Charlie Wilcox by Sharon E. McKay Date of Publication: 2000 ISBN: 0143014706 Number of Pages: 240

REQUIRED READING ABILITY: Average
GENRES: Historical Fiction, Adventure
THEMES: : Survival, Life versus Death, Friendship, Coming of Age

SUMMARY:
The story begins in a fishing village in Newfoundland. Charlie is born with a clubfoot but wants to be a fisherman like the rest of his family. His parents want him to go to University. With the help of some so-called “friends,” Charlie stows away on a sealing ship, only to discover that he is on a military ship bound for France.

He finds a regiment of Newfoundlanders, and since he is too young to enlist, arrangements are made for him to be shipped home. In the meantime, he becomes a medic (stretcher-bearer) in the trenches of Somme. He also searches for Lily Mackenzie, A.K.A. “Mac,” the nurse who looked after him while he was in the hospital for his clubfoot in St. John's, Newfoundland.

WHO WOULD LOVE THIS BOOK? A kid who...

• thinks war is exciting and full of adventure
• has East Coast roots
• has parental issues
• is obsessed with World War I, or war in general
• likes historical fiction
• is interested in Canadian history
  

WHAT ELSE?
This book was nominated for a number of awards, including the Geoffry Bilson Award, the Violet Downey Book Award, and the Governor General’s Medal, and it won three. It is especially popular with boys, though some girls will like it too. It has a sequel entitled Charlie Wilcox’s Great War, which deals with Charlie’s adjustments upon returning home, as well as further details of his war adventures.

Students with some form of physical deformity may commiserate with Charlie’s clubfoot and his inability to do what he wants because of it.

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