Private Peaceful – Michael Morpurgo

“I’ve seen larks over no-mans land. I always found hope in that.”

I read this book because I was telling a boy I baby-sit for how I had suddenly found myself extremely moved by books about the war. I recommended he read The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and, in return, he gave me this book to borrow.

Tommo Peaceful is just a child when the story begins. His father has passed away and he lives in England with his mother and his older brothers, Charlie and Joe. On his first day at ‘big school’, Tommo meets Molly. He falls instantly in love with her.

As Tommo, Molly and Charlie grow into young adults together, Tommo realises that his brother has fallen in love with the same girl. Worse than that, Molly returns his love. In a moment of madness and full of eagerness to prove that he is not a little boy anymore, Tommo signs up to join the army. Desperate to project his brother, Charlie signs up too.

From the start we are aware that things go wrong for Charlie and Tommo. Parts of the book are written in the present tense, whilst the rest is reflecting on occasions from their childhood. Tommo’s musings over his current situation divulge enough that we know that he has found himself in an incredulous situation, the details of which are not revealed until the last few pages. I anticipated predictability, but the ending is politely surprising, desperately sad and, as is mostly the case with novels for young people, there is teaching behind it. I don’t want to divulge too much more in case I ruin it for anybody.

This is a novel for older children, so it’s easy to read. If you had a day you could probably manage it in one. Even as a ‘grown up’, I can confess that I did learn something from it.

It isn’t so overly horrific that you couldn’t give it to your teenager. I think it would probably make them think more carefully about the sacrifice boys not much older than them made during the war and, in my opinion, that can only be a good thing.

If you’re an avid reader then I’m not sure you will like this, unless you are extremely open minded or a teenage boy. If you don’t plan on reading it but you have been left intrigued as to what happened, then feel free to ask me about the story. Or Google it. 

Atonement - Ian McEwan

"A person is, among all else, a material thing, easily torn and not easily mended."

As far as I am concerned Atonement is up there with Birdsong. It is absolutely one of the best things I have

ever read.

I have a rule that I don’t read books if I have already seen the movie adaptation. I don’t much see the point in that. I like to be surprised by my books.

This did surprise me. Greatly. Firstly because the movie adaptation is pretty close to the original book. Secondly because this didn’t take away from my enjoyment of it at all.

Cecilia and Robbie have known each other since they were children. They have lived on the same grounds and played together their whole lives. Cecilia, who was born into a family of privilege, lives in the mansion house at the top of the grounds. Robbie, whose mother is the maid, lives in a cottage at the bottom.

Their differences were never an issue until they went to university, where they suddenly took to ignoring each other. This story begins when they return to their homes after three years in Cambridge. Things are different between them and neither one of them knows why.

Robbie realises it before Cecilia does. He writes her a letter and gives it to her younger sister Briony to deliver. But Briony is nosy. She reads the letter and allows her imagination, which is already full of misconceptions and misunderstandings about her sister and the maid’s son, run away with her. The consequences permanently alter all of their lives.

I don’t want to tell you too much else about what happens. You should read this book. I couldn’t put it down. The characters are vivid and lovable, the story is enthralling and full of twists. In the beginning you will certainly think that this is just a love story, but be warned that it definitely is not. It seems that way for a lot of the book, but by the end that you will see that there are lessons to be learned from it. The last chapter will smash everything you thought to pieces. Especially if you haven’t seen the film.

As it goes the film is a pretty good adaptation of this book. It seems to be scene for scene correct, as far as I can remember, with the exception of the last scene and the last chapter. In the film Briony reveals her story smashing secret to a camera, but in the book she seems to keep it to herself. I don’t know which is better. The latter leaves you yearning for justice, which I suppose is a good thing. When a book leaves you pining for something then it has clearly imprinted on you, and I suppose that is what an author should strive for. I do wish that some of the questions had been answered, though I can’t tell you which ones without ruining it for you. I shall just say ‘Does Briony tell her parents the truth in the one day?’.

I recommend this. Especially if you like books about the wartime period, which I have realised recently I do seem to enjoy.  

The Hundred-Year Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared – Jonas Jonasson

“It had been exciting, the entire journey, but nothing lasts forever, except possibly general stupidity.”

I bought this book because I had already heard about it when it was for sale for £0.20 on Kindle, so I thought I would give it a go. The title is far too long for me to keep typing it, so I will be referring to it as ‘The Hundred-Year Old Man” from now on. People seem to know which book you mean when you call it that, anyway.

The Hundred-Year Old Man tells the story of Allan Karlsson – a man about to celebrate his 100^th birthday. In the beginning, Allan is sitting in his room at an old people’s home in his slippers. He is waiting for his party to start. Journalists are invited, as are the local dignitaries. Everyone is making a fuss, and Allan decides he has had about enough. Given the stories title, what happens next is utterly predictable. Allan climbs out of his window, slippers still attached, and runs away.

What is not predictable is pretty much everything that happens next. Allan embarks on an adventure of epic proportions. It involves a suitcase full of money, a bus ride to nowhere, a group of criminals, an elephant and a beauty. Allan is first suspected of being kidnapped, and then accused by the local press of being a murderer. He locks a man in a fridge, leaves his slippers behind and goes on the run. Well. It’s more of a stroll. Allan can’t walk very fast.

The public, papers and police can’t believe the stories about Allan are true. He is, after all, a hundred year old man! But had they any idea who they were actually chasing, they would have had very little doubt about what Allan Karlsson is capable of doing. Accidentally, of course. Allan’s current story is interrupted every few chapters with tales of a past that includes dinner with Chairman Mao, the development of the atom bomb, and Albert Einstein’s stupid brother Herbert.

This book was very funny in a way that only books can manage. Allan Karlsson is particularly hilarious. He is written as a character who has that incredible bluntness old people possess without knowing it. I could imagine my grandparents saying some of the things he says, and then staring at me quizzically when I laugh about it.

It was a great story, but I think it was slightly above my intelligence level. It was like ‘Forrest Gump’ for clever people. Though I laughed out loud several times, I am certain that I missed a lot of the irony. I just don’t know enough about key events in the twentieth century.

It is slightly predictable in parts, once you have reached the gist that anything can happen to Allan Karlsson, but it was obviously written that way. I was suitably satisfied with the ending. Everything was tied-up as it should be.

This book is perfect for people who love history and read for entertainment, but suitably enjoyable for all if you happen to stumble across it.