An Eagle in the Snow

November 14, 2016
What if a British soldier had a chance to shoot Hitler on a WWI battlefield but opted to let him go instead? Morpurgo’s incisive historical novel draws inspiration from the life of Henry Tandey, the war’s most decorated British private, who allegedly had just such an encounter. Naming his protagonist Billy Byron, Morpurgo tells the story in flashbacks, as a boy named Barney and his mother flee Coventry on a London-bound train in 1940. Another passenger, who introduces himself as one of Billy’s lifelong friends, describes Billy’s self-doubt, guilt, and dismay when lingering battle wounds prevented him from serving in WWII, since “as far as Billy was concerned, this whole war is his fault.” The stranger’s descriptions of Billy’s compassion and emotional turmoil are gripping in their own right, but Morpurgo will catch some readers off guard with supernaturally tinged twists he drops in the final chapters and epilogue. Originally published in the U.K. in 2015, this is an intricately crafted contemplation of the wrenching consequences of good intentions gone awry. Ages 10–14.

October 1, 2016

Gr 4-6-World War II has ravaged England, including the homes on Mulberry Road. Ten-year-old Barney and his mother are headed out to the country to Aunty Mavis's home with all they have left in the world inside their luggage. A stranger boards the train and takes the seat across from them. After some small talk, the train begins to trudge forward, and they settle in for the ride. Suddenly, a German fighter plane surges from the sky and attacks the train. With the rat-a-tat of bullets pelting the train, the conductor races down the track toward a tunnel. As he slams on the brakes, everyone is plunged into total darkness. Barney, being afraid of the dark, starts to panic. The stranger dispels the boy's fears with a small box of matches. He has four and will light them only when Barney feels he needs the light. To pass the time, the stranger tells the story of two young soldiers from the previous war. The British soldier was the most decorated private of the First World War. The German soldier just might have been Hitler himself. This work of historical fiction, divided into four parts, will leave middle grade readers on the edge of their seats as they try to determine who the stranger is and how this random encounter during World War I could have altered history. VERDICT Another gripping historical novel from the author of War Horse, and a first-rate addition to historical fiction collections.-Annette Herbert, F. E. Smith Elementary School, Cortland, NY

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 15, 2016
Grades 5-8 Morpurgo's gentle WWII tale is loosely based on a real British soldier who may or may not have spared Adolf Hitler's life during WWI. Barney and his mother are traveling to Cornwall by train after their home in Coventry is bombed. Another passenger joins them in their compartment, and when the train takes refuge from German fighter planes in a tunnel, to pass the time, the man tells them about his friend Billy Byron, who, during WWI, let a German soldier go instead of shooting him. Later, he learns that the soldier was Adolf Hitler, and he missed his chance at preventing WWII. The narrative is deceptively simple, and while Barney is the narrator, most of the narrative consists of the man telling Billy Byron's story. The casual tone of the story the stranger tells is in compellingly sharp contrast to the powerful questions it raises about duty and honor. A couple of light twists at the end are not entirely unexpected. Morpurgo concludes the book with information about Henry Tandey, the real Billy Byron.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)