War Horse by Michael Morpurgo

This book is told from the perspective of Joey, a horse.  The War Horse.  Joey has an amazing journey across many countries in Europe as a soldier during a world war.  

But I think this book is really about relationships.  You learn at the beginning of the book that Joey loves his mother, but is separated from her at an auction when he is just a young colt.  The book goes on to tell about a special relationship that Joey builds with a boy named Albert.  Joey and Albert know each other so well it’s like they can read each other’s minds.  Albert’s dad sells Joey to the British army at the beginning of the war.  Albert promises Joey that he will find him again, but will he?  Joey builds relationships and gives hope to other horses, military men, and so many other people as he experiences war along with them.  One soldier says, “To find a horse like this in the middle of this filthy abomination of a war is for me like finding a butterfly on a dung heap.”

I like this book because it shows how you can always make friends and build new relationships but still love your old friends.  I had a friend that moved away two years ago.  Even though we don’t get to see each other very much, when we do get together it’s like we’ve never been apart – just like Joey and Albert.

I give this book a four star rating.  This story seems so real, but some of the German and British expressions are hard to understand.    

This website link is for the War Horse: Fact & Fiction exhibit at the National Army Museum in London, England:  http://www.nam.ac.uk/microsites/war-horse/explore/