Private Peaceful

Private Peaceful is a novel written by Michael Morpurgo. It is about a soldier called Thomas, or Tommo Peaceful, who is looking back on his life from the trenches of World War I. Strucurally each chapter of the book brings the reader closer to the present.

The book was shortlisted for the children's section of the Whitbread Award. Since 2006, this has been known as the Costa Book Awards.

In 2005 and 2006 Michael Morpurgo presented a series of concerts called "Private Peaceful". This was a set of readings by Michael and some songs and tunes by Coope Boyes and Simpson. Back in 1995 the trio had been commissioned to create a concert in Passchendaele church with Flemish musicians. This was released as "We're Here Because We're Here:Concert Party Passchendaele", a live album. Morpurgo met up with them in September 2000 at a conference on "Children's Literature in Peace and War". He was so impressed by the songs that the trio sang that he invited them to add music to "Some Desperate Glory". This was a set of readings of war poetry devised by Morpurgo, and read by Jim Broadbent and others. Soon after they put together the material for "Private Peaceful".

As Tommo looks back at his childhood life from the trenches, he remembers when his father died in a tree cutting accident which he blamed himself for. He recalls that when he started school he fell in love with a girl called Molly, that he lived with his two brothers, one of which had special needs. 'Big Joe' had an illness shortly after birth and, although he recovered physically, mentally he was handicapped for life.

Each chapter it begins by showing a little more of how the plot is unraveling in the future and then flicks back to the past. It tells you of how Tommo, his older brother Charlie, and Molly would go and poach from the Colonel's land so they could eat.

Sergeant Hanley is very evil and punishes and picks on Charlie. Charlie gets injured and sent home. On his return the boys move to Belgium and they get a new leader called Captain Wilkes.

Captain Wilkes becomes injured and when Hanley comes back Charlie refuses to leave Tommo. He is court martialled and executed by firing squad at 6:00 AM - the final chapter is entitled "Ten to Six".

ISBN 0-439-63648-5 (1st American edition); ISBN 0-439-63653-1 (paperback edition)