Anyhow, I prepared for this experience by watching episode 1 of the second season of Downton Abbey, and making a list of things I know about WWI, which, due to the vagaries of a school system which favors memorization over retention, have basically all come from children's books. What's weird is that there are a ton of books about WWII, children's books especially, but not so much about the Great War, which you would think would be a lot more child-friendly than say, the war which resulted in such works as The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, which, for all of its faults, definitely leaves you with the haunting image of a neatly folded pile of clothes.
I also want to confess my sins: I originally included A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett on this list, because I was remembering that 1995 movie version where Sara's father has mustard gas poisoning and Sara herself is this well-fed blonde beauty, and she winds up screaming at him while he's trying to recuperate, like, don't you think he's been through enough without some urchin accusing him of being her father? And why do the movies insist on keeping her father alive? What is the point of that? Anyway, leaving all that aside, the book couldn't possibly take place during the war, since it was only written in 1905. Although I do love the scenes from the Ramayana.
Without further ado, here is a (short) list of children's books about WWI:
The Good Master & The Singing Tree, by Kate Seredy
Jancsi is overjoyed to hear that his cousin from Budapest is coming to spend the summer on his father's ranch on the Hungarian plains. But their summer proves more adventurous than he had hoped when headstrong Kate arrives, as together they share horseback races across the plains, country fairs and festivals, and a dangerous run-in with the gypsies.
(The Good Master, from Barnes & Noble)
Life on the Hungarian plains is changing quickly for Jancsi and his cousin Kate. Father has given Jancsi permission to be in charge of his own herd, and Kate has begun to think about going to dances. Jancsi hardly even recognizes Kate when she appears at Peter and Mari's wedding wearing nearly as many petticoats as the older girls wear. And Jancsi himself, astride his prized horse, doesn't seem to Kate to be quite so boyish anymore. Then, when Hungary must send troops to fight in the Great War and Jancsi's father is called to battle, the two cousins must grow up all the sooner in order to take care of the farm and all the relatives, Russian soldiers, and German war orphans who take refuge there.
(The Singing Tree, from Barnes & Noble)
Okay, technically, only The Singing Tree is about WWI, but it's really a two book series, and they're each only like, 100 pages, so it won't hurt you at all to read The Good Master, too. It's actually a really interesting look at Hungarian farm life in the early 1900s, with the beehive stove, and the egg-dying, and the horse-herding. It's a fun kid's book about Jancsi, and his wild cousin Kate, who isn't mean or bad-tempered, just a little imp, so you don't get irritated with her. It's definitely where I first heard of the term "pins" used for legs, which I used the other day and confused someone, since they hadn't grown up in 1915, and had no idea what I was talking about.
The Singing Tree is a much more mature book, but only because the author doesn't shy away from the fact that the war exists and has changed everything. The war itself doesn't touch the children's lives much, although the house becomes a sort of halfway home for war strays, including not only German soldiers, but also Russian prisoners of war, since, as you may recall, Austria-Hungary was allied with Germany, not with the "good side" that most kid's books use as a viewpoint. It's too easy to think of one side being good or bad, especially in light of the atrocities committed in the second World War, while forgetting that there were innocents on both sides, and that often, soldiers on both sides were farmers whose lives were upended by the decisions of powerful men.
[Aside: I think this is something that War Horse does well - the humanization of both armies, as seen through the eyes of this horse. The horse goes through a variety of owners, English, German, French, and it's never the case of owner mistreatment, like in Black Beauty, or King of the Wind. I mean, yes, there are terrible things that happen to him, but it's always the case that the people who have the responsibility of the horse(s) try to protect them as best they can, no matter which side they are fighting for.]
The Singing Tree is a sweet book, and definitely a rosier-than-strictly-accurate view of the war, since all the prisoners and soldiers get along, and are relatively unscathed and happy to be at the farm. There are some very serious moments, including those dealing with an AWOL soldier, but for the most part, it is a sweet and moving coming-of-age story. There is also a particularly bittersweet chapter, in which Kate's father, I believe, comes home and tells the story of a christmas miracle on the front lines, but has to acknowledge that after the story, darkness returned, and men picked up their guns once more.
Rilla of Ingleside, by L.M. Montgomery
Anne's children were almost grown up, except for pretty, high-spirited Rilla. No one could resist her bright hazel eyes and dazzling smile. Rilla, almost fifteen, can't think any further ahead than going to her very first dance at the Four Winds lighthouse and getting her first kiss from handsome Kenneth Ford. But undreamed-of challenges await the irrepressible Rilla when the world of Ingleside becomes endangered by a far-off war. Her brothers go off to fight, and Rilla brings home an orphaned newborn in a soup tureen. She is swept into a drama that tests her courage and leaves her changed forever.
(from Amazon and B&N)
Now, okay, this one is also part of a series, but honestly, I'm not going to make you read all seven Anne of Green Gables books before this one. Mostly because like, the sixth one is all about Anne's mid-life crisis, and one of my favorite games is to see whether there are any pages in the book without ellipses (I think there's one or two?). Most of them have multiples! If you don't read the earlier books, you won't have any idea who all these people are, and probably won't care about whether they live or die, but I have found that to be true even when I did know who they were, so I wouldn't stress about it.
