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72nd out of 99 books
—
98 voters
Soldier's Heart: Being the Story of the Enlistment and Due Service of the Boy Charley Goddard in the First Minnesota Volunteers
by
Gary Paulsen
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, wait...more
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, wait...more
Paperback, 128 pages
Published
September 12th 2000
by Laurel Leaf
(first published September 8th 1998)
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When I first read this over two years ago, prior to teaching it to 7th graders, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I heard Gary Paulsen was a good young adult author but up until this point, I had never read any of his work. I remember hearing about it from coworkers who said it was good and gave me a brief description of the book.
During
Soldier’s Heart is a quick read. As I am re-reading this for the second time, I am find the pages are flying by. Paulsen does a great job of vividly describ...more
When I first read this over two years ago, prior to teaching it to 7th graders, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I heard Gary Paulsen was a good young adult author but up until this point, I had never read any of his work. I remember hearing about it from coworkers who said it was good and gave me a brief description of the book.
During
Soldier’s Heart is a quick read. As I am re-reading this for the second time, I am find the pages are flying by. Paulsen does a great job of vividly describ...more
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Paulsen, Gary. (2000) Soldier's heart: Being the story of the enlistment and due service of the boy Charley Goddard in the First Minnesota Volunteers. New York: Laurel-Leaf Publishing.
Genre: Historical Fiction
Format: Audio book
Review:
Charley Goddard is a teenage boy living in Minnesota when war is declared between the Northern States and the Southern States. Wanting to be a part of the action, Charley lies about his age to enlist in the army. Like so many people he believed this would be an adv...more
Genre: Historical Fiction
Format: Audio book
Review:
Charley Goddard is a teenage boy living in Minnesota when war is declared between the Northern States and the Southern States. Wanting to be a part of the action, Charley lies about his age to enlist in the army. Like so many people he believed this would be an adv...more
Book Review: Soldier’s Heart
Soldier’s Heart is a first person war story. This is one of my favorite all-time books. One of the main reasons I liked it so much is that there were many moments in the book where your heart stopped beating for a second which made the book exciting. It is about a young Minnesota guy who had to lie to get into the army because he was so young. He was very poor which is why he wanted to join the army so he could get money to feed his poor family. This is the story of...more
Soldier’s Heart is a first person war story. This is one of my favorite all-time books. One of the main reasons I liked it so much is that there were many moments in the book where your heart stopped beating for a second which made the book exciting. It is about a young Minnesota guy who had to lie to get into the army because he was so young. He was very poor which is why he wanted to join the army so he could get money to feed his poor family. This is the story of...more
In the book Soldier's Heart by Gary Paulsen, Gary tells the story of a boy wanting to feel like he making a change for his country. This boys name is Charley Goddard, who lived in Minnesota. Charley felt the call to serve for the First Minnesota Volunteers while they were recruiting in his small town. Charley had always wanted to see the country, feel the bravery of fighting, and having the glory to pass down story's to his grandchildren. There was one problem though, Charley was underage. Even...more
I read Soldier's Heart by Gary Paulsen. It is a historical fiction book based around the Civil War. As a reader, you follow Charlie on his adventures in the war. He is too young to join the army but decides to sign up anyway be saying he is older and signing up in a different town so neighbors don't give him away. His family could definitely use the money and his mom will let him do just about anything he wants to ever since his father died. Charlie learns how to fight and follow orders just li...more
"Soldier's Heart," is the story of a young 15 year old boy who hears rumors about a war brewing against the seceding "Rebels," and wants to fight for the Union. After months of training, Charlie is finally thrown into his first battle, the Battle of Bull Run, where he is forever changed. Once the plot got going, it never slowed down, and it had me hooked right until the very end. The Civil War setting seemed very authentic, and the battlefield scenes were horrifyingly realistic; I felt like I wa...more
Gary Paulsen is the author of the fictional story of Charley Goddard, a fifteen-year-old boy, who joins the First Minnesota Volunteers in the middle of 1861. Charley lies about his age and is promptly accepted into the Union army at Fort Snelling. Soldier's Heart tells of Charley's experiences with the monotonous drilling, endless marching, ever-present illness, and battles that marked the Civil War and forever changed the United States of America.
