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y separately published work icon The Lost Thoughts of Soldiers single work   novel   historical fiction  
Issue Details: First known date: 2005... 2005 The Lost Thoughts of Soldiers
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

From the vantage point of 1898, Captain Frederick Benteen recalls his years of service, some two decades past, with General George A. Custer.

Notes

  • Dedication: For Richard, as always - and Simeon.
  • Epigraph: We saw the Zeppelin above us, just ahead, amid a gleaming of clouds: high up, like a bright golden finger, quite small, among a fragile incandescence of clouds. And underneath it were splashes of fire as the shells fired from the earth burst. Then there were flashes near the ground - and the shaking noise. It was like Milton - 'then there was war in heaven'. But it was not angels. It was the small golden Zeppelin, like a long oval world, high up. It seemed as if the cosmic order were gone, as if there had come a new order, a new heaven above us. I cannot get over it, that the moon is not queen of the sky by night...So it is the end - our world is gone, and we are like dust in the air. (D. H. Lawrence)

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

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Works about this Work

When the Past Isn't Past : A Role for Fiction in Australia's History Wars James Ley , 2006 single work criticism
— Appears in: The Times Literary Supplement , 19 May no. 5381 2006; (p. 23) Discusses the extent to which contemporary Australian literature is preoccipied with the past.
How I Designed This Book 2006 single work column
— Appears in: The Age , 20 May 2006; (p. 27)
[Review Essay] The Lost Thoughts of Soldiers Stephanie Bishop , 2006 single work review essay
— Appears in: API Review of Books , January no. 40 2006;
— Review of The Lost Thoughts of Soldiers Delia Falconer , 2005 single work novel

'Eight years in the making, The Lost Thoughts Of Soldiers is Delia Falconers' second novel following her debut The Service Of Clouds (1997). The Lost Thoughts of Soldiers takes place in a single morning of 1898 in Georgia. Here, we follow the memories of Frederick Benteen, a captain in General Custer's seventh cavalry during the Plains Indian Wars, as he reflects on the passing of his life; its loves and its regrets, both inextricably shaped by the battle of Little Bighorn where he was the only soldier left alive. General Custer, killed in the battle, has been dead for over twenty years when we meet Captain Benteen, yet Benteen remains haunted by the outcome of the fight, in which Custer was lauded as a hero while Benteen was never forgiven for his survival.' (Introduction)
Dealing With The Custer Cult Christopher Bantick , 2005 single work review
— Appears in: The West Australian , 3 December 2005; (p. 9)
— Review of The Lost Thoughts of Soldiers Delia Falconer , 2005 single work novel
The Year's Work in Fiction Kerryn Goldsworthy , 2005 single work review
— Appears in: Westerly , November vol. 50 no. 2005; (p. 56-67) Shortlisted books for the 2004-2005 Miles Franklin Literary Award.
Benteen and the Ghosts of His Last Stand Aviva Tuffield , 2005 single work review
— Appears in: The Age , 2 July 2005; (p. 4)
— Review of The Lost Thoughts of Soldiers Delia Falconer , 2005 single work novel
Short Musings Anything But Sweet Lesley Lebkowicz , 2005 single work review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 2 July 2005; (p. 13)
— Review of The Lost Thoughts of Soldiers Delia Falconer , 2005 single work novel
At Home on the Range Peter Rose , 2005 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 9-10 July 2005; (p. 19)
— Review of The Lost Thoughts of Soldiers Delia Falconer , 2005 single work novel
Into a Warrior's Mind Katharine England , 2005 single work review
— Appears in: The Advertiser , 9 July 2005; (p. 10)
— Review of The Lost Thoughts of Soldiers Delia Falconer , 2005 single work novel
Damn Custer Peter Pierce , 2005 single work review
— Appears in: The Bulletin , 12 July vol. 123 no. 6478 2005; (p. 92-93)
— Review of The Lost Thoughts of Soldiers Delia Falconer , 2005 single work novel
Falconer's Lure Janet Hawley , 2005 single work biography
— Appears in: Good Weekend , 25 June 2005; (p. 35-39)
Second Novel Simply Stunning Jason Steger , 2005 single work column
— Appears in: The Age , 16 July 2005; (p. 6) Delia Falconer's second novel was launched by the Age film critic at Readings' Carlton bookshop in July 2005
You Gotta Have Friends Stephen Matchett , 2005 single work column
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 1-2 October 2005; (p. 40)
The Year's Work in Fiction Kerryn Goldsworthy , 2005 single work review
— Appears in: Westerly , November vol. 50 no. 2005; (p. 56-67) Shortlisted books for the 2004-2005 Miles Franklin Literary Award.
How I Designed This Book 2006 single work column
— Appears in: The Age , 20 May 2006; (p. 27)
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Awards

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Last amended 19 Dec 2014 15:47:52
Subjects:
  • Montana,
    c
    United States of America (USA),
    c
    Americas,
  • 1870s
Settings:
  • Georgia,
    c
    United States of America (USA),
    c
    Americas,
  • 1898
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