THE SOLDIER

by Richard Powell ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 11, 1960

This is as different from Pioneer Go Home as that was from The Philadelphian quite evidently Mr. Powell is not going to allow himself to be pigeonholed. It starts out like many another story of an officer, downgraded- particularly in his own mind-and shunted into a backwater, an island in the South Pacific, where nothing ever happens. The General is a Cavalry officer- and not much is expected of him. Inadequate forces, inadequate support and equipment- for anything but a holding operation, are assigned him. And to make it more difficult, Farralon finds that his CO in G2 is Baylor, who blames Farralon for breaking him in a small matter of army games in Louisiana. But something arouses Farralon's latent drive- the mistreatment of a group of WAC's who had come down with him. And from then on the pattern changes and it turns into what might have happened at one point or another in the South Pacific, while the Japs still had it more or less their own way. While the minutiae of army details of tactics and manoeuvres slows down the action for the average layman, there is enough human interest in the inter-personnel conflicts to hold the interest. A thin thread of romance -- while not wholly convincing- adds another dimension. Powell's occasional flashes of humor come through in characterization and dialogue more than in incident.

Pub Date: Nov. 11, 1960

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Scribner

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1960

Categories: FICTION