BOOK PICKS.

Byline: The Register-Guard

"Private Peaceful"

By Michael Morpurgo

Scholastic Press, 2003

Ages 12 and up

My greatest pleasure as a middle school librarian is when a student comes up to me, unbidden, and says something like: "Oh my gosh, Mr. Young - I just read the BEST book! I couldn't put it down. It's my favorite book EVER!"

Which is exactly what Niobe said to me one afternoon about "Private Peaceful."

Now, when a good reader suggests a book to me, I listen. And unless there is a compelling reason not to, I almost always consider it for our collection. And so I followed doctors' orders: Read two reviews and ordered it in the morning. And now, a few months later, no regrets. In fact, I'm going to order more copies for our library.

Michael Morpurgo has crafted a book that juxtaposes the tender love of a close-kit family and the unspeakable horrors of trench warfare in World War I. The actual story follows eight hours in the life of Pvt. Thomas Peaceful, as he is assigned to night watch in the muddy killing fields of France. "Tommo" sits vigilant all night - alert, but mostly remembering - for he knows a terrible fate awaits him at dawn.

Tommo recollects it all: his brother Charlie taking him to his first day of school; his father's accidental death (for which he feels responsible); his mother working so hard to keep the family together; his brain-damaged - but very special - older brother, Joe; his love of Molly, who taught him kindness; the idyllic beauty of his childhood home.

He also remembers lying about his age to follow his beloved Charlie into the army; the cruel and brutal drill sergeant Hanley; seeing childhood friends cut down by enemy bullets; the relentless squalor of the trenches, with their mud, stench, rats and lice; the shelling and the gas attacks; the British practice of executing their own soldiers for "cowardice and desertion"; the fear and noise and exhaustion. And Charlie's unwavering protection of his younger brother, which would prove to be his eventual undoing.

The chapters take us minute by minute through Tommo's long night, until we reach the last chapter, when Tommo realizes the final, unjust horror. This is a tough book, no doubt; Morpurgo is unstinting in his use of details. And the ending is one that stayed with me for a long time.

Though emotionally wrenching, young adults will appreciate the stories of love and brutality that Morpurgo so gracefully weaves into one unforgettable novel.

Thanks, Niobe.

- Wes Young, librarian

Lincoln Middle School

Cottage Grove