Guts for Glory

Starred review from December 1, 2023
Posing as a man, a brave young woman became a Civil War soldier. In 1862, 19-year-old Rosetta Wakeman lived with her family on a farm in upstate New York. Craving excitement, she bound her chest, cut off her braid, dressed in her father's old clothes, practiced speaking with a deeper voice, and adopted a new first name: Lyons. Thus disguised, Rosetta successfully signed on to a coal barge without arousing suspicion. Several days later, the boat reached the town of Canajoharie, where a new regiment--the 153rd New York State Volunteers--was forming to fight for the Union; Lyons enlisted, adding two years to her age. Luckily, the medical exam was superficial, and her secret remained safe. She and the regiment departed for Virginia, where they drilled daily; at night, she wrote letters--excerpts are included--and sent her much-needed army pay home. Eventually, the regiment moved on to Washington, D.C., then Louisiana. The soldiers' lives were filled with peril as they faced the enemy, but Lyons proved handy with a rifle. Backmatter reveals that Rosetta/Lyons Wakeman died of dysentery in New Orleans on June 19, 1864, aged 21. This is a fascinating, well-told, close-up glimpse into women's, military, and Civil War history; Rosetta's story will inspire. The exceptional scratchboard illustrations, with some color digitally added, resemble wood engravings and beautifully capture period details and settings. An excellent work that brings history home for readers and will make them ponder: What might I have done? (glossary, author's note, about the art, more about Rosetta Wakeman and the Civil War, timeline, Rosetta Wakeman's letters, endpaper glossary) (Informational picture book. 8-12)

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January 15, 2024
Lapati presents the fascinating wartime experiences of Rosetta Wakeman (1843–1864), who fought for the Union Army as a man named Lyons. The book begins with Wakeman’s decision to leave home: “She bound her chest, got dressed in her pa’s old clothes, clutched a pair of shears in one hand, took a deep breath... and cut off her braid.” After the subject enlists, her troop eventually ventures to Louisiana, where the story ends with Lyons’s regiment confronting the Confederates. Throughout, excerpts from the soldier’s letters detail Lyons’s experience, culminating in a biography that concludes with Wakeman’s own prayer for safety. Artwork deploys highly detailed scratchboard techniques that resemble woodcut illustrations, providing a gritty dimensionality to the work. Background characters are portrayed with various skin tones. Extensive back matter concludes. Ages 7–12.

January 1, 2024
Grades 1-3 Lapati devotes more attention to detail in her bold scratchboard illustrations than in the sparely written narrative, but there's a strong sense of authenticity here. Readers curious about the experiences of Union soldiers will come away with considerable insight and a unique angle, because the letters Rosetta "Lyons" Wakeman wrote home after disguising herself as a man, enlisting, and seeing action at the Battle of Pleasant Hill are the only ones known that describe such experiences from a woman's point of view. Accompanied by brief quotes (with regularized spelling), images of her handwritten pages are sometimes incorporated as backgrounds into scenes that begin with the short but sturdy Wakeman binding her chest, donning her father's clothes, and stealing away from her New York family farm. Before long, the author cuts off abruptly, relegating to the end matter any mention that she died of dysentery two months after the climactic battle. Lapati finishes with a discussion of the war's course, some other women who fought, and endpapers of a fascinating itemized gallery of a soldier's personal kit.

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Starred review from May 24, 2024

Gr 3-6-As the years of civil war between North and South continued, a young woman named Rosetta Wakeman, bored with the chores at home, carefully cut off her braid, bound her breasts, and went to war as Lyons Wakeman from 1862-1864. She fought at some of the most expansive battles, but two years later, when barely 21, she died of dysentery, which took more lives than war. This is the broad outline of Lapati's remarkable book, which has back matter that in some ways is even more compelling than Wakeman's life. Lapati became a Civil War reenactor to understand better what Wakeman went through, limned thoroughly in an author's note. Her illustration notes are just as helpful, explaining scratchboard artistry and the fine lines, the forgiveness of the medium, and how she brought marching and battle scenes to life. Also included is a time line of events, which in itself is a condensed version of U.S. history at the time. Among all these riches, rendered in sepia tones and full-color that has the patina of archival photographs, children will come away with a real sense of the drudgery of a young woman's life at home, the risks of being on the road in the company of rowdy soldiers (Lyons could dish it out, too), and the poetry, through letters home, Wakeman found in her role. VERDICT Epic is an overused word-most of the time. It barely begins to explain the tremendous work and vision behind this sensational piece of compelling nonfiction that truly is a picture book for young readers and adults.-Ginnie Abbott

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