BY JOHN FEEHERY
When I was growing up, I was obsessed with toy soldiers.
I had armies of little Army guys and little German soldiers, who I would array in various little battles. Unlike a howitzer, a well-shot rubber band would often serve as the artillery, and proved the temporary death of a many a little German dude.
One of my earliest memories was getting a Fort Apache set for Christmas. It had little U.S. cavalry soldiers and little Indians, and it provided me with hours of fun.
I once used my revolutionary war toy soldiers to build a model of the Battle of Lexington and Concord for my seventh grade class.
These toy soldiers help me imagine history in ways that books just couldn’t match.
Toy soldiers are making a comeback, chiefly because of the great kids’ movies in the Toy Story movie series. My son is going to catch the opening of Toy Story 3 this weekend with a few of his classmates.