He was only a drummer boy, but Orion Howe's courage under fire helped General Sherman break the Rebel hold on Vicksburg. It is April, 1861, and there is talk of war in the Howes' Illinois home. When President Lincoln asks for more soldiers, Orion's father and brother enlist. Hating to be left behind, twelve-year-old Orion soon joins them to be a drummer boy in the Union Army. As the war wears on, Orion bravely endures...