Although a fictionalized account, Charley Goddar...more
Although a fictionalized account, Charley Goddar...more
This book is about a boy named Charley who quickly learns to become a man. Charley lived in the civil war era and decides to join the Union forces. The only problem is that Charley is underage and can't join in his town. So Charley goes to a diffrent town where no one will reconize him. He is able to join up but dosen't go into action very fast. He has to go through training and just prepare for what he was about to do. The day finally comes where his platoon is sent out on a train to fight the...more
The reading level on this novel is misleading. The reading level and briefness (102 pages with large type and much space between lines) imply it might be suitable for middle school readers. It isn’t. If it were a movie, it would be R for graphic war violence, complete with much blood and gore. The novel traces the Civil War service of 15-year-old Charley Goddard (an actual person), part of the First Minnesota Volunteers, who served from Bull Run to Gettysburg, when he was badly wounded. The nove...more
A soldiers heart is an amazing book, its very suspenseful and its one of those books that you just cant put down. "Gary Paulsen the author of a soldiers heart is one of my favorite authors it always seems that every book he writes its just as good or even better than the last book". The book a soldier's heart Based on the life of a real boy, it tells the story of Charley Goddard, who lies his way into the Union Army at the age of 15. Charley has never been anyplace beyond Winona, Minnesota, and...more
Grade/interest level: 7th-8th
Reading level: Lexile, 1000L
Genre: Historical Fiction
Main Characters: Charlie Goddard
Setting: Minnesota during the Civil War
POV: from Charlie
Soldier's Heart is a Civil War novel based on the real life of Charlie Goddard. He is a 15 year old boy who is determined to join the ranks of the First Minnesota Regiment. He has a naive outlook on the war and sees the war more as an adventure than anything else. He is worried that this will be his only chance to be in a "shoot...more
Reading level: Lexile, 1000L
Genre: Historical Fiction
Main Characters: Charlie Goddard
Setting: Minnesota during the Civil War
POV: from Charlie
Soldier's Heart is a Civil War novel based on the real life of Charlie Goddard. He is a 15 year old boy who is determined to join the ranks of the First Minnesota Regiment. He has a naive outlook on the war and sees the war more as an adventure than anything else. He is worried that this will be his only chance to be in a "shoot...more
This is a well written novela for tweens about the horrors of war, most especially the Civil War. I'm a fan of Paulsen's work, both his adult and young adult books, and I enjoyed this book, which carries an important and obvious message, but felt there was a lot missing. I wanted much more of Charley's back story, especially his relationship with his father and mother. I also wanted to know more about his "after" life at the end of the war. I didn't find Charley's eagerness to join the fight bec...more
Fifteen-year-old Charley lies about his age and enlists in the army during the Civil War. The story follows his journey through the terrors of war--not just battles, but also battling fatigue, starvation, and harsh weather.
Let's be clear: this book is not for the faint-of-heart. People die...brutally. People suffer...horribly. I would classify this book as being for 6th grade and up, though I have known some 5th graders who have read it. Some would argue that, given the descriptive violence (he...more
Let's be clear: this book is not for the faint-of-heart. People die...brutally. People suffer...horribly. I would classify this book as being for 6th grade and up, though I have known some 5th graders who have read it. Some would argue that, given the descriptive violence (he...more
I read this in a night. It was a very gripping short story about a young man’s journey from youth into premature adulthood brought on by the horrors of war. It is not an entirely accurate telling of events, but the events are all drawn from truth which gives it an eeriness that is repellent and luring all at once.
I hate to love war novels. I hate the death and destruction but love the honor and brotherhood. These things are all present in Paulsen’s book and despite the brevity of the actual stor...more
I hate to love war novels. I hate the death and destruction but love the honor and brotherhood. These things are all present in Paulsen’s book and despite the brevity of the actual stor...more
The book "Soldier's Heart" was about a 15 year old boy named Charlie that wants to into the military. This book took place during the civil war. He enlisted in the First Minnesota Volunteers and goes to war. The book is fiction and non fiction. It has parts where its fact and some parts that are made up. Charlie was in a lot of battles including gettysburg. Charlie got wonded in that battle but lived for another day.
I did like this book. I liked it for alot of reasons. It was a good book overall...more
I did like this book. I liked it for alot of reasons. It was a good book overall...more
Shana Loven
APA Citation: Paulsen, Gary. (1998). Soldier's heart : a novel of the Civil War. New York, NY: Delacorte Press.
