War Boy: A Country Childhood
by Michael Foreman
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Description
Foreman's account of his wartime childhood in the 1940s in the village of Pakefield, England.Tags
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Member Reviews
"I woke up when the name came through the roof." So begins "War Boy: A Country Childhood," by Michael Foreman. This story caught my eye as a potential story to use to discuss the theme of growing up too fast. I only intended to peruse it for this purpose. I instead found myself reading the entire thing, which is not such a long task in the end. As a memoir, it is unique. The illustrations are a bit fanciful and borderline nonfiction, but they do help paint the picture of wartime England in the eyes of a child. The story is both innocent and hilarious at times, such as the line, "Some of my friends had big sisters, so they got to know the Yanks well." I thoroughly enjoyed this story and feel it could be a part of every classroom library show more to help teach World War II, if not be a resource to teach the war itself. show less
Beautiful book! Extraordinary illustrations and a wonderful reminiscence of a childhood during wartime in Britain. Quick read but one you'll want to linger through.
Stunning artwork and engaging prose
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Lists
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Author Information
Michael Foreman was born in Pakefield, Suffolk on March 21, 1938. At the age of fifteen, Foreman began to study art. His first children's book was published while he was still a student. He earned his M. A. from the Royal College of Art and since then, has written and/or illustrated many children's books. After leaving art school Michael traveled show more all over the world making films and television commercials. He has also worked on magazines, book jackets, animated films, and TV ads. He even worked for the police, sketching criminals described by witnesses. Foreman has won the Kate Greenaway Award twice, the Smarties Book Prize, The Kurt Maschler Award, the Children's Book Award, the Bologna Book Prize and the Francis William's Illustration Award twice. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Some Editions
Awards and Honors
Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 1989
- Important places
- Suffolk, England, UK; Lowestoft, Suffolk, England, UK
- Important events
- World War II, British Home Front
- Dedication
- TO MY BROTHERS AND OUR MUM
- First words
- I woke up when the bomb came through the roof.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)She was held in high esteem by her boys who frequented the wee shop on the corner, for their sweets, cigs, a coffee and a wee motherly chat – and when we have our reunion this year we will remember her.
Gus Dalgliesh KOSB, May 1982
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 253
- Popularity
- 127,648
- Reviews
- 4
- Rating
- (3.56)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper
- ISBNs
- 7
- ASINs
- 1