Rilla of Ingleside is about Anne's daughter, Rilla (no shit!) who lives, not coincidentally, at Ingleside. It starts in 1914, when Rilla is about 15 or so, and abruptly plunges into war. The book covers the whole four year period, so there is some serious time-compression involved, although I wouldn't say that any part feels rushed, and Rilla's maturity comes at a natural pace.
This one is also about the home front, although it's for older readers than The Singing Tree, even though this home front is a lot further away from any action than Hungary. There is some death in this book, although all off-screen, and there is a semi-orphaned child (whose father is at the front) that Rilla takes care of. There is also more news of the war in this book, as basically the entire rest of Rilla's siblings are working for the war effort in one way or another, while Rilla stays at home and organizes Red Cross events and buys ugly hats. In fact, there's a lot more detail than necessary, as LMM seems to think that the readers will be just as familiar with Kitchener and the Kaiser and Verdun and Courcelette and Bucharest and Jutland and Wilson and so on as she is. I'm sure that was true when it came out, but people today are so much less informed about the war, it can be kinda confusing, like you're missing the context for a lot of these references.
I remember not liking this much when I first read it, as I was mostly interested in the romance between Rilla and Kenneth, and there, frankly, isn't a whole lot, since he's at war most of the book. But I did re-read it more recently, and I was able to enjoy Rilla for her own sake, as the desperately proud and stubborn teenager, that everyone else seems determined to bring down to earth. She's got a pretty good attitude about herself, and I do relate to her scene in the movie theater.
[Another aside: I don't generally feel the need to yell things at the screen, but I had to tell you, I had the most god-awful urge during the Quiévrechain advance in War Horse to scream at the British cavalry, "You're all going to die! Stop! Go home!" which would have not only been disruptive, but also, in light of what happened next, a bit of a spoiler. If one can spoil the plot of WWI, that is.]
A Countess Below Stairs, by Eva Ibbotson
After the Russian revolution turns her world topsy-turvy, Anna, a young Russian countess, has no choice but to flee to England. Penniless, Anna hides her aristocratic background and takes a job as servant in the household of the esteemed Westerholme family, armed only with an outdated housekeeping manual and sheer determination. Desperate to keep her past a secret, Anna is nearly overwhelmed by her new duties—not to mention her instant attraction to Rupert, the handsome earl of Westerholme. To make matters worse, Rupert appears to be falling for her as well. As their attraction grows stronger, Anna finds it more and more difficult to keep her most dearly held secrets from unraveling. And then there’s the small matter of Rupert’s beautiful and nasty fiancée. . . .This is sort of cheating, since it doesn't take place quite during the war, but immediately after, in 1919. Rupert actually comes home after recovering in a hospital, and Anna's family is fleeing the fall out of the events of 1917. This is a pretty unrealistic book, and even though there are serious topics involved, the parties all sort of brush them aside in favor of romantic hijinks and pratfalls. For instance, when Anna is telling Rupert about the death of her father in the war, and then mentions, almost as an afterthought, that during the revolution, the soldiers were killing the officers, so they try to be glad he died before his own men could shoot him. Wait, what?!
I know it's part of Anna's charm that she is supposed to be unsinkable in the face of tragedy and obstacles, but to be honest, that sounds like a lot more interesting book right there, albeit one possibly not for children. Instead of getting the full scoop on that, we're treated to love triangle between Rupert and Anna and Muriel, Rupert's hilariously over-the-top evil fiancee. And when I say "hilarious" I don't mean she's funny, only that she's ridiculous, and an insult to three-dimensional villains everywhere. She has literally, not one redeeming feature. She's racist, she's snobby, she's a eugenicist, she's practically an adulterer, she's selfish and unaware, she's petty, etc., etc., etc. No, wait, one redeeming feature: she's got a great bosom. Great call, Rupert. I really respect your taste.
I mean, there's just no tension there, since it's absurd that anyone would allow this farce of an engagement to actually proceed to marriage. It's just not even a legitimate concern, just a stage prop for shenanigans and set-pieces involving the black sheep cousins pretending to be loony. And you know, I can generally handle a bit of non-realism in a teen novel, but this is taking it way too far. Even Disney wouldn't have had the long-missing nanny turn up with millions in sapphires and emeralds after a mysterious and ominous four year absence. Okay, maybe Disney would have. But it's the same reasoning that leads to Sara Crewe's father reappearing alive and (mostly) well, having gotten convenient amnesia for most of the book. It's not necessary to the story, and it cheats it a little. Well, it might have been necessary in this book, since Rupert desperately needed the funds to get the house back on its feet, but it still feels like cheating.
I guess I like A Countess Below Stairs alright, but more because I like the idea of it, rather than the execution, a problem I seem to have with all of Ms. Ibbotson's works. On top of all that, I barely got to talk about WWI for this book. It's there, it's the basis for the book, and why everyone is where they are, but it also has more of a deus ex feel, so as to provide a convenient excuse of PTSD nightmares for when Anna and Rupert need to have a secluded little heart-to-heart.
And that really is a surprisingly short list. I do feel like I am leaving books off, so if there are others, leave a note in the comments, if you like, so perhaps the next time I list what I know about WWI, the extent of my knowledge won't end with christmas cease-fires and white feathers.