Genre: Historical Fiction
Format: Print
Selection Process: Kirkus Reviews
Gary Paulsen’s A Soldier’s Heart tells the tale of Charley Goddard, a fifteen-year-old boy, in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Charley, eager to squash the rebels, lies about his age to head to war. What follows is the heartbreaking horror reality of war: the harsh living conditions for troop...more
APA Citation: Paulsen, Gary. (1998). Soldier's heart : a novel of the Civil War. New York, NY: Delacorte Press.
Genre: Historical Fiction
Format: Print
Selection Process: Kirkus Reviews
Gary Paulsen’s A Soldier’s Heart tells the tale of Charley Goddard, a fifteen-year-old boy, in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Charley, eager to squash the rebels, lies about his age to head to war. What follows is the heartbreaking horror reality of war: the harsh living conditions for troop...more
i think soldier's heart was an ok novel. i finished it today and it took me a long time to not put the book down. this book has its sad parts, its the story of Charley Goddard a boy who was a teenager 15 years old when he first entered the civil war. he is a volunteer who wants to join to fight in the civil war. Charley goes into the so called " shooting war" he does not want to miss out on all the guns and bombs and all those weapons. but wrong with being in that comes a lot of hard work, movin...more
Sep 17, 2009
Keri ★TX
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
juvenile,
challenge-fall-2009
Post traumatic stress had no name during the Civil War. Instead as Paulsen writes in the foreward, these men "were said to have soldier's heart." A wonderful read, well told; not overly graphic but enough to give an insight as to what wartime was like during the Civil War. One can't begin to even imagine the horrors that were seen during this time, but Paulsen does an excellent job providing a realistic glimpse through one soldier's eyes, Charley Goddard--a real person, merely 15 years old, from...more
Soldier's Heart is a blunt depiction of Civil War combat. Based on the real-life experiences of Charley Goddard, the novel is an account of Charley's experiences from the time he enlists in the Union army at age fifteen to a couple of years after the Civil War when he is twenty-one and his life is a shambles. The title of the book is a phrase used by Americans to label Civil War veterans who seemed mentally lost because of the war. The atmosphere at the town meetings discussing the possibility i...more
This book is about a young man named Charley Goddard. He's from Minnesota and he wants to join the Army but the only thing that's holding him back is his family and age.
Charlie was persistent about joining the Army, he always told his mom and he always told her, if he joined he would be a man and wanted to go on a great adventure. He was 15 when he joined the army. He was happy he was able to join but he was also nervous about his age and what could happen to him since he joined.
Later througho...more
Charlie was persistent about joining the Army, he always told his mom and he always told her, if he joined he would be a man and wanted to go on a great adventure. He was 15 when he joined the army. He was happy he was able to join but he was also nervous about his age and what could happen to him since he joined.
Later througho...more
Charley is a young man from Minnesota that has signed up to fight in the Civil War. Leaving his home to go join the fight he must learn to be brave. Soldier's Heart tells of Charley's struggles and experiences during the Civil War. Soldier's Heart shows accurately what it may have been like for young men joining the war effort.
