We Shall Remember Them

Children reading  in 1940

There are few books that make me cry, especially within children’s writing and I’m not talking about those picture books that pull heartstrings as you read them aloud to either your own cherubs or a class full of children. Oh, I’ve read plenty of those – you know, the stories that make your voice crack and wobble at the end and the children ask with worried voices whether you’re going to be all right and not to worry, they’re sure the story is not true. It’s just made up. No, I’m not talking about those books, lovely though they are, I’m talking about books for older children. Books set during the world wars.

Goodnight Mr. Tom (Kestrel publishing 1981), set during world war two, was one of the first books that reduced me to tears. I must have been about twelve years old and Michelle Magorian’s heart-wrenching descriptions of a boy so badly abused shocked me and taught me that the world is not always a good place. But it was William’s sweet trust and hope in an old man’s fatherly love that showed me love conquers all. I wept buckets and still today, it is one of my favourite books.

Thirty years or so later, Lincolnshire writer Hilary McKay has sent me to that place once again with her novel The Skylarks War (MacMillan 2018). What a beautiful story – set during the first world war. The main character, Clarry takes us on a journey from idyllic sandy Cornwall to the horrific realism of the front line. Hilary writes about relationships so poignantly, capturing the true essence of what young people must have felt at that time. The blurb at the back of the book does not do the story justice, it is so much more than a story of survival and I challenge you to read it without at least a small tear escaping. 

There seems to be a flurry of new books on the market today written about the two world wars and, I must admit, that terrible period of time has always fascinated me. The fact that both my grandparents were young during the second world war, living their youth during such frightening and uncertain times. I have enormous respect and am eternally grateful to them and to all those who lived during those days. Fighting for freedom, bringing up children, going without, giving from within to ensure survival not just for themselves but for those around them and future generations.

I am eternally relieved that I experience these wars only through beautifully written books. And, I am so glad that many writers continue to capture and preserve these very important stories; Michael Morpurgo, Jacqueline Wilson, Emma Carroll, Judith Kerr, Nina Bawden, Lucy Strange are just a few children’s authors that write these wonderful books set during the war years. Reminding us all of the sacrifices so many made for us but also giving us a gentle warning against allowing anything to happen like that again. We shall remember them.