Orphan Train

by James Magnuson

The heartwarming novel of New York city street children travelling west on the adventure of their lives.

Genres: Fiction

588 pages, Unknown Binding

First published January 1, 1978

About the author

James Magnuson is the author of eight previous novels and the recipient of multiple fellowships and awards for fiction. He currently directs the James A. Michener Center for Writers at the University of Texas. He lives in Austin.

Reviews

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book believing it to be a an entirely different book! It was merely ok bordering on good. Be careful, there are several books out there with the same title!

[Angie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I "accidentally" read this version instead of the newer book I was supposed to read for book club! However, I really liked this book, perhaps even better than the other one. This book was clean, well written, and very interesting. I like Judith's review of the book. This is what she said.
Orphan Train by James Magnuson and Dorothea G. Pierce (New York: Dial Press, 1978) is a novel inspired by the actual work of the Children’s Aid Society from 1854 to 1904, taking groups of homeless orphans from the streets of New York City to find homes in the small towns and farm villages of the Midwest. Our protagonist, Emma is herself an orphan, but one who was raised in comfort by her uncle, the Reverend Symns. Persuaded to assist him on a trip out west with nearly 30 orphans, she bravely carried on alone after her uncle was taken ill. Her challenges are many and growing, from single-handedly pacifying a boxcar full of children, to hiding her romantic feelings for a young man who is also traveling west on the train, helping the children grieve the loss of a boy who drowned in a river, and rescuing them all from a train accident.

[Judith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Orphan Train by James Magnuson and Dorothea G. Pierce (New York: Dial Press, 1978) is a novel inspired by the actual work of the Children’s Aid Society from 1854 to 1904, taking groups of homeless orphans from the streets of New York City to find homes in the small towns and farm villages of the Midwest. Our protagonist, Emma is herself an orphan, but one who was raised in comfort by her uncle, the Reverend Symns. Persuaded to assist him on a trip out west with nearly 30 orphans, she bravely carried on alone after her uncle was taken ill. Her challenges are many and growing, from single-handedly pacifying a boxcar full of children, to hiding her romantic feelings for a young man who is also traveling west on the train, helping the children grieve the loss of a boy who drowned in a river, and rescuing them all from a train accident.

[★Ashli★ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a *really* good book!! Better than I thought it would be.

[Peter Parziale · Rating 3 out of 5]

As historical fiction goes, this book was somewhat too breathless for my taste. I'm somewhat familiar with the general premise of the 1854- 1920s orphan trains, so I was looking for something more meaty.

Nevertheless, I was entertained and informed. I'd forgotten that the orphan trains started pre-Civil War; the inclusion of the runaway Ned brought that back to me. And as is my wont, I looked up some of the named characters, E.D.E.N. Southworth and Charles Loring Brace, and they were actual personalities in the orphan train saga. Auguste Kiss's Amazon statue likewise exists, although not in New York City. And no doubt the streets of eastern cities like New York were populated with youthful beggars, thieves, and prostitutes whose prospects for a decent life were limited while they were on the squalid city streets. Historical fiction weaves threads of truth amid the bigger fictional cloth...if only more of the book was factual.

Can we begin with the unlikelihood of the girl passing for a boy while in the close quarters of a baggage car for a couple of weeks? Or should we wonder how likely it would be for a solitary woman to be able to successfully shepherd this group to the middle west? That families in the heartland actually received these children is factual, but were they all such wonderful success stories, as intimated by the book? Were there no disastrous placements, lads whose child labor was merely transferred from Brooklyn to Bloomington, girls who were as sexually abused by lonely men in Des Moines like they had been in the Bronx? I like a fairy tale as much as anyone, but when I want a saccharine morsel, I'll order one.

Speaking of cliches, that the shepherdess Miss Symns and the daguerreotypist Mr. Carlin should strike up a romance was just too, too obvious. They meet at the Crystal Palace to-do in chapter 2, and then he re-appears on the paddlewheeler AND on the train heading west...please.

The saving grace of the book, and why I generously awarded 3 stars, is because it tells a valuable story of how folks in different social circumstances can come together to solve various problems. The kids are dreadfully impoverished, and doomed, in the city. The midwesterners are missing a piece from their families that the city children could fill. The religious folks are doing something that supports their prayerful words. Sure, there are flaws in this triangular arrangement -- people are human, and the individual situations are complex. But something was done to address these issues. People weren't moaning about how implacable the problems were. If only we could pull together like that today.

For what it's worth, the book was made into a film that's available on Youtube. The book and the film share a basic premise and some of the same characters, but the film differs from the source book in innumerable ways.

Also, there's a museum dedicated to the orphan train saga in Concordia, KS, with an event that commemorates this experience in June. More information is available on the internet.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This happens to me frequently. I read the wrong book. The entire time I kept thinking, “This sure seems lame for being such a popular read.”

There was one quote in the book I noted.

“No one, no matter how high their ideals, no one can look forward to being ineffectual.”

[Wintermote · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t know that this is a favorite or one I will read again, but it made me cry so apparently I was engaged with the characters and their lives. That always make me rate a book higher.

[Beth Kaminske · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read the reader’s digest condensed version of this book. And it was not very good. So I guess I’ll have to read h entire story.

[Barb Fay · Rating 4 out of 5]

A comprehensive picture of the era in America and the orphan train movement, including conditions and cultures from the East to the pioneers in the west: abolitionists and slaves/music of the era/railroads/manners, etc. Characterization is quite good, although it times the reading becomes burdensome. The ending is melodramatic,but puts a quick, exciting spin on the conclusion.

[Leanne Music-messer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a non fiction book about orphan children living on the streets of New York being put on trains and taken to the mid-west. Many of the kids were adopted but most were unhappy. Some were abused and others used as farm labor. Interesting read but kind of sad.

[Jo]

I've had this book since I was a kid. Orphan Train is a really moving story. Its about a non profit group that takes orphan and homeless children across the US by train, so that they could be adopted by people/families.

[Diane Wachter · Rating 3 out of 5]

RDC-M V 1 1979, 1/1984. By James Magnuson, with Dorothea G. Petrie. Novel about a time in U.S. history when orphans from the East were put on trains and sent West to be adopted by ranchers who needed children to help with the ranch work. Interesting.

[Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was the first time I'd heard of the orphan train. I enjoyed the story for the most part. The second half of the book seemed to drag however.

[Martha Growdon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating and well-written historical fiction. It made me want to learn more about the orphan trains and the Children's Aid Society. It's a pretty light and quick read.

[ChrisGA · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sweet poignant story of real life movement to send abandoned street kids in New York to Midwest to be adopted. Kids were interesting. Romance predictable

[Cathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think I read this book not long after it was published. At least before 1980. I'll reread it some day