World War II Children's Classic: The Chestry Oak by Kate Seredy (1896-1975)

The Chestry Oak, originally published in 1948, is a book I first heard about nearly twenty years ago. It had been out of print for a good number of years even then, but every now and again I'd do an internet search only to find one or two old copies exorbitantly priced.

Well-written World War II books for children are irresistible in my opinion, and considering that this one was written so close to the end of WWII, by a Hungarian author (Kate Seredy emigrated to the USA in 1922), I was really hoping that one day it would be reprinted. And recently Purple House Press did so.

The story opens in Hungary where five year old Michael, Prince of Chestry and his beloved nurse, Nana, awaken to the drone of overhead planes as Allied aircraft fill the skies. The outside world has changed and those changes are beginning to be felt even within Chestry Castle.

Mr John, his English tutor, leaves suddenly (we later find that he is killed in a concentration camp) and in his place comes the Professor:

Now he had only the Professor to teach him everything one learned out of books, and even the books were different, new and full of what the Professor called "facts."

Professor never sang or laughed, and when he smiled it was as if it hurt him someplace.

As the story progresses, an ominous presence in the castle is revealed, growing stronger with each passing day. Intruders come and go. Dangerous intruders, ill with greed and a dreadful conceit.

Hungary has been invaded by the Nazis and Michael's father is forced into seeming collusion with the enemy to protect his people from the same fate as Poland. Nana knows this, and even at a young age, Michael begins to understand also that his father is 'pretending' to be co-operating with the enemy. Although others such as the old butler think otherwise:

(Nana) heard Antal almost sob the words, "They have our Prince in their power now...and day by day, hour by hour, the teachings of the Professor are poisoning the very soul of his child, the last Chestry, Michael."

Before long the castle is turned into Headquarters for the German High Command and Michael's father sends Nana back to her people for her own safety.

Michael visits Nana and each time he has something to tell her...a sentence or a line of poetry his father asked him to say...it made no sense to him:

"Slowly, her full round face bent over the nest. It was full of snakes."

One day the Nazis decide that Michael is to be sent to Vienna. His father tells him that there will be a raid on Chestry Valley that very night. Michael is to escape on horseback and go to Nana. She will look after him and tell him what is to be done. At the last minute, Michael is unable to part with his beloved horse, Midnight, and takes him instead of the reliable mount his father instructs him to ride - a decision which is to have far reaching consequences.

The book moves slowly at first but half way through it picks up pace and the story becomes quite engrossing.

Kate Seredy has an unusual style, very lyrical, and with some little gems of thought that I didn't always pick up at first. It was only as the story unfolded more that these little pieces came together and filled in the gaps. At first the author seems to write as if to a young child but then expresses a depth that goes beyond a younger child's grasp (although it is still suitable for a younger age).

For this reason, as well as the fact that there are some beautiful ideals of courage, faith and integrity woven into the story, I think the book lends itself well to being read aloud to a wide range of ages. It is suggested as a free read in Year 6 of Ambleside Online but as it has been out of print for so long it's possibly a book that hasn't been used by many AO families.

He had no name for the sick trembling that shook him, for he had never been shamed before. He only knew what it was not - not fear, not anger, not pain, yet all of them, fused into a torment he didn't know how to cope with, a foreign, freezing lump inside him, so hateful to feel that his muscles contorted painfully in long, wrenching shivers.

...The earth had risen, split open before him, and out of the dark chasm the voice of the valley had cried words of contempt. The trees and the multitudes of grasses had turned into fingers pointing in accusation at him, at his father, at Chestry Castle, "You are the enemy."

Linking this post to Booknificent Thursdays

Bambi: a Life in the Woods by Felix Salten (1869-1945)

Bambi is the life study of a forest deer who begins his life under the care of his doting mother, happy and carefree, and surrounded by the other forest animals.

One day his mother disappears for a while and for the first time he finds himself alone. He wanders around troubled and in despair. In his misery be begins to call for her when suddenly, one of the father deer appears in front of him, proud and powerful.

"What are you crying about?" the old stag asked severely...

"Can't you stay by yourself? Shame on you!"

He is the old Prince, the biggest stag in the forest.

Before the younger deer could reply, the old stag disappears but Bambi is awed by the encounter. After this the great Prince is never far from his thoughts and Bambi longs to win his approval.

One day Bambi learns that danger lurks in the forest.

"What is it, Mother?" he asked. "What is it, Mother?"

His mother answered between gasps, "It - was - He!"

Bambi begins to learn about Man. The forest animals say He is all powerful. He kills what He wants and nothing can stop Him.

The old stag returns and visits Bambi from time to time. He teaches him wisdom and shows him how to preserve himself. He watches over Bambi and saves his life when he is wounded by Him.

Then comes the day when the old stag gives Bambi his final lesson. Following a terrifying scent, the old stag leads Bambi to where a poacher lies dead upon the ground.

"Do you see, Bambi," the old stag went on, "do you see how He's lying there dead, like all of us? He isn't all-powerful as they say. Everything that lives and grows doesn't come from Him...

He has the same fears, the same needs, and suffers in the same way...

Do you understand me, Bambi?"

