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Harold Keith
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Rifles for Watie Paperback – September 25, 1987

by Harold Keith (Author)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 607 ratings
See all formats and editions
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Winner of the Newbery Medal * An ALA Notable Children’s Book * Winner of the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award

A captivating and richly detailed novel about one young soldier who saw the Civil War from both sides and lived to tell the tale.

Earnest, plain-spoken sixteen-year-old Jeff Bussey has finally gotten his father’s consent to join the Union volunteers. It’s 1861 in Linn County, Kansas, and Jeff is eager to fight for the North before the war is over, which he’s sure will be soon.

But weeks turn to months, the marches through fields and woods prove endless, hunger and exhaustion seem to take up permanent residence in Jeff’s bones, and he learns what it really means to fight in battle—and to lose friends. When he finds himself among enemy troops, he’ll have to put his life on the line to advance the Union cause.

Thoroughly researched and based on firsthand accounts, Rifles for Watie “should hold a place with the best Civil War fiction for young people” (The Horn Book).

A strong choice for independent reading and for sharing in a classroom and for homeschooling. As a homeschool cooperative teacher commented: "The book has launched many discussions in our class. When a person is on one side of a conflict, it is important to remember that people on the other side are also people. Jeff is a perfect model for how treating people with respect can happen even in war." 

Previous page
  1. Print length
    352 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    HarperTeen
  4. Publication date
    September 25, 1987
  5. Grade level
    8 - 12
  6. Dimensions
    4.19 x 0.7 x 7 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    9780064470308
  8. ISBN-13
    978-0064470308
  9. Lexile measure
    910L
  10. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"This full-length junior novel should hold a place with the best Civil War fiction for young people. The fighting takes place in the West. A young farm boy joins the Union forces, becomes a scout, and thus temporarily part of Stand Watie's Cherokee Rebels. There is suspense in the telling and many a colorful character." — Horn Book Magazine

"Stirring, original and always credible, this is distinctly superior." — Kirkus Reviews

From the Back Cover

Jeff Bussey walked briskly up the rutted wagon road toward Fort Leavenworth on his way to join the Union volunteers. It was 1861 in Linn County, Kansas, and Jeff was elated at the prospect of fighting for the North at last.

In the Indian country south of Kansas there was dread in the air; and the name, Stand Watie, was on every tongue. A hero to the rebel, a devil to the Union man, Stand Watie led the Cherokee Indian Na-tion fearlessly and successfully on savage raids behind the Union lines. Jeff came to know the Watie men only too well.

He was probably the only soldier in the West to see the Civil War from both sides and live to tell about it. Amid the roar of cannon and the swish of flying grape, Jeff learned what it meant to fight in battle. He learned how it felt never to have enough to eat, to forage for his food or starve. He saw the green fields of Kansas and Okla-homa laid waste by Watie's raiding parties, homes gutted, precious corn deliberately uprooted. He marched endlessly across parched, hot land, through mud and slash-ing rain, always hungry, always dirty and dog-tired.

And, Jeff, plain-spoken and honest, made friends and enemies. The friends were strong men like Noah Babbitt, the itinerant printer who once walked from Topeka to Galveston to see the magnolias in bloom; boys like Jimmy Lear, too young to carry a gun but old enough to give up his life at Cane Hill; ugly, big-eared Heifer, who made the best sourdough biscuits in the Choctaw country; and beautiful Lucy Washbourne, rebel to the marrow and proud of it. The enemies were men of an-other breed - hard-bitten Captain Clardy for one, a cruel officer with hatred for Jeff in his eyes and a dark secret on his soul.

