he holds dear.
Review: Wonderfully detailed world, with well constructed societies, politics, etc. The prose was smooth as silk and a delight to read. I was totally fascinated by the differing cultures and social structures as well as the hazing and other difficulties at the academy. Only difficulty I had was that the main problem was often subdued and was minimally hinted as ever getting to have an impact. When it does, it does it BIG, but it took its sweet time. Yet this only bothered me subliminally, the rest keeping me quite busy and content.
Solid, but not spectacular.......2007-03-04
This was a solid, though unspectacular, performance from Robin Hobb.
Her performance was somewhat akin to the basketball player who scores 14 points and six rebounds per game.
Such a player is a solid starter, but not a star.
this was not at all a riveting book. it took me about a week and a half to finish it. I used the book to read for about half an hour at bedtime before sleep overtook me.
I found myself skipping through the shamanistic aspects of the tale, which I did not find credible, based on how the story was told.
Some portions of the story involving Nevare and Epiny were interesting, but certainly not interesting enough to carry the book through 600 plus pages.
Zzzzzzzzzz........2007-03-01
I am happy that this is not the first Robin Hobb book I picked up. Her other series have been a delight, but up to this point, (about 190 pages in) Shaman's Crossing has been a tedious chore to read. The characters are uninteresting and the world she is developing does not have the same flair as her other works. I want to know more about the people and their backgrounds, not because I need more description (far from it), but because I think something is missing.
I am encouraged by those who say it will pick up the pace, but so far I have seen glaciers that move faster. I will finish the book hoping for a change and out of a sense of loyalty to an author who has provided me with many hours of entertainment, but if it retains the same flavor throughout, I doubt that I will read the next installment.
Mixed Reaction.......2007-02-27
I am a solid Robin Hobb fan and was thrilled when I found that she had a new trilogy out....and I read this book, cover to cover, with no skimming even when I hit the parts that did actually bore me - something I never thought Hobb could do - because her incredible descriptive abilities are almost mesmerizing and hold me glued to the page....even when a voice in my brain is screaming, "is she going to go through the bit about soldier's sons and noble's sons one more time?!" She must have gone over and over several issues pertinent to the story as though this were the second book in a trilogy and she needed to keep reminding you of this...that, or she thinks her readers are incapable of remembering the basic relationships on which her story is based (duh!)...it borders on insulting at times, Robin!
I think that the repetitiveness throughout the book is what causes a lot of the slowness and dryness and sense of boredom that prior reviewers complain of....there is simply no reason to keep repeating over...and over...and over....and over.....how the battle lord's sons and noble's soldier sons differ.
While this certainly isn't the most interesting of Hobb's worlds I've lived in......it is crafted as fully....and drew me in as completely....and that is what I look for in a book....to go somewhere different, have some different experiences and marvel at how someone can think up all that!
Average customer rating:
- Ghost are for real!
- The Scariest Battlefield
- Ghost Soldier
- -Awesome-
- Ghost soldier
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Ghost Soldier
Elaine Marie Alphin
Manufacturer: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)
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ASIN: 0805061584 |
Amazon.com
Alexander has always been able to see ghosts, but no one except his mom--who left suddenly three years ago--has ever believed his stories. So when his dad drags him off on a trip to North Carolina to visit the woman he intends to marry, and Alexander begins to see visions of Civil War soldiers, he tells nobody--not his father, nor his hostess Paige, and certainly not her teenage daughter, Nicole. Instead he devotes himself to being unpleasant, clinging desperately to the belief that his mother will return.
The visions grow more and more real. Alexander even finds himself participating in a battle in the trenches, with mortars whizzing overhead. In the midst of his own terror, he witnesses the death of a young Confederate soldier his own age. Later that evening Richeson, the dead boy, appears again to Alexander, appealing to him for help in finding his sister, who was driven from their farm by Sherman's Marauders, but who has left a message for her brother in a metal box hidden in a tree trunk--a box that a ghost cannot open. In the course of solving Richeson's mystery, Alexander finds answers to his own problems. Middle-grade readers will enjoy this story that straddles three genres, and teachers will find its grounding in the actual events of the Battle of Fort Stedman a useful curriculum tie-in. (Ages 10 to 14) --Patty Campbell
Book Description
The ghost of a young soldier from the Civil War haunts a troubled teen.
