Soldier's Heart

Written by Gary Paulsen

A boy enlists for adventure, but war changes him forever.

3.7 Goodreads · 5,538 ratings

106 pages· 14,867 words· Est. 1.5 hour read· 1000L

$17.80Save 5%

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Bookroo's summary

At 15, Charley Goddard joins the Civil War seeking adventure, unaware of the brutal reality awaiting him. As he faces the chaos of battle, Charley transforms from a naive boy into a hardened soldier. Will he survive the horrors of war, or will the experience leave him forever changed? Discover the journey from innocence to a 'soldier's heart' in this gripping tale of courage and survival.

From the publisher

In June 1861, when the Civil War began, Charley Goddard enlisted in the First Minnesota Volunteers. He was 15. He didn’t know what a shooting war meant or what he was fighting for. But he didn’t want to miss out on a great adventure. The shooting war turned out to be the horror of combat and the wild luck of survival; how it feels to cross a field toward the enemy, waiting for fire. When he entered the service he was a boy. When he came back he was different; he was only 19, but he was a man with soldier’s heart, later known as battle fatigue.

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