War Horse

War Horse is a children’s historical fiction novel by Michael Morpurgo. The book was first published in Great Britain in 1982 by Kaye & Ward and was a runner-up for the Whitbread Book Award in the same year. The book is told from the point of view of a young horse named Joey and chronicles his journey and the relationships he builds with his various owners during World War I. The beloved novel is a tale of enduring friendship and courage against all odds. Playwright Nick Stafford adapted War Horse into an award-winning play in 2007, and the play was received with critical acclaim, winning an Olivier Award, Evening Standard Theatre Award, and London Critic’s Circle Theatre Award for design. In 2011, director Steven Spielberg adapted the novel into a film starring Jeremy Irvine, Tom Hiddleston, Emily Watson, and Benedict Cumberbatch. The version of the book used for this guide is the 2018 Scholastic Gold Edition.

Plot Summary

A few years before the start of World War I, a spirited Red Bay colt named Joey is born in Devon, England, and is quickly bought by a drunken farmer. Joey doesn’t go without a fight, however, and by the time they arrive at the farm, he is “soaked with sweat, and the halter [has] rubbed [his] face raw” (3). The farmer’s wife and his young son, Albert, visit Joey, and Albert and the horse are immediately drawn to one another. Albert begins to clean the sweat-soaked horse tenderly, talking to him as he does so. Mother insists that Joey can’t understand Albert, but the boy believes there is an “immediate and instinctive bond of trust between [them]” (7).

When he isn’t at school or working, Albert takes Joey on long walks, and Joey learns “to come at his whistle, not out of obedience, but because [he] always want[s] to be with [Albert]” (8). Father’s drinking continues, and he returns home drunk every Tuesday. Two years after Joey’s arrival, Father staggers into Joey’s stall with a whip. He tells Joey that he has made a bet that he can tame the horse to plow a field within a week and will do whatever it takes to win. When Father raises the whip, Joey kicks him. Infuriated, Father threatens to shoot the horse but instead says that Albert must train the horse in one week or Joey will be sold. Determined to keep Joey, Albert does what he must: His “gentle words and kindnesses of the past” (14) are replaced with shouts and flashes of a whip “whenever [Albert] felt [Joey isn’t] giving it [his] best” (14). At week’s end, the bet is won, and Joey stays.

Britain enters World War I, and Albert wants to join the army with Joey at his side. At home, there are long debates, mostly between Albert and his mother, over Father’s drunkenness and irresponsible behavior. Mother says that Father’s worries about the mortgage—secured so Albert could have the farm one day—drive him to drink. She asks Albert to “try to see the good in him” (19), but Albert wishes that Father would stop complaining about Joey all the time.

One night, Father sends Albert on an errand so he can lure Joey out of the stall. He sells him for 40 pounds to Captain Nicholls of the British Army. Albert arrives at the camp too late to stop the sale, so he offers to join the cavalry to stay with Joey, but he is too young. The Captain promises to take care of Joey and gives Albert time to say goodbye. Albert promises Joey that one day they will be reunited.   

Joey is soon training to be a war horse, working with Corporal Samuel Perkins, an ex-jockey who is “universally feared by all troopers and horses alike” (32). Nicholls visits Joey, talks to him like Albert did, and sketches him. Joey also enjoys the company of Nicholl's best friend, Captain Jamie Stewart, and his horse, Topthorn. Topthorn is an impressive black horse that match’s Joey strength and loyalty. As Joey adjusts to his new life, he dwells on his old life less often. However, “Albert, his face and his voice [stay] clear in [Joey’s] mind” (37).

During one visit, Captain Nicholls tells Joey that he doesn’t want to be at war and fears his soldiers underestimate the gravity of what they face. His fears are borne out, as the cavalry is no match for the machine guns and artillery awaiting them. The troops arriving in France are greeted by long stretches of wounded and dead soldiers. Joey learns the finality of death for himself when, in the first battle, Captain Nicholls is shot off his back and never seen again.