"I sat up. The jagged trenches were only soft grassy depressions in the sunny battlefield park. I felt tears burn my eyes, the relief was so strong, and then the misery of losing the ghost hit me."
Alexander has the ability to see ghosts. But it's been several years since his last encounter. When he reluctantly joins his father on a long trip away from home, a surprise awaits him. In the unfamiliar territory of North Carolina, Alexander is confronted by the ghost of a young soldier who lost his life in the Civil War. As an unusual friendship develops between the two, Alexander is drawn into a new reality where he comes face to face with the haunting past of his soldier friend. But can Alexander help this troubled ghost, and can he, finally, come to terms with his own disturbing past? With deftness and insight, Elaine Marie Alphin tells a gripping story that weaves the supernatural with the historical. Ghost story fans and Civil War buffs alike are in for a real treat.
Customer Reviews:
Ghost are for real!.......2006-04-24
In this book a boy named Alexander, from Indiana, and his dad go to North Carolina to met Mrs. Hambrick. They live with her and daughter Nicole and son, Charleton. While Alexander is down there they all go to a Civil War, or what the south called it The War between the States, battlefield. It is Fort Stedman, which the north took and won the war. While Alexander was there, he fell and woke up to a battle. There was a young man there named Richeson Francis Chamblee or Rich for short. Rich kept telling Alexander to help him. When Alexander gets back to the real world, he meets the ghost of Rich. Only Alexander can see, and talk to him. Rich needs him to trace his family so he knows that his family survived. If you want to know if his family survived, and Alexander helps, Rich you will have to read the book.
There is hardly anything in a book I did not like. It has all of my favorite kinds of stories put into one. It also goes to different things, and is not caught up in one thing.
In a book there is a battle so, if you like action books this would be a good book for you. If you like, mystery books this is a good book for you because new things always pop up, or things happen when you do not expect them to.
The Scariest Battlefield.......2005-09-28
Ghost Soldier
By: Elaine Marie Alphin
4 out of 5 stars
THE SCARIEST BATTLEFIELD
In the book Ghost Soldier a boy named Alexander lives in Indiana and is on a trip with his dad to North Carolina to visit a woman that his dad wants to marry. Alex's real mom just picked up and left many years ago. A couple of days into the trip they go to see a battlefield, and Alex falls into the past and experience something that you could never even imagine! When Alex gets back into his time there is a ghost that just won't leave Alex alone! This Ghost name is Rich, and he insists that Alexander must help him or he will haunt him in a way for the rest of his life. Rich also starts to haunt the people around Alex.
I thought that this was a pretty good book. A reason that I liked it is, because it was always right there keeping me on edge convincing me to keep on reeding. The main reason that I liked this book so much, is because it was about the Civil War, and I have always found books about wars to be quiet interesting. There was also a lot of action in this book.
If you like books about action adventure and a ghost every now and then this is the book for you! Gary Paulsen is a great writer, and I enjoy his books, I liked this book even more, so if you Like Gary Paulsen books you'll love this book.
Ghost Soldier.......2005-02-12
Ghost soldier
By: Elain Alphin
The book Ghost soldier is about a boy named Alexander. Him and his dad are going to North Caroline. They going there because Alexander's dad is wanting to meet a lady he likes, Paige. During this trip Alexander finds himself going through time windows. In one part of the book he goes into a time window. Alexander doesn't know if it is real or if he is imagining it. He meets a ghost who needs his help. While trying to decide if he wants to help he realizes he is has a problem of his own.
The parts I really like that Alexander becomes closer to his dad. This story reminded me of how I felt growing up with out a dad. This book almost mad my cry. The book isn't just sad it is funny too. This book is for children or adults who like fun and interesting facts about history. The book would be perfect for ages 9-14.
-Awesome-.......2004-10-04
Ghost Soldier was definitely among my favorite novels I have read in my freetime. Alexander, a somewhat lost thirteen-year-old, is forced to spend his Spring Break with the Hambricks, a family consisting of a hyper seven-year-old boy, a stubborn teenage girl who can't seem to cooperate at any costs, and a mom who is deeply admired by Alex's dad. Alexander's vacation takes a turn when he ends up in Petersburg, an old Civil War battlefield, expecting to see nothing more than a few trenches and a historical reenactment--when he finds himself witnessing the famous battle in the very time period it took place. Richeson Francis Chamblee, a ghost drummer boy and persistent soldier who died for his country, won't seem to leave Alexander be, until he finally gives in to help the ghost solve the mystery of his century-old family. As time goes on, Alexander learns the meaning of teamwork when he makes some pretty unexpected friends, and realizing sometimes, the answer to a problem could be right under your nose.
