Something that I’ve missed since covid hit is going to the theater to see a movie. I didn’t go often but I did try to hit some of the big movies. Karl is my kid that loves movies and it’s something we always did together.
Karl and I both were super excited when Tom Hanks had a new movie coming out, New of the World. It was totally my kind of movie.
Well then we remembered covid and both of us were sad. We talked several times wondering if maybe we could go to a matinee on an odd day and sneak in and see it when there weren’t many people there but each time decided not to…but as much as we love this style of movie and as much as we love Tom Hanks, we decided not to risk it.
So, when I saw there was a book, I grabbed it right up!
So did I like it…YES! I think I’m going to like the movie even better. The shoot outs and Tom Hanks playing Captain will really be the icing on the cake. If you like westerns at all, you’ll like this. If you just like a story about a man who even in old age, still finds he has something to give, you’ll like this.
Here is what Amazon had to say:
“In the wake of the Civil War, Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd travels through northern Texas, giving live readings from newspapers 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 US Army, the 10-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 “civilized.” Yet as the miles pass, the two lonely survivors tentatively begin to trust each other, forming 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.”
Amazon readers gave the book 4.6 stars. I am going to go with 4.5 stars. It was a little predictable. Still very good.
I’m so excited. In writing this review I was on Amazon and saw that the movie is available for streaming. I am going to talk to Karl and see if we want to rent it! YAHOO!! You can rent the movie HERE.
You can get the book HERE.
I LOVED this book and really looking forward to renting the movie. Tom Hanks will be perfect as Captain Kidd.
Thank you for the review, I have been waiting for this movie to make it to Amazon or Netflix. I never thought to look for the book. I’m so glad you liked it.
I liked the book and would live to see the movie. I found the book really hard to read as all conversation was written as plain text.
We streamed the movie and loved it.
I just finished reading the book and thoroughly enjoyed it. I thought that the predictability of the plot added to it’s charm. I can’t wait to see the movie.
I also liked the book. I have to rerequest the “prequel” to this called ” the Color of Lightning.” I’m not sure about the movie.
My book club read this book several years ago and really enjoyed it. Several people didn’t realize that being returned to their former lives was not always welcomed and that the returnees were not always welcomed either.