Thomas’s elder brother, James, is missing in action during World War I. Thomas believes he must find James so his struggling family can be strong again. Thomas secretly goes to London hoping a recruitment officer will ignore his thirteen-year-old features. Thankfully, Thomas meets street-savvy teen, George, who knows a way underage boys can join the war. Thomas and George and two other underage soldiers, Charlie and Frederick, are assigned to work with the clay kickers, a secret unit tunneling under the Western Front in France. Their mission is to stealthily dig to the German trenches and blowup the enemy’s lines. During their breaks, Thomas, George, Charlie, and Frederick scour the trenches for news about James. Hutton’s story showcases four narratives representing why a quarter of a million underage British boys left their childhoods behind to fight in World War I. Thomas feels it’s his duty to join the war to find his missing brother. As a street urchin and orphan, George enlists for the sake of new clothing, pay, and three meals a day. Charlie signs up to escape an abusive home. Frederick enrolls so he can join his rich family’s legacy of glorious war heroes. Each boy comes with different intentions, but they all learn that their main goal is survival. Banding together as brothers helps each boy endure their small part in this world conflict. Hutton’s book is an eye-opening story revealing a part of the Great War that has not been showcased before in young adult literature. Because Secret Soldiers is a war novel, there are violent and graphic scenes that exhibit the hell of war, making it appropriate for ages 13 and up.
