Secret Soldiers, Keely Hutton
Secret Soldiers, Keely Hutton
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Secret Soldiers
A Novel of World War I

Author: Keely Hutton

Narrator: Raphael Corkhill

Unabridged: 6 hr 58 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 06/11/2019

Synopsis

Over a quarter million underage British boys fought on the Allied front lines of the Great War, but not all of them fought on the battlefield—some fought beneath it, as revealed in this middle-grade historical adventure about a deadly underground mission.

Secret Soldiers follows the journey of Thomas, a thirteen-year-old coal miner, who lies about his age to join the Claykickers, a specialized crew of soldiers known as “tunnelers,” in hopes of finding his missing older brother. Thomas works in the tunnels of the Western Front alongside three other soldier boys whose constant bickering and inexperience in mining may prove more lethal than the enemy digging toward them. But as they burrow deeper beneath the battlefield, the boys discover the men they hope to become and forge a bond of brotherhood.

Secret Soldiers is another stunning story of strength, perseverance, and love from Keely Hutton.

About Keely Hutton

Keely Hutton is a children’s book author and former English teacher. She worked closely with Ricky Richard Anywar to tell his story in her debut novel, Soldier Boy, which Booklist named one of the top ten first novels of the year and one of the top ten historical novels for youth the following year. Her second novel, Secret Soldiers, was a Bank Street Best Children’s Book of the Year and a Children’s Book Council Notable Social Studies Book for Young People. She is also the co-author of Achut Deng’s coming-of-age memoir Don’t Look Back, which recounts Deng’s journey from South Sudan to America. Keely lives in Rochester, New York, with her husband, two sons, and adorable dog, Maximus.

About Raphael Corkhill

Raphael Corkhill is an award-winning stage, screen and voice actor. Born and raised in the UK, Raphael graduated from Princeton University then gained his MFA in acting from the University of Southern California. Raphael’s film and television credits include the Warner Bros. feature The Goldfinch, independent TV pilot Manny, and Burning at Both Ends alongside Cary Elwes. His extensive voice credits include billion-dollar video game franchises: Uncharted 4 (BAFTA “Best Game” winner), The Elder Scrolls Online and Titanfall 2, as well as the recent blockbuster ESO: Morrowind. Raphael has narrated numerous titles for Macmillan including The Fallon Trilogy and his audiobook performances have been described by Publisher’s Weekly as “terrific.”

Reviews

Goodreads review by Minglu

Whoa. So I finally got a copy and I sped through it in two days. Two days! I'm busy and it's quite rare that I'll finish a book in two days. First, the soldiers of WWI, and The Great War in general, do not get enough attention. I can only imagine how scary it was to be ordered to go over the top. Seco......more

Goodreads review by Elissa

This is a fantastic work of historical fiction for young readers. This novel tells the story of the underage British boys who served on (and under) the front lines during WWI. It features outstanding characters and gives an honest, well researched, account of the war, appropriate for 6th grade and u......more

Goodreads review by Barbara

Just as riveting in its own way as the author's earlier Soldier Boy about boy soldiers in Uganda, this middle grade novel highlights a little-known aspect of WWI. Unlike some other readers, I have read a couple of other books and poems about the clay kickers, soldiers whose job was to excavate tunne......more

Goodreads review by Kathleen

When I finished reading SECRET SOLDIERS, good thing I had some tissues near by. Keely Hutton beautifully wove distinct, engaging stories of the boys in the trenches with what is an impressive amount of research. The writing is beautiful. The relationships among the boys develop organically, and the......more

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