Bambi was inspired, and said trembling, "There is Another who is over us all, over us and over Him."

Bambi is a gem, delicately and poetically written. As with some other notable children's classics (Pinocchio, Jungle Book and Grimm's Fairy Tales, for example)  the original book has been adapted to death, condensed, sanitised, swallowed up and presented as a movie that misses the real story. We know all about Bambi, Pinocchio, Mowgli and Snow White but we have not met them personally.

Felix Salten was the pseudonym of Austrian author and critic, Siegmund Saltzman. Born in Budapest, he lived in Vienna but settled in Switzerland after fleeing from the Nazis. He originally wrote Bambi in German in 1923 and in 1928 Simon & Schuster published the first English edition. This edition has a forward written by novelist and playwright John Galsworthy, who describes the story as 'delicious,' and, 'a little masterpiece.'

Bambi is scheduled as a free read in the Ambleside Online Year 4 curriculum.

Updated to add: the original book is online here.

This book is part of my reading for Back to the Classics 2015 (a Children's Classic), The Classics Club and the 2015 Classic Children's Literature Event.

2015 Classic Children’s Literature Event: The Winged Watchman by Hilda van Stockum

In the month of January I'm linking up at Simpler Pastimes for Amanda's Classic Children's Literature event. I only have two books selected, as I think that's all I'll have time for:

The Winged Watchman by Hilda van Stockum and Bambi by Felix Salten

The Winged Watchman by Hilda van Stockum (1908-2006)

It's not easy to find a story that presents a realistic picture of World War II and is at the same time appealing and suitable for younger children but The Winged Watchman by Hilda van Stockum satisfies this criteria.
Written in 1962 and set in the years 1944 & 1945 during the Nazi occupation of Holland, The Winged Watchman is a work of fiction which accurately portrays occupied Holland at that time, as readers who lived through those days have attested. But, of course, many other books have been accurate in their portrayal of this time period. What the author did in this book to make it appropriate for young children was:

* To include enough realism to make it believable, while at the same time
* To temper the story with an underlying optimism that good will eventually conquer evil
* To view the war through the lens of a young boy in an warm & happy family

The war years are seen through the eyes of Joris Verhagen, a ten year old boy, who lived with his father and mother; his brother Dirk Jan aged fourteen, and their little 'sister' Trixie, in the Rynsater polder. Their father, a millwright, was responsible for keeping the polder (a piece of reclaimed land) dry, and he operated the old wind-powered mill, 'The Watchman.'

Joris was six years old when the Nazis overran Holland and was incredulous when Dirk Jan talked about life before the war. Joris had only known rationing, the drone of English bombers and the sense of an always present danger.
In Joris's eyes, everything was black and white.
When the Germans posted a notice ordering all dog-owners to present their dogs for inspection so that useful animals could be drafted into the army, Joris was devastated that his beloved, energetic dog, Freya, would be taken.

Why doesn't God stop the Germans?
Why does He let them continue to do awful things?
He could just kill them all!

When his mother told lies to protect a life, Joris was shocked and said so. His mother's reply told him what he had vaguely felt was right, but his black and white thinking wouldn't allow him to accept:

"It is bad when you hide the truth from someone who has a right to it, and in a normal world, where people try to obey God, everyone has a right to the truth.
But when you know that the other person is going to use the truth to maim and kill, do you think he still has a right to it?
The Germans...broke their treaty with us, invaded our country, bombed our cities, chased away our lawful government, killed or deported our men, women and children...
Do you think they have a right to the truth?
You are right to hate lies, my dear. But remember that truth itself becomes a lie in the twisted minds of our conquerors."

The Verhagens lived in the country and were better off than the city-dwellers who faced severe food shortages, but they had their own share of troubles and danger.
Their neighbour's son was a traitor who spied on them continually and the author used the tension involved in this situation and other areas to explore the theme of moral responsibility.
Moral responses aren't always black and white, as Joris learns, and the right choice often comes at a cost. It cost the Verhagen family a great deal but at the end of the war, when peace finally came, they were counting their blessings - thankful, despite their losses.

I read this book aloud some years ago and this month I read it for the first time with my youngest. It remains one of my favourite, not to be missed, books for children.
It is a simple, faith-filled story and is an ideal vehicle for presenting and discussing such things as truth, courage, wisdom and moral responsibility.
Children around the age of about 7 years and up (or younger, depending on the child) would love this book but if you have an older child who hasn't read it, I think they would enjoy it also.
As with another World War II book, The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom (which I highly recommend for older children & adults) civil disobedience is an important concept that could be discussed alongside moral responsibility.

Hilda van Stockum dedicated her book to her brother, a Royal Dutch Air Force pilot who was killed during a bombing raid over France in 1944. He wrote the following words, which capture the sentiment expressed in the book, before his death:

"I could stand idly by and see every painting by Rembrandt, Leonard da Vinci and Michelangelo thrown into a bonfire and feel no more than a deep regret, but throw one small, insignificant Polish urchin on the same bonfire, and by God, I'll pull him out or else. I fight quite simply for that...It is as simple as St. George and the Dragon."

The Winged Watchman is published by Bethlehem Books.
191pg.

Also linking up at Booknificent Thursday