Book cover of Soldier Boy

Book description

This gripping historical novel set during the final years of the Indian Wars explores army life in the American West as it details one boy’s struggle to become a man.

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

1 author picked Soldier Boy as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

I bought this book in Chicago and read all 151 pages on a flight back to Dallas. Soldier Boy is a young adult fiction book that grabbed me from the first-page description of a bare-knuckle fight between the teenage protagonist, Johnny “the Kid” McBane, and an unnamed palooka in a gritty Chicago gambling house. McBane joins the Army to escape some hoodlums, and the story never lets up as it takes him to the frontier and eventually the Little Bighorn. I’ve many read many fictionalized accounts of the Little Bighorn. This is the best. Soldier Boy is a great read…

If you love Soldier Boy...

Book cover of December on 5C4

December on 5C4 by Adam Strassberg,

Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!

On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…

Want books like Soldier Boy?

Our community of 13,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like Soldier Boy.

Browse books like Soldier Boy

Book cover of A Terrible Glory: Custer and the Little Bighorn - The Last Great Battle of the American West
Book cover of Crazy Horse and Custer: The Parallel Lives of Two American Warriors
Book cover of Custer's Trials: A Life on the Frontier of a New America

Share your top 3 reads of 2026!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

186

readers submitted
so far, will you?

📚 If you like Soldier Boy, you might also like...

Book cover of Child of Vanris

Child of Vanris by Nikki McCormack,

At five years old, Kasiel was found with the pointed ends of his ears cut off. Despite that brutal start, he’s lived twelve peaceful years with the man who took him in. Keeping his hair long over his mutilated ears helps him hide the fact that he is Vanrian, a…

Book cover of Almost Home

Almost Home by Howard Means,

Almost Home is a fictional retelling of the last great tragedy of the Civil War.

In late April 1865, almost 2,000 newly freed Union prisoners of war are packed onto the steamer Sultana, in poor repair and with a listed capacity of 376 passengers. Among them are four Indiana soldiers…

5 book lists we think you will like!