I found this as an excellent book because of the time period that the story refers to (I believe I'm the only twelve-year-old girl that obsesses over the eighteen-hundreds), and the part of the story that relates to the main character's supernatural powers to see and communicate with ghosts. If you're interested in the Civil War, paranormal, or are just looking for a good kid's read, Ghost Soldier is a perfect match.
Ghost soldier.......2004-05-07
Ghost Soldier
There is a boy named Alexander whose Mom left him many years ago, he still waits for her day by day year by year to come back. He expects her to just come walking down the street one day but that hasn't happened yet. So Alexander is forced to live with his Dad in North Carolina, that is the last place he wants to be. The one-day Alexander finds himself in the center of the Civil War battlefield. There is where he meets Richeson, the ghost of a Civil War soldier. Richeson has problems of his own. Alexander doesn't care at all. Alexander can barely take care of himself let alone ghost from the past. Alexander is put into a mystery 100 years old. I didn't really enjoy this book because I don't really like ghost stories and it was kind of hard to follow. Him and his dad are trying to get along with each other through about the whole story. It gets hard to follow. I wouldn't really recommend this book to everyone.
Book Description
Nevare Burvelle is the second son of a second son, destined from birth to carry a sword. The wealthy young noble will follow his father—newly made a lord by the King of Gernia—into the cavalry, training in the military arts at the elite King's Cavella Academy in the capital city of Old Thares. Bright and well-educated, an excellent horseman with an advantageous engagement, Nevare's future appears golden.
But as his Academy instruction progresses, Nevare begins to realize that the road before him is far from straight. The old aristocracy looks down on him as the son of a "new noble" and, unprepared for the political and social maneuvering of the deeply competitive school and city, the young man finds himself entangled in a web of injustice, discrimination, and foul play. In addition, he is disquieted by his unconventional girl-cousin Epiny—who challenges his heretofore unwavering world view—and by the bizarre dreams that haunt his nights.
For twenty years the King's cavalry has pushed across the grasslands, subduing and settling its nomads and claiming the territory in Gernia's name. Now they have driven as far as the Barrier Mountains, home to the Speck people, a quiet, forest-dwelling folk who retain the last vestiges of magic in a world that is rapidly becoming modernized. From childhood Nevare has been taught that the Specks are a primitive people to be pitied for their backward ways—and feared for their indigenous diseases, including the deadly Speck plague, which has ravaged the frontier towns and military outposts.
The Dark Evening brings the carnival to Old Thares, and with it an unknown magic, and the first Specks Nevare has ever seen . . .
Download Description
"
Nevare Burvelle is the second son of a second son, destined from birth to carry a sword. The wealthy young noble will follow his father - newly made a lord by the King of Gernia - into the cavalry, training in the military arts at the elite King's Cavella Academy in the capital city of Old Thares. Bright and well-educated, an excellent horseman with an advantageous engagement, Nevare's future appears golden.
But as his Academy instruction progresses, Nevare begins to realize that the road before him is far from straight. The old aristocracy looks down on him as the son of a ""new noble"" and, unprepared for the political and social maneuvering of the deeply competitive school and city, the young man finds himself entangled in a web of injustice, discrimination, and foul play. In addition, he is disquieted by his unconventional girl-cousin Epiny - who challenges his heretofore unwavering world view - and by the bizarre dreams that haunt his nights.
For twenty years the King's cavalry has pushed across the grasslands, subduing and settling its nomads and claiming the territory in Gernia's name. Now they have driven as far as the Barrier Mountains, home to the Speck people, a quiet, forest-dwelling folk who retain the last vestiges of magic in a world that is rapidly becoming modernized. From childhood Nevare has been taught that the Specks are a primitive people to be pitied for their backward ways - and feared for their indigenous diseases, including the deadly Speck plague, which has ravaged the frontier towns and military outposts.
The Dark Evening brings the carnival to Old Thares, and with it an unknown magic, and the first Specks Nevare has ever seen . . . "
Customer Reviews:
I love the world.......2007-09-20
It took me only two days to go through the book. Hobb's imagination is original and wonderful. I'm looking forward to reading the next book from the trilogy. I read all her series and this author is brand of quality I like.