This is a rich and sweeping novel-rich in its panorama of history; in its details so clear that the reader never doubts for a moment that he is there; in its dozens of different people, each one fully realized and wholly recognizable. It is a story of a lesser -- known part of the Civil War, the Western campaign, a part different in its issues and its problems, and fought with a different savagery. Inexorably it moves to a dramat-ic climax, evoking a brilliant picture of a war and the men of both sides who fought in it.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ 006447030X
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ HarperTeen (September 25, 1987)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 352 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780064470308
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0064470308
  • Lexile measure ‏ : ‎ 910L
  • Grade level ‏ : ‎ 8 - 12
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 6.4 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 4.19 x 0.7 x 7 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 607 ratings

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Harold Keith

Harold Keith

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Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
607 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Mark Williams
5.0 out of 5 stars A Civil War Great
Reviewed in the United States on October 16, 2018
Verified Purchase
Jeff Bussey walked up the road towards Fort Leavenworth, on his way to join the Union army volunteers. The year was 1861, in Linn County, Kansas, and Jeff was excited at the prospect of fighting for the North, finally. Rifles for Watie is a historical fiction book written by Harold Keith. The book is about Jeff Bussey and his struggles in fighting in the war while also seeing both sides of it.

In the country south of Kansas there was dread in the air; and the name, Stand Watie, was on every single person in the war's tongue. An angel to the Rebel man, Satan to the Union man, Stand Watie led the Cherokee Indian Nation fearlessly and successfully on brutal raids behind the Union's backs. Jeff came to know the Watie men well, too well.

Jeff was the only soldier in the West to see the Civil War from both sides and live to tell the tale. Amongst the boom of cannon fire, Jeff learns what it means to fight in battle. He learns how it feels never to have enough to eat, to have to search for his food or starve. Jeff saw the green fields of Kansas and Oklahoma laying wasted by Stand Watie's raids; delicious corn purposefully pulled from the ground. Jeff marched endlessly across the hot land, through mud and pouring rain, always hungry, dirty and tired.

People who are looking for a delightful historical book to read for leisure or in a classroom are the perfect people for this novel.

The novel is a rich and sweeping. The beauty is in its panorama of history; in its details so easy to see for the reader to never doubt for a moment that he is there; in its dozens upon dozens of new and exciting people, each one easily recognizable. The story is of a lesser known part of the Civil War, which is the Western campaign, a part that is different in its issues and its problems, and fought with a different type of mentality. The book moves to an unexpected climax, causing a picture of a war that stays in the mind and the men of both sides who fought in it, which makes it worthwhile and a memorable read.
Rating: 4.5/5 Stars
6 people found this helpful
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Martha
5.0 out of 5 stars Great historical fiction
Reviewed in the United States on February 24, 2024
Verified Purchase
Captivating story about north and south.
Learned a lot of history reading this book that is situated in MO/KS/OK/TX
Those who don’t know history are doomed to repeat it.
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Harry Sanders
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book
Reviewed in the United States on October 21, 2023
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Bought for school library but read as a child. Solid story, well written. Represents a period of history often overlooked. Has complex characters and moral decisions that make it an interesting read.
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Clive Collins
4.0 out of 5 stars Fine YA American Civil War Adventure
Reviewed in the United States on September 19, 2017
Verified Purchase
A somewhat slow start that might deter some younger readers, but once the central character experiences battle for the first time the pace of the narrative is admirably managed and there are moments of real tension and suspense. This novel does not glorify military action in any way, nor does it laud one side over the other in its depiction of a complex political episode in American history. While the presentation of the African American characters, both in appearance and dialogue, is very much of its time, that of the Native Americans is entirely convincing.

