In THE BUFFALO SOLDIER, the homogeneity of a small Vermont
village is disrupted when Laura and Terry Sheldon take in Alfred, a
10-year-old African American foster child. Two years prior to
Alfred's arrival, the Sheldons suffered the greatest loss
imaginable to parents: their twin daughters Hillary and Megan
drowned in a furious flood, the likes of which hadn't been seen in
Vermont since 1927. Alfred, a boy who has known too many homes and
too little hope, offers a means to either ease their grieving or
drive an insurmountable wedge between the Sheldons.

SOLDIER is more than just the Sheldons' story. It is an ensemble
cast, a story told in many voices. One set of voices belongs to
their neighbors, the Heberts, an elderly retired couple who take a
shining to Alfred, teach him how to ride a horse and introduce him
to the history of the Buffalo Soldiers --- a war cavalry of
extraordinarily brave black soldiers. Alfred blossoms under their
tutelage and Laura's attentive care. He begins to feel, for the
first time in his life, a true sense of direction, purpose, and
belonging. Facing their own mortality, the Heberts --- Paul in
particular --- find rejuvenation in their encounters with
Alfred.

Another character reminds us that parents experiencing the loss of
a child often don't recover. Phoebe is the single woman Terry
Sheldon turns to in his grief. Both grapple with the morality of
their affair, while developing strength in each other's company.
Phoebe, too, seeks a home, a place --- and she finds it, if only
briefly, with Terry.

Like MIDWIVES, TRANS-SISTER RADIO, and THE LAW OF SIMILARS before
it, SOLDIER gives us everyday folks --- our neighbors, our friends,
our families --- under extreme pressures, living their lives in a
part of the world that has become trademark Bohjalian. The stories
of the six main characters unfold subtly and with great grace in
the writing. The voices are distinct and given equal time. Clearly
the author felt each has something of importance to say.

Bohjalian has tackled a number of varied topics and issues in the
past, from homeopathic medicine to midwifery to sexual orientation.
A reader could mistake SOLDIER for a novel "about" the trials and
tribulations of foster care, but that would be a mistake. A more
universal theme is at play here: family life. Whether it's the
traditional mom and pop with 2.5 kids, or the grandparents in their
60s saddled with raising their own grandchildren, or two gay men
who have adopted three HIV positive orphans, each encounters the
same family issues and dynamics. And this, it seems, is what
Bohjalian wants us to glean from the experiences and interactions
of the communal family he has created in Cornish, Vermont. No
matter what the structure, the family unit deals with pain,
heartache, choices, responsibility, hopes, and love. And
Bohjalian's SOLDIER family does so with ultimate dignity.