It is 1870 and Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd travels through northern Texas, giving live readings to paying audiences hungry for news of the world. An elderly widower who has lived through three wars and fought in two of them, the captain enjoys his rootless, solitary existence.
In Wichita Falls, he is offered a $50 gold piece to deliver a young orphan to her relatives in San Antonio. Four years earlier, a band of Kiowa raiders killed Johanna’s parents and sister; sparing the little girl, they raised her as one of their own. Recently rescued by the U.S. army, the ten-year-old has once again been torn away from the only home she knows.
Their 400-mile journey south through unsettled territory and unforgiving terrain proves difficult and at times dangerous. Johanna has forgotten the English language, tries to escape at every opportunity, throws away her shoes, and refuses to act “civilised.” Yet as the miles pass, the two lonely survivors tentatively begin to trust each other, forging a bond that marks the difference between life and death in this treacherous land.
Arriving in San Antonio, the reunion is neither happy nor welcome. The captain must hand Johanna over to an aunt and uncle she does not remember—strangers who regard her as an unwanted burden. A respectable man, Captain Kidd is faced with a terrible choice: abandon the girl to her fate or become—in the eyes of the law—a kidnapper himself.
Exquisitely rendered and morally complex, News of the World is a brilliant work of historical fiction that explores the boundaries of family, responsibility, honour, and trust.
My Thoughts:
This book was a step outside my comfort zone. I don't read a lot of historical fiction and certainly don't think I have ever read what could be described as a western. This book was a delight and welcome change of pace and direction for my reading. It was memorable and explores some wonderful themes.
It is 1870 and Captain Kidd has been tasked with returning Johanna to her family members. Johanna is an orphan and her parents have been killed. Johanna doesn't speak English and so at the beginning of the journey communication is difficult. As time goes by the pair form a bond that was wonderful to read about. Captain Kidd is patient and kind and Johanna starts remembering and learning she begins to look up to her kep-dun.
The journey is a long one, and Captain Kidd makes his money by reading the Newspapers aloud in town to town. The written word and language here is wonderfully portrayed. The thirst for knowledge and information evident in every place they passed through.
When returning Johanna the family members seem less than welcoming, seeing Johanna as another pair of hands to work and even though she is ten years old they have intentions for her to do just that. Captain Kidd is loathe to leave Johanna there although if he doesn't leave her, he would effectively become a kidnapper too.
This book is rich and vibrant. Although set in a completely different lifetime and place it was easy to imagine being there. I adored the bond between Captain Kidd and Johanna. Opposite ends of the spectrum but it is clear to see that they both were seeking freedom, trust and acceptance. Captain Kidd for his nomadic lifestyle and Johanna from the constraints of what everybody expected for her.
An untimately uplifting and rewarding tale of morality and doing the right thing even though that might bring questions and also about finally being free.
I cannot wait to watch the film now. I adore Tom Hanks.
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