28 July 1914. The day it started, the day everything changed. And the day of Alfie Summerfield's fifth birthday, the last birthday he'd be spending happy and safe in the company of his father and most of his friends for several years.

The day the Great War broke out, a great anxiety and stress spread across Damley Road. Alfie had heard talk about a war, but hadn't realised exactly what was going on until a few days after he turned five, when his father Georgie walked into their house wearing a khaki-coloured uniform. And it was then that Granny Summerfield had declared that they were finished, they were all finished.

Since that unforgettable morning when Georgie left for the station to go and fight, things could never be the same for Alfie and his mum again.

As the war drags on, even Alfie's closest friends are being taken away, and who knows for how long? And although Alfie is doing his best to be helpful and responsible, he can't help thinking the unthinkable… imagining the impossible… Could his father be dead?

This incredibly moving book cleverly covers most of the different points of view of people living in England during the tragic events of the First World War. I usually don't really enjoy books about younger children, I prefer ones about teenagers. But Alfie is different: John Boyne has created a realistic, interesting young boy who has plenty of character and a courageous soul.

An interesting point was that each chapter was called, as I found out, a line from different songs that were popular at that time.The only things that the story could have done without were the occasional unnecessary descriptions, although I liked the way that the tale - well, the writing – seemed to be growing with Alfie.

John Boyne's book isn't only about the war and the soldiers, but also about their families, the people who were left behind and everything they had to go through in order to survive. I also liked the way the story is focused especially on the war's impact on these people and how or if they managed to recover.

I learnt a lot throughout this book, for example the meanings of 'conchie' and the 'white feather'. I was very touched and moved by the ending, and also horrified at what some of the soldiers had to go through.

I felt very sorry for some of the conchies, because, by refusing to fight, they got treated like selfish cowards, even though, for some of them, the reason they didn't want to fight wasn't that they were scared of dying, but that they didn't want to hurt other people. For me, the conchies were also proof that there are different kinds of bravery, and that it's not because you don't throw yourself in front of the gunshots that you're not brave.

I think this is an important book, especially this year for the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War, and if you are looking for a book to find out a bit more about the war and the people who had to live through it, then I strongly recommend this one.

I'm sure a lot of readers today will relate to Alfie - there are still men, women and children dying in wars, there are still people who live in the fear of never seeing one of their friends or family again.

And that is why we should care about this story.

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