Private Peaceful

This novel tells the story of Tommo, a british soldier looking back from the trenches on his life growing up in the English countryside with his mother and older brothers - Joe, who has is mentally disabled, and Charlie, loyal and brave and whom Tommo has always idolised. Tommo is and always has been besotted with their childhood friend Molly, who, inevitably is in love with Charlie, becoming pregnant with his child and getting thrown out of her house because of it. Out of necessity both Charlie and Tommo join the army near the start of the war, looking out for each other in everything. When Tommo gets injured during an attack and Charlie refuses a direct order from his superior in order to stay with him he is court marshalled and sentenced to be shot at dawn. Tommo tells his story in the hours of darkness before this happens.

This book is largely aimed, I think, at young teenagers and much of it is cliched, yet it beautifully explores the nature loyalty, life in England, with Charlie defending his brothers from all sorts of difficulties, paralleling life on the battlefields. Like much of Sassoon's poetry, it highlights the ineptitude of those in charge and the senselessness of wartime formality. The most painful aspect of the book is the fact that Charlie, who is clearly courageous, morally upright and a good soldier, dies for no real reason other than to prove the power of the superior officers. The novel also explores the themes of jealousy and guilt and how these affect the thoughts of those fighting. For me, one of the most insightful and poingnant scenes is when Tommo is in his home village during an army recruitment display, before he has enlisted: the soldiers there encouraging men to sign up are healthy, good looking and well dressed in showy uniforms and shiny medals, chirping that the war will be over in no time and that the honour of fighting for your country is something you should be queing for. An old lady in the crowd next to Tommo starts shouting at him that he's a coward for not doing his bit, that dying for your country is a noble and glorious sacrifice to make and that he should be ashamed of himself. This highlights how ignorant those who did not fight were to the true nature of war, for they believed the propoganda fed to them that war is a glorious affair, a time-honoured game. the contrast between the men showcased at this recruitment display and those actually fighting in the trenches also conveys the corruption of those in political control in broadcasting lies about the conditions of the soldiers.

Though written for a younger audience, this book beautifully depicts the closeness of relationships between the men fighting in the trenches. It is poignant and painfully sad and the paralleling of home and army life make Tommo a character easy to identify with.

Written by Iona