Forward, March

At a country house near New Orleans, Ridge Norris spends his morning arranging roses while his family worries about his future. He has returned from a banking position he abandoned, and his father now faces serious financial losses. News of the Maine's destruction in Havana Harbor abruptly changes Ridge's plans: he announces that he will enlist when the call comes. Kirk Munroe begins this historical adventure for younger readers with a clash between personal pride and the need to accept responsibility.

In the Cuban campaign, a meal of roasted yams brings Ridge and Lieutenant Navarro into a conversation about loyalty. The Spanish officer's family connections in New Mexico give the two men common ground, and Ridge proposes an arrangement involving military messages and a Spanish uniform. Their exchange gives personal shape to the divisions of the Spanish-American War. Readers can follow a story of military danger, uncertain trust and friendship across opposing sides.