Product Description

Heroism or cowardice? A stunning story of the First World War from a master storyteller. Told in the voice of a young soldier, the story follows 24 hours in his life at the front during WW1, and captures his memories as he looks back over his life. Full of stunningly researched detail and engrossing atmosphere, the book leads to a dramatic and moving conclusion. Both a love story and a deeply moving account of the horrors of the First World War, this book will reach everyone from 9 to 90.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1363 in Books
• Published on: 2004-08-02
• Original language: English
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 192 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
Longer novels from Children's Laureate Michael Morpurgo are always a particular treat, and Private Peaceful is no exception. Tragic, surprising and engaging in equal measures, Morpurgo's novel charts both the childhood of young Thomas Peaceful in the early years of the 20th century, and his eventual underage enlistment in the British army to help fight the First World War.

It is, above all, a poignant story of war and about all of its many life-changing effects on those involved--also the brutality of the commanding regimes and the relentless squalor of trench warfare. It's not for the squeamish--Morpurgo tells it like it was and his honest insight is on every page for all to appreciate.

"Tommo" Peaceful is recalling his childhood from those terrible battlefields. He remembers his big brother Charlie taking him to his first day of school, the death of his father, his mum working hard to keep a roof over their heads and food on their table. He remembers his brother Joe, who some called simple, but who to Tommo was very special. He also recalls the only girl in his life, Molly, and how Charlie somehow took her away from him. But as the World turned to War, he had to grow up fast. Together Charlie and Tommo enlist and are sent to France, almost immediately, to what could only be described as pure hell on Earth. Bullets, bombs, death. Shells, noise, dirt. Disease, rats, stench. Charlie and Tommo fight for their lives and to stay together--facing certain death in the face every time they try to advance the British lines.

Morpurgo rattles through his narrative at some speed, gracefully capturing both the horror of war and the ecstasy of life. The ending is shocking and memorable. This is difficult, emotionally draining but highly recommended reading. (Recommended for ages 10 and over.) --John McLay

Review
His [Tommo's] journey from agricultural labourer to cannon fodder is movingly told!Michael Morpurgo is expert at getting through to his readers. He writes here about events that should never be forgotten nor forgiven, and does so most effectively. Independent !full of warmth as well as grief, conveying vividly how precious it is to be alive! Sunday Times The best novel he's written since The Butterfly Lion. Times Deserved to last as an insight into the First World War in the same way as, say, The Silver Sword or Goodnight Mr Tom. Telegraph A poignant, elegiac novel. Daily Mail

Sunday Times
`Full of warmth as well as grief, conveying vividly how precious it is to be alive.'

Customer Reviews

Moving and different
Obviously now Mr Morpurgo knows what he's doing, and so it's no surprise that this is a well written book. However I was surprised that he'd produced such a good First World War novel. He hasn't fallen into any of the usual traps - instead he shows us a group of normal people. The Germans aren't demons, the British aren't saints, and although the war is ever-present, much of the narrative concerns events that happened years before it.

Most of the story is told in one night by Private Tommo Peaceful, who has joined up with his brother Charlie. For much of it Tommo reflects on their childhood, especially their time with their brother Big Joe, who has a learning disability, and their friend Molly. The story takes us up to the night that Tommo's telling the story on, the before something terrible happens - which Tommo has been referring to and dreading throughout the story, although he doesn't tell us until near the end what it is.

This is an excellent book. The story is poignant without needless sentimentality and although Morpurgo is put into the 8-12 category, a lot of adults would enjoy it, while some children in that age range would find it too disturbing. It isn't a long book - it doesn't need to be. I'd recommend it without question.

'Tonight I Want To Feel Alive'
"I happened to interview three farm boy veterans, then well into their eighties, when I was researching my book War Horse. They told me something of what they had lived through. There was no poetry in their stories, only horror and regret and great sadness for the loss of good friends. So I came to write Private Peaceful." - Michael Morpurgo took something away with him after those interviews, and he gifts that to you, the reader.

I admit, even now, as an adult, I am enthralled by many of Michael Morpurgos works. He writes with such skill that anyone, young or old, can find themselves caught up in the world he creates for them. Even my dad read it, on my recommendation, and he found it stunning too.

In this particular tale, Private Thomas Peaceful has endured much. And, through every hardship, his brother Charlie has been there to help him through.

The story is written in a first-person narrative and this helps the reader to be there alongside him as he sits his vigil. The waiting, is interspersed with his memories of his times as a child, through to present day, and always with Charlie there beside him.

It is one of those stories that you cannot put down. You want to just read it from start to finish in a single sitting, because it grips you. It is funny, it is sad, it is touching, filled with lines of thought that makes your heart ache.

"They've gone now, and I'm alone at last. I have the whole night ahead of me, and I won't waste a single moment of it. I shan't sleep it away. I won't dream it away either. I mustn't, because every moment of it will be far too precious."

As the hours, minutes, and seconds, fall through the inevitable hourglass of time, you know the waiting is almost over - his night time vigil is going to end. And so is the world as he knows it.

I won't tell you why he is waiting. I won't tell you how it ends. I will tell you that if you plan to read any of Michael Morpurgos books, then do read this one. It is written in quite simple terms, but it is extremely effective, and I guarantee this book will move you before you close that final page, whatever age you are.

From the heart of a soldier
Private Peaceful. The latest in a line of brilliant books from Children’s Laureate Michael Morpurgo.
Private Peaceful tells the story of young Tommo Peaceful from his early adventures to his war-time heroics. Growing up in the countryside before the First World War, life is a challenge for Tommo. Always looking up to his big brother Charlie, Tommo finds himself living in Charlie’s shadow. On the first day of school Tommo finds Molly, his one and only love. Together with Molly the two Peaceful’s live childhood to the full. Then the terror of the First World War strikes and Charlie and Tommo are draughted into the army. Their lives are changed and nothing will ever be the same again.
I thought Private Peaceful was a very enjoyable book which can be read by adults and children. It tells the horrific truth about the First World War as it’s never been told before. Prepare to be transported into the body of a child and the mind of a soldier, this really is a book from the heart.