Reader Review: “News of the World”

by Tonyia Robinson: Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd is a veteran of 2 wars, now he makes his living traveling the small towns of the North Texas Territory reading the news of the world from the nations leading newspapers. He charges a dime a head, and the people flock to hear anything about the world outside their small communities. But then he is given the task, for a 50 dollar gold piece, to deliver a young girl to her relatives in San Antonio. A white girl, Susana, captured by the Kiowa Indians after they massacred her parents; she was 6 years old. Now at age 10, after having been rescued by the Army, she has no memory of her previous life; not family, nor language, culture or childhood behavior.

The author gives us insight and a fair representation of how the Texas (US) was evolving between the conflict of white newcomers/immigrants into this territory, changes for the lifestyle and culture (survival) of the Kiowa Indians after several battles/attacks; displacement to reservations, impact on their culture and lifestyle. Even the arrival of ex-slaves or slaves already residing in the territory learning their new rights after the Civil War, and dealing with many whites not accepting the new laws; Black slaves (Negroes) new freedoms and rights. So many dynamics and changes of the people who now reside in Texas, including the after math and impact of people who lived in the region before/after the Spanish-American war.

Given the results of these changes in the Territory of Texas and the republic, what transpires in this beautifully written novel is the story of the journey of Kidd’s and Suzannas, to her relatives from Germany, The reader experiences the dangers and hardships that Kidd and the girl endures on their journey including the trust, respect, and friendship that they developed along the way. Two characters, so beautifully conceived and developed, and so likable, they make reading this book an absolute pleasure.