NEWS OF THE WORLD | PAULETTE JILES | 2016

Superb storytelling. Beautifully written. Totally enjoyable.

This is the story of elderly retired US Army Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd after the Civil War, and a journey he takes with a ten year old German girl rescued from Kiowa Indians. In the 1870s, he travels through Texas conducting public readings from newspapers in small towns that don’t have ready access to news of the world. He carefully selects the news to suit the town and is popular and respected. He is asked to return Johanna to her distant relations four hundred miles away: a long and arduous journey. She and her parents had been abducted by the Kiowa four years earlier and only she survived. This is the story of the journey and their growing trust and friendship.

The author has created two likeable and memorable characters who forge a wonderful relationship from nothing. No shared language, his only understanding is that of a father of two grown daughters. Johanna’s only memories are of her Kiowa family, her tribe and their customs. The author’s note explains that many children who lived with Indians, even for a short period of time, never re-settled into their lives upon rescue — as the Captain says: it is chilling how their minds change so completely.

In an era where we are inundated with news and information it’s hard to imagine not knowing what’s going on in our country or the world. Or having to wait months to ascertain who actually won an election. Lives were simpler, unpredictable, rugged, dangerous. In one of the towns in this book there is no law enforcement, might is right, lives teeter on the edge of peril. The imagery in this book is redolent with cottonwood trees, rushing creeks and wide open spaces that cocoon the lives of the two characters. They face numerous life-threatening hazards, which only make their safety and survival more crucial for the reader. Captain Kidd is the ultimate good guy: wise, kind, brave, educated. Does he return Johanna to an unknown family or face being a kidnapper himself?

It did take me a while to get into this book due to the lack of some punctuation, but once I got into the rhythm of the narrative I couldn’t put it down. This is a book that celebrates the best in historical fiction and has one of the greatest endings I’ve ever read.

Note: I wish I didn’t know that this book is now a movie with Tom Hanks in the lead. I kept seeing his face and hearing his voice but it didn’t distract from the exquisite story.