Not Free SF Reader.......2007-09-03
A by the numbers fantasy that doesn't really grab you.
Much the same as Tad Williams' latest effort.
This could just be your everyday book about a soldier with very few changes. In fact, that would probably be an improvement. A terrible disappointment after the wonderful Farseer series, indeed. Hope she can come up with another series after this that is more interesting.
Not as good as past series.......2007-07-03
I read Robin Hobb's Ship and Tawny Man books, so I got this at the library. I read about 1/3 of the book and it just didn't grab me like her other books did. Dunno why. I was disappointed though.
Marred only by a horrid main character........2007-03-05
I've been an enthusiastic fan of Robin Hobb for ten books now; the first nine of those books being the fantastic and captivating tales of Fitz-Chivalry and the Six Duchies.
I went into this book expecting the usual mesmerizing ambiance and deep, interesting characterizations that marked all nine of her previous books. I was on the whole not disappointed; while Hobb's new world of Forests and Mountains and Plains, Cavalla and Shamans and Magics warring against each other, schoolboy drama and teenaged antics reminds me of a weird cross between Harry Potter, a Civil War re-enactment and a really long game of Magic: The Gathering, she actually pulls it off, and her world comes alive and envelops you into it just as much as the Six Duchies ever did. Hobb is truly a master of descriptive writing and she has never been stronger on that account.
Her characters for the most part are equally good. The Six Duchies and the Liveships were stocked with amazing, vibrating, and most of all truly LIVING characters, that felt like actual people that you could love or hate for their own unique personalities. From Caulder to Epiny to Spink to the Tree Lady, this remains true in this book; all but for one gigantic, hideous, glaring exception: The protagonist.
As in the Assasin's Trilogy, the reader is firmly captured inside the persona of the main character. But where Fitz was deep, complex, captivating and a joy to follow along with, Nevare Burvelle is the single most boring, insipid, horrifically predictable piece of cold turkey ever to be rudely slapped across my eyes.
I mean, it's really quite amazing. As you read the book, you simply will NOT believe the depths of shallowness, contrivance, and predictability that you are excrutiatingly subjected to as you ride on this mumble-drone's shoulder for the entire duration. The image I had in my head for pretty much the entire book was of the Tree Lady actually physically materializing before him in a brazilian carnival costume and dancing the conga in front of him while slapping him repeatedly in the face going, 'I'm controlling you! I'm controlling you! I'm controlling you!' and afterwards Nevare putting his hands on his hips and going 'Gee willickers, what a strong daydream I just had.' What is really sad is that this is, pretty much literally, what goes on through the entire book. His reactions and decisions to everything going on around him, from fights between his roommates to finding a drunk boy, are so deliciously and moronically boring that you will find yourself wondering if Hobb is actually mocking you on purpose.
Now, it might sound like I didn't enjoy Shaman's Crossing, which is far from true. I immensely enjoyed being swept up into Robin's mind and world through her excellent narration and descriptions one more time, and will certainly read the next book. Just please, Robin, ditch the Harry-Potter-imitation-wannabe and make Epiny or Gord the protagonist instead.
Hobb provides us with yet another book that is hard to put down.......2007-01-29
This is a fantastic series and I am anxiously awaiting #3 in this series. I am an avid fan of science fiction/fantasy novels and all of Mr. Hobb's books are right up there on the top of my list. His character development and story development are great and at the end of the book, you are anxious for more.
Book Description
This is my story of what it was like as a mother sending a son to war. It is my sincere hope that in sharing my story and private thoughts, other mothers faced with sending a son or daughter to war, will accept they are in for some tough days and nights ahead of them. The war will not only change their son but will change them as well. We cannot go back to who we once were. Instead, we must move ahead, with a new found strength and wisdom, knowing that if we can survive the heartache of sending a son or daughter to war, we can survive almost anything. Stay Proud.
Customer Reviews:
Boo Hoo.......2006-08-17
This book is more concerned with the writer than the son...should rename the title.
Book Description
These are the compelling letters of Karl Fuchs, an ordinary German soldier who was completely convinced of the righteousness of his cause and who wrote them free of the recriminations and hindsight arising from the bitterness of defeat. Combining enthusiastic expressions of loyalty to the führer and the Fatherland with messages of love for his family and requests for necessities from home, they provide a personal look at a youth typical of his time, one whose fervent and naive nationalism was of the very sort that later fanned the flames of the Holocaust.
