Civil War Drummer Boy

Gr 3–5—Kay has chosen a complex subject for this picture book told in rhyme. Drummer boys as young as 10 years of age played a vital role in the Civil War, tapping out instructions to the troops while enduring the harsh conditions alongside their adult comrades. In a writing style that the author calls "cryptic rhyme," the basic causes of the war are laid out. As Johnny the drummer boy moves from recruitment to training to the horrors of the battlefield, Kay outlines his experiences in powerful, well-chosen words. Each tight stanza generates atmosphere: the excitement, the waiting, and the eventual sense of loss. Pen-and-ink and watercolor illustrations bring the text alive with details of military life, fierce expressions of men fighting, and a way of life lost to the war. Day's use of light and color skillfully alters the mood of the narrative. The opening page is full of color and good cheer. With a shift in viewpoint, the following page shows enslaved laborers toiling in the fields next to white children playing on a Southern plantation. A dark, stark image toward the end of the book conveys the immense task of rebuilding after war. As the author ends the narrative with Johnny returning to his Southern home, the last four stanzas will promote much discussion about the Reconstruction. An excellent classroom read-aloud.—Elizabeth C. Larson, Hennepin County Library, Hopkins, MN