A review by bdietrich
Soldier Boy by Keely Hutton

4.0

Based on Richard "Ricky" Anywar's life as a child soldier in Joseph Kony's Lord's Resistance Army in Uganda in the late '80s/early '90s, Soldier Boy is not an easy read. But, it is an important window story. Through Ricky's tale, we experience, first-hand, the trauma, the violence, the bloodshed, the horror of guerrilla warfare as Ricky goes from abducted preteen to soldier to respected soldier to escapee and beyond. Coupled with Ricky's chapters is a dual narrative: Samuel, a former child soldier who had been taken to an orphanage for healing. There, he plays checkers with a man and listens to the story of Ricky. How the two are connected is for you to read and and find out.

Soldier Boy is excellently done, and though it doesn't shy away from the gruesome horrors, it is appropriate for older tweens.