Throughout Your Loyal and Loving Son, young Fuchs remains an idealist, confident in his concept of duty. Yet his letters clearly support the general assertion that many Germans who backed the Third Reich did so neither out of opportunistic self-interest nor nihilistic delight in destruction, but instead in the hope for a better future. Killed on the Eastern Front, Fuchs did not live to see his son, the infant to whom he wrote and who as an adult compiled these letters for publication. With an introduction and annotations by eminent historian Dennis Showalter, this collection will help make those early war years more comprehensible to contemporary readers.
Customer Reviews:
Mom, please send more money...........2006-08-17
Decent personal war account, but not great. He seemed to be a bit on the spoiled side however. The book seemed at times to be almost simply a list of his personal demands to his parents--Mom, send this, send that, send money, more money, and more money--good God, what is he buying? I did'nt realize there was so many stores in Russia. At times, I just wanted to slap the brat factor out of him. All that aside, I remember it being a fairly good combat memoir. Buy it realizing it's not the best, but like a hamburger, fills you up.
Book Description
A former German soldier eloquently reflects on the insidious effects of Nazi propaganda, especially on young people, citing his own experience as the son of an anti-Semitic father whom he loved deeply. Bruno Manz also recounts his wartime experiences fighting the Soviets in Finland and presents a unique perspective on the United States, to which he came in the 1950s during Operation Paperclip along with Werner von Braun and other German rocket scientists. In the epilogue he draws conclusions about Germany’s guilt and his own, baring his soul to the reader. This heartfelt memoir is for anyone who seeks to understand how a civilized people could plunge into mass insanity.
Customer Reviews:
Personal Exorcism Not Completed.......2005-10-14
This book was interesting, earnest, candid and filled with the author's personal angst for having been duped, first by his Nazi father and then by Hitler. I disagree with some of the other reviews in that I didn't find it penetrating or searing. Bruno Manz stabs but fails at soul-searching.
In some ways it is repetitive. The author explains again and again how he was brainwashed into Nazism from youth to young adulthood. He digresses into various life experiences with teachers, schools, childhood friends, military experiences and lesser details of life. All of which he thinly connects to his primary purpose for the memoir, exorcising his personal demons over blindly serving Hitler. Many of those digressions would be unremarkable without that connection. Bruno uses those vignettes to underscore that he was misguided but they fail to reveal, illuminate or prove how any particular incident, mentor or authority figure contributed to his blind devotion to Hitler. In fact, he frequently recounts how he internally rebelled against school authorities, military authorities, rules and procedures that didn't make common sense or rubbed him the wrong way. If that is so, then he should have self analyzed further to determine how and why he dismissed his conscience when it called about Hitler, the concentration camps and the Jews. He continued to follow the grand lie and served as essentially a political officer in youth organizations and later in the military. He recounts that he was never very enthusiastic and harbored doubts, yet he continuously pressed on. Example on pg 69, he describes a school director quoting Hitler's credo, "He who wants to live, let him fight. And he who does not want to fight in this world of eternal struggle does not deserve to live." Bruno expresses misgivings when the school director says that is more religion than a person would ever find in the Bible. He admits agreeing with the anti-Semitism and anti-Catholicism of the director but boycotts his classes from then on. Methinks he doth protest too much.
Don't get me wrong, Bruno Manz clearly, genuinely, honestly apologizes for his personal role in Germany's evil shame. He denounces all that he was and embraces all that he has become since the war and particularly while living in America. But in the end about all that Bruno confirms is that, at least between 1915 and 1946, Germans were weak for rhetoric, easily swayed by romantic and heroic figures, and followed the crowd. He doesn't dig deep enough to reveal how that was possible. Were they greedy, mad, angry, vulnerable, ambitious, fearful, bombastic, maniacal, weak, bloodthirsty, gullible? Personally, he was swayed by Dad while impressionable and later by Hitler via Goebbels propaganda machine. OK, we already know that about every German during WWII. Bruno, why and how were you vulnerable to that when the rest of the world was not? Why do some Germans today continue to deny the Holocaust? Why is there an element that still deifies Hitler and anti-Semitism?