Altogether, this seems to be a worthwhile, thought-provoking read for those in their early teenage years.
8 people found this helpful
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Mystery Guru
5.0 out of 5 stars A terrific read based on the early days of the U.S. Civil War.
Reviewed in the United States on January 14, 2023
Verified Purchase
When I was a 6th Grader I read this book for the first time. Rifles for Watie was a Newbery Medal Award winning book for young adults. The reading of this book has stuck with me all of these years. I am now 73 and I am reading it again. The story holds up no matter how old you are. I read many books during my youth and I have continued to love reading. This book is the most memorable of any book I have ever read. I became a high school history teacher so reading was a given I guess.
If you are looking for a very good historical fiction book I highly recommend Rifles for Watie. It is available in paperback.
3 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars This book changed my life.
Reviewed in the United States on August 10, 2023
Verified Purchase
I read this first in early junior high school and it was largely responsible for directing me towards a love of both history and historical fiction. 33 years of teaching history later and I still look back on this book with fond memories.
The other two books that impacted me were The Boy in the Alamo by Margaret Cousins and Burma Rifles by Frank Bonham.
You or your kids may start down that same magical path.
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Princess_of_the_Ink
5.0 out of 5 stars Good book worth the read 📚
Reviewed in the United States on July 20, 2023
Verified Purchase
Not my usual book, but read it in Jr.High for my AR Program. Since then I have read it a handful of times and still enjoy it after all these years.
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Badazz
5.0 out of 5 stars A Top Notch Book about the Western Theater of the Civil War
Reviewed in the United States on May 1, 2013
Verified Purchase
Rifles for Watie is a book about the Civil War that is written for school age readers. Despite the intended audience, this book is every bit as interesting for an adult reader.

The author, Harold Keith interviewed, many Civil War veterans living in Oklahoma and found that he had enough information to write a historical novel. As a result, his battle stories pack in the absurd incidents of war intermixed with its horror. In one case, a new recruit rides into battle wearing his wedding suit-he'd joined right after his marriage. The groom is killed in the suit in that same battle.

Oklahoma (then called Indian Territory) and Missouri was packed with adherents of both sides of the war. Consequently the war is very cruel and personal. Keith takes this fact in full. The reader very much gets the cruelty of the war in the descriptive passages.

In researching the book, Keith was able to meet with veterans of both sides. To get that info out-to tell the whole tale of the Missouri/Oklahoma theater of war-Keith uses an interesting literary tactic. He tells the tale through the eyes of Jeff Bussey, a cornpone eating teenage Kansas Pioneer who joins up for the Union. Bussey then becomes a spy, serving in the Confederate Army with the purpose of keeping an eye out for a shipment of rifles for Confederate General Stand Watie and his men.
10 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Nathan Schmidt
5.0 out of 5 stars As advertised
Reviewed in Canada on January 9, 2022
Verified Purchase
Arrived in good condition as advertised.
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Ghostgrey51
5.0 out of 5 stars Timeless! (and I should know)
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 3, 2004
Verified Purchase
At the age of 14 in 1965 I came across this book in my local library and was instantly captivated. The narrative challenged me to confront the confusions and divided loyalties of a civil war; the biggest threat to the hero, Jeff, was often his scheming captain, some of his strongest relationships were with the apparent foe,that war was often dirty and deaths were not always instant and caused by a single convenient bullet. In those far off days works that treated war in such a way were rare for the average adolescent reader. From that time on I would bemuse friends and relatives about this book, which I eventually consigned to history, assuming it out of print.
Then last year through the wonders of on-line bookstores I found to my joy that Rifles for Watie was still in print, naturally I babbled this to my patient spouse and much to my delight I was given a copy for my 53rd birthday.
What a joy to read again and discover that this book has lost none of its magic and to have the impressions of long ago reawakened. The tale of a youth's coming of age in a turbulent time while still retaining his own convictions and morality is an enthralling as ever. Now I am able to appreciate even more the minor characters that move in and out of the narrative with a rationale that does not jar while enriching the tale with their own stories.
I can forgive and overlook the minor military inconsistencies if only because the author set the work in an often overlooked theatre of the American Civil War, and because many of the events are based upon the experiences of survivors that he interviewed in the 1940s.
I recommend this to readers of all ages both American and British, even if you have had no previous interest in the American Civil War, this is simply a very good story. (Yes I know I am still babbling about this book; it's that good!)
5 people found this helpful
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