The Great War

Stories Inspired by Items from the First World War

By: David Almond, John Boyne, Tracy Chevalier, Ursula Dubosarsky, Timothée de Fombelle, Jim Kay - illustrator

Narrated by: Nico Evers-Swindell, JD Jackson, Gerard Doyle, Richard Halverson

In a powerful collection, eleven internationally acclaimed fiction writers draw on personal objects to bring the First World War to life for listeners of all ages.

A toy soldier. A butter dish. A compass. Mundane objects, perhaps, but to the remarkable authors in this collection, artifacts such as these have inspired stories that go to the heart of the human experience of World War I. Each author was invited to choose an object that had a connection to the war - a writing kit for David Almond, a helmet for Michael Morpurgo - and use it as the inspiration for an original short story. What results is an extraordinary collection, illustrated throughout by the award-winning Jim Kay and featuring photographs of the objects with accounts of their history and the authors' reasons for selecting them. A blend of fiction and real-life events, this unique anthology provides young listeners with a personal window into the Great War and the people affected by it, and serves as an invaluable resource for families and teachers alike.

©2014 Walker Books Ltd., first U.S. edition published by Candlewick Press. (P)2015 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved. "Our Jacko" © 2014 by Michael Morpurgo. "Another Kind of Missing" © 2014 by A. L. Kennedy. "Don't Call It Glory" © 2014 by Marcus Sedgwick. "The Country You Called Home" © 2014 by John Boyne. "When They Were Needed Most" © 2014 by Tracy Chevalier. "A World That Has No War in It" © 2014 by David Almond. "A Harlem Hellfighter and His Horn" © 2014 by Tanya Lee Stone. "Maud's Story" © 2014 by Adèle Geras. "Captain Rosalie" © 2014 by Timothée de Fombelle; translation © 2014 by Sam Gordon. "Each Slow Dusk" © 2014 by Sheena Wilkinson. "Little Wars" © 2014 by Ursula Dubosarsky.

Definitely thought provoking stories about events that should not be forgotten.

I love history and would consider myself to be moderately well informed with the events of World War I.
When trying to read or study about events during this time I find myself usually becoming overwhelmed.
I cannot help but think about how war was changed forever and about the mass distruction that was available for the first time due to aircraft and other advances.
I often wonder what the fathers and grandfathers of the soldiers thought and if they had ever imagined such things possible.
It's completely understandable how those living at the time believed nothing like that would ever happen again.
In my opinion some of the stories were seemed more particular to that time period Others were quite relevant for today as well.
I appreciate the fact that although the stories were told from people of different nationalities and on different sides of the war no particular nation was demonized.
For me at least, The stories or not so much about the enemy but about shared human experiences. All the stories were good and thought-provoking, in my opinion a couple were outstanding.
That is the reason I gave this a four star rating.
The narration was very well done.
Some of the narrators we're new to me but Gerard Doyle is among my very favorites.
I was glad to see him featured in this book.