I suspect that Bruno cannot to this day accept his own cowardice. He never dared to disagree or question his father, although he credits his mother and older brother with being able to avoid anti-Semitic hatred and Hitler worship. He wouldn't dare question his Nazism or the Fuhrer because he very likely knew it would mean his death or imprisonment. Hmmm, that may be the self evident truth every German citizen who willingly participated in Nazism has to face. They didn't take any contrary action because it was someone else who was being victimized and they were cowards. So, while he may have achieved some catharsis, I doubt that he completely exorcised the regret and shame he aimed for. Still, the book has some value derived from its basic honesty and first person account.
Outstanding account of life in Nazi Germany.......2005-03-25
A Mind in Prison is a powerful and moving personal account of life as a committed Nazi, a soldier on the Eastern Front, and the difficult and painful realization that everything the author once stood for was evil and destructive. The candor of this book is both startling and refreshing because it gives the reader tremendous insight into the corrosive power of Nazi propaganda and ideology. For the author to admit thinking and acting like he did must have been a painful experience, but it gives this account a sharp edge of credibility that might otherwise be lacking. In fact, it is that candor that makes this story so heartrendering. The world would be a much better place if more people would break their silence about the tragedy of Nazi Germany and share their experiences and feelings as openly and sincerely as Dr. Manz has.
Important insight into the mind of a German betrayed.......2002-01-05
This book is basically the author's way of exorcising his personal demons. Manz grew up idolizing a man named Adolf Hitler, whom most Germans believed to be a sort of messiah sent to save them from the devastating poverty and national humiliation following the Treaty of Versailles. The book chronicles how Manz (and many other pro-Nazi Germans then) got to believe in the things he did, and his eventual disillusionment with the Third Reich.
Did the German civilians know about the atrocities of the concentration and extermination camps? Over the recent years, this question has loomed large in works concerning WWII in the European theater. Manz can't answer for every German during that period, but he gives us HIS story as an offering to further understanding in this matter.
This book struck a very personal chord with me. Although I was born decades after WWII, I grew up in a country where the press (in fact, every type of media - books, TV, movies, etc.) was heavily censored by the national government. The government told people what to think, what to say, when to assemble, and throws those who defy their orders in jail under the holy name of "national security". As a result, I totally understand how mind-numbing propoganda can be. A population, after all, is merely a collection of individuals living in a state. An individual's morals and personal biases are largely dependent on what information they have available to them. Hitler understood this very well, and with the help of his propoganda minister, Goebbels, managed to shape the thinking of an amazingly large portion of the German population, including the author's.
Manz is all the more convincing because he doesn't get overly apologetic, but does admit that he's not in any way proud of all that he has done (he was a Hitler Youth, and later a soldier in the German army). He feels very strongly for the victims of the Third Reich (the book is dedicated to them), and although he was never in direct contact with any official programs dealing with the "Jewish problem", regrets that he couldn't have done more.
It is very touching to read books by those who were on the "wrong" side of the war, especially those with a sense of morality (however late it surfaced) like Manz. This book is an important reminder to us of how dangerous bigotry can be, especially when it is led by an eloquent and convincing tyrant.
A glimpse into the Third Reich.......2000-09-05
Dr. Bruno Manz has written an honest, searing story of his experiences growing up in the Third Reich with a father who he loved but who was an enthusiastic Nazi. First person accounts of this quality are rare and valuable, giving those of us who are curious as to how a civilized nation like Germany could turn itself into the soulless, mechanistic killing machine it became under Hitler a look at how ordinary people contributed, by omission or commission, to the coming horror. Dr. Manz has more than atoned for his own omissions by writing this excellent, gripping book, which I recommend to anyone interested in this perplexing episode of history.
A New Perspective on Hitler's Germany.......2000-06-14
Over the years I have read several books on Hitler's rise to power and the effects his rule had on the German people and the Jews of Europe. Many, like William Shirer's "Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" approached the subject from a historical point of view while "The Diary of Anne Frank" and "The Hiding Place" dealt with the personal stories of Hitler's victims. In his book "A Mind in Prison", Bruno Manz shows us a new perspective: what it was like for a young boy to grow up in Germany during the Hitler years. In this very personal autobiography, Dr. Manz describes the dominating influence of not only the social order imposed by Hitler but the anti-Jewish prejudice of a father he loved and respected. From his early years at the dawn of the Hitler era, through his time with the Hitler Youth and the German Army, to his disillusionment and subsequent redemption, Dr. Manz recounts his journey with depressing, humorous, and poignant stories. I highly recommend this book not only for those still seeking an understanding of how Hitler could have captured the minds of an entire nation, but also for those who love a well-written, personal story told with passion and compassion.
