Soldier X

By Don Wulffson

Review by Allen

The opening paragraph grabs the reader’s attention.

·Put reader right into the action

·Make reader imagine the unimaginable (ie. It’s not everyday that a 13 year old girl is accused of murder…)

·Don’t start with “the book I read was…” That’s way too BORING! Hook us into the plot!

Imagine that it is the March of 1944. WWII has been raging for 6 years, and the once powerful German Army is in full retreat. Hitler, now scraping the bottom of the barrel, is sending boys as young as 16 to fight the Allies. Erik Brandt, the main character in Don Wulffson’s true story, Soldier X was one of these boys, sent to fight the Soviets on the Eastern Front.

The title and author are worked in naturally

·Don’t say, “My book was The Giver” when you can say, “Jonas, a twelve year old boy and the main character of Lois Lowry’s Newbery Award winning novel The Giver, must make decisions that impact his entire society.”

Erik Brandt was a 16 year old boy, drafted into the HJ, or Hitler Youth, an organization dedicated to training young boys for battle. Now, Hitler has sent all of these boys to battle. After fighting in a lost battle, he realizes that he will be killed no matter what. Erik now takes a Russian uniform and uses his Russian to pass on as what he appears to be, just another Russian soldier. Inside this story are tales of love, loss, and adventure. But those were dangerous times. Will Erik live to see the end of this war?

The overall idea and plot are discussed, without giving away the ending

·Keep it short and sweet, even if it’s a long book

·Just give the reader the gist of the book. Be clear, make sense, don’t give away the ending

One of my favorite parts is the battle in which Erik fights in. in this frenzy of gunfire, explosions, close quarters combat and death. Erik loses most of his friends and realizes that war is even more devastating than he imagined.

Describe one exciting incident in detail

·Again, don’t give away the ending

·Be clear enough so that someone who HAS NOT read the book can follow

This is an extremely good book for history buffs, people who love a good chiller, or a late-night suspense freak. However, this book is highly appropriate for anyone in particular.

End the review with your opinion and recommendation

·Who might like this type of book? (Sports fans? People that love to laugh? History buffs? Late night readers that like to be freaked out?

·What did you think? Is it worth reading? If it won an award, is it worth the hype?