War Horse

War Horse is a very moving book about a  horse called Joey and a boy called Albert.The book is written as if you were the horse. Joey is bought at the market by Alberts drunk father. At this stage Joey is only about 6 months old.They take Joey home and put him in the Stable next to Zoey who is a very old horse. Albert is given the task of looking after Joey and does so. He tells Joey he will never leave him. Joey and Zoey learn to plough. The war starts and Albert is told by his father that Joey must be sold to a Captain. Captain Nicholls buys Joey to take to war. Joey is taken to France to be riden into battle by Captain Nicholls. Joey is riden into war but Captain Nicholls gets blown of the horse but Joey is ok. Captain Nicholls was accompanied by Captain Jamie Stewart who was riding Topthorn was ok  but Topthorn and Joey got captured by the Germans.

Joey and Topthorn are put to work taking Germanss back from the front line who are injured and were led by a German officer who had before been a butcher called Friedrich who was a nice man. They stayed on a farm owned by a old frenchman and his grand-daughter Emily. Emily loved Joey and Topthorn and looked after them. Eventually the German soldiers had to move away as the front line moved and gave Topthorn and Joey to her Grandfather.  The two horses lived happily for a whole summer before the front moved back and they were taken against Emily and her Grandfathers will to help pull the guns. This was extremely hard work and many of the horses pulling the guns died.
Eventually even the very strong Topthorn fell ill and died.

During a bombardment Joey was frightened by an explosion and ran away but got caught in no-mans land and stuck in barbed wire. Both the German and the English front line's heard him whinny and one man from each trench holding a white flag crawled out of the trench and met by Joey. The two men spoke, one a tiny little welshman and the other an old German. The men exchanged conversation and finally came to a conclusion. They would flip a coin. The German tossed it up in the air and as it came down the welshman called "HEADS". Heads it was. The two men shook hands told each other good luck then Joey got led back to the English trench whilst the German walked slowly back to his.

Joey is then taken to the vetinary where Albert and Joey were reunited. Albert was holding Joey's head whilst him and his friend David were talking about how one day a horse would turn up with a white mark on both legs and as David is hosing him down he realises that this horse has just that and Albert realises that its Joey. They feed Joey and he gets back to full health but soon after Joey gets LockJaw. David and Albert persuade the Major not to kill Joey adn once more Albert and David get him back to full health. Joey, Albert and  David get sent back to war, Joey once more pulling carts of the wounded but  David on the other hand gets killed just a few days before the end of the war. Albert survives.

With the end of the war the regiment is told it must return to England but there is no room for the Horses and therefore the Major in charge of the vetinary has to organise and auction. Despite all the regiment pleading including the saergant major pleading to the major Joey must be put up on auction. Although they are not allowed to the regiment collect as much money as they can afford and the saergant major bids for Joey, but he is out bid by one of the the frenchman at the auction who is buying the horses for meat. At the last minute an old man at the back of the crowd outbids the butcher from Cambray.

No one knows who the old man is who has won Joey but the saergant thunder and major martin go and speak to him, the old man is Emilie's grandfather and he tells of how Emilie had died of a broken heart once Joey and Topthorn had left. The old man sells back Joey to Albert for just one English penny but makes him promise to love and care for Joey forever. Joey and Albert return to there village and parade through the streets, Albert marries his sweetheart and Joehy goes back to working on the land with his old friend Zoey.

I think this is an outstanding book and i would recommend reading. It is an extremely moving book epecially as it was based on a true story. I dont think it matters who you are but this is a great read.This book also shows how awful the war was and it was not only the men who got treated badly but the animals aswell. Even in the worst conditions some people show extraordinary kindness.

I wopuld give it a 10/10

F.A