Private Peaceful relives the life of Private Tommo Peaceful, a young First World War soldier awaiting the firing squad at dawn. During the night he looks back at his short but joyful past growing up in rural Devon; his exciting first days at school; the accident in the forest that killed his father; his adventures with Molly, the love of his life; and the battles and injustices of war that brought him to the front line. “An infinitely touching, intensely acted account of a young First World War Soldier’s final day.” Sunday Express Winner of the 2005 Blue Peter Book of the Year Award, Private Peaceful is by the third Children’s Laureate Michael Morpurgo. The inspiration for Private Peaceful came from Morpurgo’s visit to Ypres where he was shocked to discover how many young soldiers were court-martialled and shot for cowardice during the First World War. “As moving as the poetry of Wilfred Owen and as painfully memorable as white-hot shrapnel…” The Sunday Herald