Thomas Dyja's novel “Play for a Kingdom” is a story about the valor of men and what it means to be thrown into the darkness of war only to be saved by men they call brothers in arms. They are men like every other man who has walked this earth. They have different religions, values, ideas and above all in their differences they find common ground. Men like Tiger, Lyman, Newt and Burridge are heroes, cowards and villains. They demonstrate and bring both good and evil into this world and into their own lives. They are the heroes who save the day and fight bravely. Some become heroes because they gave their lives to the cause and stepped into the line of fire. They are the cowards who are not immune to the horrors of war, or the men who simply want to live to see another day. They are also bad. They are the men who tear the life from this land with their cannons, bullets and bayonets. For wife, mother and son these warriors are the villains of their lives. Every man, young and old, dreams of being a hero. They leave their lives behind as they dream of glory and victory. The new recruits were mesmerized by the allure of serving God and country. Yes, they would be heroes when they returned home and defeated the evil villains who threatened their homes, families, and way of life. Uniforms gave young people a sense of importance and status. They learned military drills and worked hard. They thought they were prepared in every way to meet a soldier's needs; then they smelled the first smell of cannon smoke. They heard screams that they had only heard from a child. The cramps began. His throat went dry. Bleeding and crying men ran past and some of them joined them. They told themselves that they would come across the... middle of paper... for his land, fighting for the principles. He respected the men his group met for a friendly baseball game. The men of Micah's group had fought battle after battle against the Brooklyn 14th. They had crossed paths in hand-to-hand combat, but had spared each other's lives only to move on to the next person. How can two sides with so much bloodshed between them happily coexist on a field for a baseball game? They were the strange men who found common ground. During their last game, Brooklyn's 14th knew they were being deployed by their own army, but still risked their lives to save the men of the Confederate army. They decided to save their friends. They had formed and shared bonds with these men that they had shared with their own. They were all heroes, cowards and villains, but most importantly they were still all Americans and brothers in arms.