The Letter Home [Hardcover]

Timothy Decker (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 30, 2005 | Age Level: 11 and up | Grade Level: 6 and up

A medic is sent to the front lines in the trenches of World War I. There he writes a letter to his young son describing in careful words what he does, the people he meets, and what he sees. Stark and beautiful drawings depict more fully what the letter only hints at. The Letter Home is a fable of war for all time. It marks the debut of a startling new talent.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Decker's debut, styled as an illustrated letter from an American medic to his child at the end of WW I, indicates the difficulties of explaining war to a young audience. Scant background is provided—readers never hear who is fighting whom, or why—but the title page vaguely announces a setting (Europe, 1918), and the letter-writer is recognizable by his Red Cross armband and lack of a rifle. Terse words and pictures of icy weather convey his physical coldness and raw boredom, although he rarely speaks of his medical duties. One pen-and-ink drawing appears per page, a postcard-size rectangle captioned with an oblique statement about what he has endured. The medic remembers his infantry's march to the front lines, passing beneath American and French flags. On a stark, barbed-wire-strewn battlefield ("Some nights were alive with fireworks"), a soldier peeks out of a sandbagged trench as white explosions crack the sky. "Sometimes we played hide and seek," says the medic ingenuously, as he and others evade shadowy armed figures. The soldiers' bland faces, with no mouths, eyes turned down at the corners, convey dejection, and some details recall antiwar novels such as Slaughterhouse-Five ("Hendricks found a woman's coat. We all laughed.... He said that it kept him warm"). Yet the medic's "prayer" as his ship glides toward the Statue of Liberty ("Compassion as action to ease the pain of the world") remains as enigmatic as the situation. The retrospective "letter," which alludes to death while remaining nonjudgmental, implies the painful realities that adults try to withhold from children. All ages. (Nov.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From School Library Journal

Grade 6 Up–This spare, somber picture book is best suited to older students or adults as readers must have some background knowledge of World War I to comprehend it. Careful attention to the black-and-white, pen-and-ink illustrations is required in order to understand the details that are not spelled out in the slight text. The title page features a picture of old-fashioned twin-wing airplanes. A banner in the corner says, 1918 Europe. The story begins with an illustration of a man writing a letter. It reads, I did not want to write to you until I could say that I would be home soon. His descriptions are brief but emotion-filled. As the book progresses, readers learn that he is encapsulating his entire wartime experience in this one letter. They see the journey across a great body of water, then soldiers marching with packs. The illustrations show fortifications with barbed wire and foxholes. The boredom and anxiety of waiting are both conveyed. A signal bird finally brings the long-awaited news–It ends, 11:00 a.m. 11/11. A boat passes the Statue of Liberty, providing the clue that the man is returning home. The final image shows a boy holding a letter beside the still-open mailbox as a man in a soldiers uniform appears before him. A thoughtful reminiscence thats sure to spark discussion.–Lucinda Snyder Whitehurst, St. Christophers School, Richmond, VA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 11 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Front Street Press; First Edition. states edition (September 30, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1932425500
• ISBN-13: 978-1932425505
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 9.7 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #936,204 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sheer Artistry, November 21, 2005

By 

Cole Silvers (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Letter Home (Hardcover)

What caught my eye was the drawing on the cover. It simply had an innocent child and his letter standing in the 'light'...while an adult, in military boots, looked on. When I reviewed the pages, I realized that the time period was WWI---a period rarely taught these days. The story was of a soldier, a loving father, writing a letter home to his little son from the war. Wondering how Timothy Decker could compose a children's book in this setting compelled me to read the entire book. What astounded me was the fact that no enemy, harsh statements or issues were even addressed. He did succeed, however, in conveying the simple aspects of human loss, love and earnest desire to go home. This is a suitable book in times like these when we cannot seem to understand world events as adults...let alone explain them to our children. This was a work of artistry and sensitivity. I highly recommend it.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Compassion as action to ease the pain of the world", June 15, 2009

By 

Janice Bouchard "Janice & Judy" (CCSU-CT) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Letter Home (Hardcover)

The Letter Home, by Timothy Decker is a story written about a medic on the front lines of WW1 in 1918. The author is writing a letter to his young son describing his battle experience. The letter uses child-friendly language in order to protect his son from the evils of war. The illustrations, however depict a stark existance, which the words fail to portray. If you were to read the text without the illustrations you might not understand the harsh realities of war.

The author/illustrators paid careful attention to details and the black and white lithograph depict a harsh and lonely reality of war. The illustrations reinforce what the careful text avoids.

In an attempt to reassure his son back home the author chooses his words with care. He injects humor into an otherwise sorrowful situation and offers immediate comfort when he begins his letter with, "I did not want to write to you until I could say that I would be home soon."

The illustrations in this book give a realistic impression about the difficulties of life on the frontline. The text offers a censored version appropriate for a younger or more sensitive audience. This book would be best suited for an upper elementary classroom in supporting the difficulties soldiers had when communicating their experiences without inflicting fear on their families. I would avoid reading it to a young audience, especially one with family members who have been deployed.

5.0 out of 5 stars Compelling Approach to a Sensitive Period in History, July 7, 2009

By 

The Bookworm (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Letter Home (Hardcover)

Be sure to read the inside jacket summary prior to the book to set the stage for reading. The story is told in a father's protective perspective to his son, but the story behind the story is told through the illustrations.

The pen and ink drawings portray more of a realistic historical view of WWI and the events leading to the armistice (prelude to peace). The simplicity of the letter protects the reader (his son) from the true horrors and hardships that the main character (the father)experiences during his medic tour of duty in Europe.