Orphan Hero: A Novel of the Civil War
Some people’s lives are more interesting than the most compelling historical novels. Benjamin Franklin Windes led one of them. He was only eight when his stepmother drove him out of his home in Jeffersonville, Indiana. His father has gone west in the 1848 Gold Rush, so B.F. follows. What can a child do to support himself? Get hold of scissors and cut hair. Besides, B.F. already has a hearty nest egg from a partnership in soup sales.
This born entrepreneur works his way across the Oregon Trail down to Sutter’s Mill. He makes a fortune selling haircuts to miners. When the girl he loves dies under tragic circumstances, B.F. heads to the Caribbean. The Civil War is looming, and there’s another fortune to be made in blockade running. After the war ends there is rich Missouri farmland going for cheap and the need for a general store…
Orphan Hero is a ripping good tale, but it’s based on fact. B.F. Windes is the great-grandfather of John Babb, who based his historical novel on his ancestor’s exploits. Mr. Babb is a former U.S. assistant surgeon general, and he brings clarity and knowledge not only to 19th-century medicine but to all of Orphan Hero, adding believable characters and dialogue, and great storytelling along the way. I highly recommend this all-American story.
