The Boy Who Became Buffalo Bill: Growing Up Billy Cody in Bleeding Kansas

by Andrea Warren

Overview

The greatest entertainer of his era, Buffalo Bill was the founder and star of the legendary show that featured cowboys, Indians, trick riding, and sharpshooters.

But long before stardom, Buffalo Bill—born Billy Cody—had to grow up fast. While homesteading in Kansas just before the Civil War, his family was caught up in the conflict with neighboring Missouri over whether Kansas would enter the Union as a free or slave state.

To support his family after a pro-slaver killed his father, Billy—then eleven—herded cattle, worked on wagon trains, and rode the Pony Express. As the violence in Bleeding Kansas escalated, he joined the infamous Jayhawkers, seeking revenge on Missouri­ans, and then became a soldier, scout, and spy in the Civil War—all by age seventeen.

Award-winning author Andrea Warren brings to life the compelling childhood of an adventurous, determined boy who transformed himself into a true American icon.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781477827185
Publisher:	Amazon Publishing
Publication date:	11/03/2015
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	7.50(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.90(d)
Lexile:	1070L (what's this?)
Age Range:	9 - 14 Years

About the Author

Andrea Warren combines her love of history and storytelling with her passion for children and education in her award-winning nonfiction books for young readers. Her many honors include the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award for Nonfiction, the Robert F. Sibert Medal for most distinguished informational book for children, the Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children, and the William Allen White Award. Reviewers and readers have called her books “riveting,” “meticulously researched,” and a “topflight example of historical storytelling.”

Andrea Warren has lived in Kansas, the setting for much of this book, for many years, and she now makes her home in the Kansas City area. For more information about her books, please visit www.AndreaWarren.com.

Editorial Reviews

09/21/2015
Warren (We Rode the Orphan Trains) provides an enjoyable if overly laudatory look at the life of Buffalo Bill Cody (1846–1917), founder and center of the internationally famous Wild West Show that entertained the crowned heads of Europe with sharpshooters, trick riding, and Western outfits. The focus is on Cody’s childhood in Kansas Territory, then known as Bleeding Kansas due to the violence that accompanied the question of whether it would enter the U.S. as a slave state or a free one. Cody’s father died of complications of a wound dealt him by a supporter of slavery, and Cody grew up in an atmosphere of guerilla warfare. His work with the Pony Express and as a spy for the Union Army lends suspense and drama to an already fascinating narrative. Unfortunately, Cody’s personal flaws are glossed over (such as the way his wild behavior strained his marriage or his belief in the concept of manifest destiny), which renders the overall account of his character somewhat less believable, but it’s a fairly minor failing in an otherwise gripping and intelligent read. Ages 10–up. Agent: Regina Ryan, Regina Ryan Publishing Enterprises. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly

Gripping and intelligent read.” —Publishers Weekly

“Providing contextualizing information along the way, Warren chronicles all these colorful adventures in lively prose...Well-researched, engagingly written.” —Kirkus Reviews

“When Warren discusses topics such as the adult Cody’s shooting buffalo and using Indians in his Wild West show, she places them within the context of his times, making the portrayal of Cody overwhelmingly positive. A vivid starting point for a study of ‘Bleeding Kansas.’” —Booklist

From the Publisher

10/01/2015
Gr 5–8—This biography of Buffalo Bill Cody covers the showman, scout, and hunter's life from birth to his fame as an entertainer. When Cody was seven, he and his family moved from Iowa to Kansas. He and his siblings were introduced to slavery, to which the family was opposed. By the time Cody was 12, he knew how to camp, lasso and ride wild horses, drive teams of oxen, and how to handle firearms. He also developed a deep appreciation for the clothing, music, dances, games, and martial skills of the Native American tribes. Cody saw the immense value of their sign language. From friends and relatives, he also learned the impact of a dramatic entrance or gesture. Pre-Civil War violence engulfed the Cody family, and Warren keeps readers engrossed as she describes the deadly mayhem that the newspapers labeled "Bloody Kansas." When Cody enlisted in the Union Army a week before his 18th birthday, his talents made him perfect for his role as a scout and spy. He would go on to found the traveling extravaganza Buffalo Bill's Wild West and Congress of Rough Riders of the World. Copious illustrations and photographs and thorough back matter further enhance this exciting biography. VERDICT This unputdownable adventure reveals the human side of Buffalo Bill. A solid addition to biography collections.—Sharon M. Lawler, formerly of Randolph Elementary, Randolph AFB, TX

School Library Journal

2015-08-31
Warren explores how the man who became the most famous entertainer of his time and a legend of the "Wild West" grew up amid a violent regional conflict that would soon tear apart the nation. William Cody was 8 when his family moved to the Kansas Territory in 1854, soon to be plunged into a bloody conflict between anti-slavery and pro-slavery factions. When his father died from complications of a savage attack after delivering an abolitionist speech, 11-year-old Billy supported his family herding cattle, working on wagon trains, and riding for the Pony Express. Seeking revenge, he joined the Jayhawkers, guerrilla irregulars fighting pro-slavery militant groups. He enlisted in the Union Army during the Civil War and later worked as a scout during the Indian Wars. Providing contextualizing information along the way, Warren chronicles all these colorful adventures in lively prose but, perhaps due to her focus on his early years, gives short shrift to Cody's contradictions. He earned his nickname for single-handedly slaughtering thousands of bison yet feared their extinction and spoke out against hide-hunting; that selfsame slaughter was part of a U.S. government campaign to destroy Plains Indian culture, yet Cody hated how the Indians were treated—both of these are largely unexplored. The volume is liberally illustrated with archival material, and extensive backmatter supplements the narrative. A well-researched, engagingly written, though incomplete portrait of a fascinating, complex figure. (notes, bibliography, index) (Biography. 10-14)

Kirkus Reviews