I thought this was a decent book. I enjoyed reading about Charley's fears and felt like I would feel the same way if I were in his shoes. I though it was interesting to se...more
I thought this was a decent book. I enjoyed reading about Charley's fears and felt like I would feel the same way if I were in his shoes. I though it was interesting to se...more
Wanting to be a man and do the things a man should do, Charley joins the war initiative as a volunteer. The problem, Charley is only 15 years old, too young for war. But there was going to be a shooting war and he wasn't about to miss it. War practice games just didn't satisfy the imagination! When will they see battle? When will they shoot? Where will they be sent? After months of preparation, the men - the boys, weren't prepared for the ravages of real war. The injuries, the rancid smell of de...more
If you were just fifteen years old, and voluntered for the war between the north and south which became nown as the cival war how would you feel. Well Charley did just that. He thaught that the war wasnt going to last long, but he is in for a big surprise. Charley decides to join the army in michigan,he figures that the war wont last long, and he wont have to fight. When he finally gets his basic training in, he realizes that he will have to fight. He goes thruogh many entense battles, and he ha...more
May 06, 2013
Wyatt Freier
added it
The book Soldier's Heart is a great book showing you what the civil war was like. A young boy named Charley at the age of fifteen joined the first Minnesota Volunteers to fight in the civil war. Charley did not think that war would be a bad think. The first and second mounths that Charley was in the millatary it was just sitting in a camp in Minnesota. When the regiment started the march to the train Charley would never be the same after that. He found out how war really was. I am fifteen, i cou...more
Apr 22, 2013
Zakary Shelburne
added it
Soldiers Heart Review
Soldiers heart is about a boy named Charley Goddard who goes into the union army as a minor. His fellow soldiers don't know that he's sixteen. He goes into the civil war and sees his fellow men and his colonel go down in the worst way possible. Later in the story his rifle gets blown up and so he gets one from a dead confederate soldier. He also picks up a .36 caliber revolver because everyone back home wants one. Lastly he thinks about committing suicide with the gun but h...more
Soldiers heart is about a boy named Charley Goddard who goes into the union army as a minor. His fellow soldiers don't know that he's sixteen. He goes into the civil war and sees his fellow men and his colonel go down in the worst way possible. Later in the story his rifle gets blown up and so he gets one from a dead confederate soldier. He also picks up a .36 caliber revolver because everyone back home wants one. Lastly he thinks about committing suicide with the gun but h...more
I'll be teaching a bit of literature next year and this is one of the books that the 7th graders read. I love the way that Gary Paulsen writes, and have read many of his books. This is the first historical fiction that I have read of his. It was a quick read and, with few exceptions, not overly graphic. It is about a boy who enlists in the Civil War and lies about his age to get in. He quickly learns that war is not what he expected it to be. It is historical from the standpoint that the main c...more
Jul 11, 2011
Nora
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
4th - 8th grades
Shelves:
older-elementary
This is a good Civil War book for 4th-8th grade students because it's short, relatively easy to understand (although the topic is not easy), and is about a 15 yr. old northern soldier that my Chicago students can relate to.
My favorite part is the introduction, where Gary Paulsen explains the title. Throughout history, we have ways to describe war's effect on soldiers. What we now call "PTSD," during WWI was called "Shell Shock" and after the Civil War was called "Soldier's Heart." It's worth re...more
My favorite part is the introduction, where Gary Paulsen explains the title. Throughout history, we have ways to describe war's effect on soldiers. What we now call "PTSD," during WWI was called "Shell Shock" and after the Civil War was called "Soldier's Heart." It's worth re...more
For me, this book is unforgettable. Not because it was so amazing, but rather because I will alawys remember it, in my opinion, as the worst book I've ever read. I've always loved a good historical fiction book with some war battles in it, but this book totally didn't please me. The characters got killed off before I even got a chance to get to know them. I get into books when I feel a connection to the characters, but there was almost no substance to them. The main character was bland and forge...more
Jan 06, 2009
Alysha Speer
rated it
2 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
junior high students
Recommended to Alysha by:
my English teacher, Mr. Smith
Shelves:
historicaladventures,
sad
This book was kind of cheesy, I thought. It was a great book for teens to read about the Civil War, reading all about the bodies, the shock, and other things. It was in third person, which is not my favorite, but I will still read. The boy sneaks into the Army, not knowing what was coming for him. He survives several brutal battles.
Charlie comes home from the war...but he just can't stand life. He won't kill himself, not yet, but it's just so hard for him. He lives in a house far away from town...more
Charlie comes home from the war...but he just can't stand life. He won't kill himself, not yet, but it's just so hard for him. He lives in a house far away from town...more
1 like · like · see review
May 24, 2012
Jadon Riggs
added it
the book soldiers heart,is the first hand story of how a teenage boy joins his local unit to fight in the civil war. he has many struggles along his journey but also he meets many believable characters that help him along the way. the book seems authentic because of the large authors note. in the begining of the book he is unsure and scared but soon he meets a good friend, but sadly he soon dies. some themes in this book are friendship and war. i think that this was a good book and i would recom...more
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Although he was never a dedicated student, Paulsen developed a passion for reading at an early age. After a librarian gave him a book to read--along with his own library card--he was hooked. He began spending hours alone in the basement of his apartment building, reading one book after another.
Running away from home at the age of 14 and traveling with a carnival, Paulsen acquired a taste for adve...more
More about Gary Paulsen...
Running away from home at the age of 14 and traveling with a carnival, Paulsen acquired a taste for adve...more
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