Book Description
John Hodgkins was eight years old when his father was drafted into the army and left for Europe to fight in World War II. After his return, John's father never spoke much about the war, but John knew he'd kept a diary. After his father's death, John opened his diary and two boxes of memorabilia. What began as John's attempt to tell his father's story became the story of his own life. This memoir recounts what life was like on the home front of Temple, Maine, during the war -- as well as what life was like on the front lines, thanks to what John learned from his father's letters home and his war diary. It also provides a firsthand look at the hardscrabble lives of rural Mainers and a way of living that is now mostly gone.
Customer Reviews:
Life in rural Maine during WW.......2006-08-17
This book gives wonderfully vivd descriptions of life in rural Maine during the Second World War. It conjures up memories of events during that time and takes one inside the lives of the Hodgkins family.
Average customer rating:
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Your Sons -- My Soldiers -- Our War
George R. Mauldin
Manufacturer: AuthorHouse
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Contemporary
| General
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
War
| Genre Fiction
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 1420847759 |
Book Description
In October1968 Captain George Morgan is about to embark on what he considers to be the best job in the U.S. Army-commanding a rifle company in combat. At age 27, he will be referred to as "The Old Man" by the soldiers under his command. He is already a seasoned veteran of service in Vietnam and is now returning for a second tour of duty in what has become an increasingly unpopular war in the U.S. During this assignment, Morgan acquires a keen sense of responsibility to his unit, which calls itself "Charlie Hunter", and to the men who serve in it. He develops a special bond with many of his men, and one in particular-a young Mexican who is nicknamed Mouse. The story takes this unit on many dangerous missions and recounts the bravery and compassion of the soldier called Mouse. In the course of operations, the unit comes into contact with a mysterious Vietnamese woman, who eventually brings the commander to Saigon. That visit draws the captain into the realm of espionage and subterfuge and culminates with him on stand-by to lead a mission to rescue the Vietnamese woman. While leading his men on combat missions, Captain Morgan becomes increasingly disillusioned with the war and finds it more and more difficult to justify America's presence in Vietnam to his subordinates; yet, he must continue to set the example and project the image of the "stalwart commander."
Customer Reviews:
One of his soldiers.......2005-10-31
I ordered this book as soon as I learned of it being written. Just knowing Captain Mauldin was still alive and well brought a huge smile to my face and after reading his book, Your Sons-My Soldiers-Our War, I'm still smiling. I was pleased to know he would be basing his fictional story on his experiences as Company Commander of Charlie Company, 6th Battalion of the 31st Infantry, but also anxious to see just how the story would be told.
George Mauldin arrived at Charlie Company in October 1968 as a career Army officer in his second tour of Vietnam, having specifically requested command of an infantry company. I arrived at the same time, or nearly so, as a reluctant draftee who had reluctantly allowed the Army to make me an instant, or shake-n-bake, NCO, the Vietnam equivalent of a 90 day wonder. He wanted to be there. I did not. He was my CO until my tour abruptly ended on April 26, 1969 with me receiving the million dollar wound, shortly before Captain Mauldin moved on to his next assignment.
I'm sure I am not qualified to review his book as a work of literature, but I can certainly speak to his credibility and experience as qualifications to write about war. He's got it in buckets. Big ones. David Hackworth, who seemed to have little good to say about any outfit other than his own, acknowedged in his book that Captain Mauldin and C 6/31st performed well on a combined operation. Several years ago I found an account of a battle in the plain of reeds that included testimony of one of the NVA members who had been the object of our assault and slipped through our positions at night. That enemy soldier also expressed respect for our outfit.
I went nearly thirty years without any contact from any member of C 6/31. Computers and the internet changed all that. Mostly by e-mails, I've lost count of how many former members of Charlie Company I've contacted. One thing we share is a respect for Captain Mauldin. I have only read and heard positive opinions of him as a combat officer. After reading his book, I know our respect for him was justified.
His story is fiction, based on true combat operations and real members of C 6/31. Names have been changed, and some descriptions of operations differ a bit from my memory, but they match closely enough to be recognizable. Some scenes were shocking to me as I read them, but they were shocking 37 years ago, too. One of the characters in the book is Mouse, a nickname of course, but Mouse was very real. Your Sons-My Soldiers-Our War tells the story of combat by a commander who really did care and did his job well in spite of extreme conditions.
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- Give a Boy a Gun
- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
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