Half a Man by Michael Morpurgo
Half a Man is a small square illustrated book with limited text that has been published for middle grade readers. It tells the story, from young Michael's perspective, of his relationship with his divorced grandfather who was badly burned when his merchant ship was torpedoed during WWII.
While growing up, visits were stilted and uncomfortable and full of nervousness that he might stare at his grandfather's scars, after being told repeatedly by his mother that he must not. The two slowly began to connect only when Michael was sent alone to spend part of his summer holiday with his grandfather (who lived on the distant Scilly Isles) It is only after high school that Michael finally hear the story of what happened during the war and in the years afterwards when his grandparents split up. It is all as tragic as readers might expect and made all the more so by how everything went sadly wrong when the survivor, so horribly scarred, both physically and emotionally, returned home.
I read the book in minutes--there's not much to it after all--and was struck both by the gorgeous and scorching honesty of Morpurgo's story and the truly lovely accompanying illustrations by Gemma O'Callaghan. It's all such an elegant package and I really really love it but....I don't for a second think this is a book for kids 8-12 years-old.
It is not that the subject matter is too intense; kids read about horrible things all the time and there is nothing portrayed in a graphic manner (either through words or images) in Half a Man. But what the book is really about--compassion, empathy, becoming a man and sharing emotional honesty with those you love--well, I can't help but think it is all too much for the average tween. Are there some who will get it? Yes, yes, I'm sure they are out there. But this is a book that I believe requires the reader have more life experience then most middle graders bring to the table. I just don't think they have lived enough to get what Murpurgo is sharing and while Half a Man might not appear to be the sort of book that teens (and adults) should be reading I think they are the ones who will appreciate it the most.
(I have a very smart 9 year-old niece and I am 100% certain she would read this book, tell me it was sad and then move on without a backward glance after turning the last page. It's too much to expect her to get this one right now and a waste of time to try.)
Half a Man is an amazing book and I hope that it finds readers who will appreciate every single word.
[Interior spread via Candlewick Press.]