Joey’s next owner is a young apprentice blacksmith, Trooper Warren, who is gentle and kind. The last horse Trooper Warren rode was shot out from under him, but Joey helps him find the strength and courage to ride again. Joey, Trooper Warren, Captain Stewart, and Topthorn are the sole survivors of the battle. They land in enemy territory, surrounded by German soldiers. The soldiers are taken prisoner, and the horses are put to work in the German army.

The Germans treat Joey and Topthorn with the utmost respect, even providing them with “the luxury of a stable” (69). They haul ambulances to and from the front lines and save the lives of many soldiers (German and British alike). The stable the Germans are using belongs to an elderly French man and his granddaughter, young Emilie. Emilie cares for the horses as if they are hers and spends all her time talking with them. One night, Emilie falls ill and nearly perishes. She miraculously pulls through, but her body is never quite as strong as before.

The Germans leave but allow Joey and Topthorn to stay behind with Grandfather and Emilie. Soon, the horses’ peaceful life on the farm is interrupted again by the arrival of more German soldiers. They demand that Grandfather hand over the horses to the army. Emilie says a tearful goodbye but vows that she will get them back one day. Once again, Joey and Topthorn are off to war.

The war grows much more difficult for the men and the horses. They spend their days trudging through the mud with sores on their legs, and they go for days without food and rest. Even the strong and dutiful Topthorn eventually succumbs to the terrible conditions and dies from heart failure. Joey stays at his friend’s side as long as he possibly can but must abandon Topthorn’s corpse when “the first tank [he] ever [sees]” comes lumbering toward him. Desperate to escape, he runs into a coil of barbed wire and injures his leg. When he finally pulls himself free, he “stumble[s] on into the night, guided only by the belief that where the night was at its blackest, there alone [he] might find some safety from the shelling” (108). Eventually, Joey realizes he is in a vast, battered terrain between two enemy camps: no-man’s-land.

From either side of no-man’s-land, a German soldier and a British soldier each appear with a white flag and try to coax Joey to them. The two set aside their differences to discuss what is best for the horse. They determine that either camp can sufficiently tend to Joey’s wounded leg, so they flip a coin to decide his fate. The British soldier wins, and the German leaves them peacefully behind. Joey is placed in a wagon and taken to the British veterinary hospital.

There, Joey is greeted with awe as the famous horse who survived no-man’s-land. He is taken away to be cleaned by a young soldier, who turns out to be Albert. Albert joined the cavalry as soon as he was old enough in the hopes of being reunited with Joey. Joey recognizes Albert first, but Albert is uncertain until he stands away from him and summons the horse with his special owl whistle. When Joey hears this, he “trot[s] easily over toward him and burie[s his] head in [Albert’s] shoulder” (130). At long last, Joey and Albert are together again.

Joey’s troubles are far from over, however. The wound in Joey’s leg worsens, and he is diagnosed with tetanus. There is little hope for recovery, so Major Martin, one of the vets, suggests he be put down. Albert won’t hear of it, and with David’s help, he convinces Major Martin to try to save Joey. They agree, and after a long road to recovery, Joey improves and survives the illness.

The war finally ends, but not without even more casualties. David, Albert’s best friend, is among those lost toward the war's end. The soldiers will now be going home, but they learn that the horses will not be coming with them. Instead, they will be sold at auction in France. The soldiers band together to save enough money to buy Joey in the auction. It seems as if the plan will be successful until a cruel-looking man outbids them. The soldiers are out of money and at a loss for what to do when Grandfather stands up in the crowd and places a higher bid. He urges the cruel man not to go higher because he will pay any amount necessary to win back Emilie’s horse. The auction ends, and Grandfather wins the bid.

Albert hurries to find Grandfather after and asks why he wanted to purchase Joey. Grandfather tells him about Emilie and how she died shortly after the horses were taken away. Before she died, Grandfather made her a promise that he would do everything he could to find the horses again and take care of them. Now that he has met Albert, he thinks Emilie would understand that Joey would be better off with his original master. Grandfather sells Joey to Albert for one English penny and the promise that he will care for the horse and tell the story of his Emilie. Albert promises that he will, and the two tearfully part ways.

Albert and Joey are welcomed home as heroes, but they “both [know] that the real heroes had not come home” (164). They remember all the people left behind who forever shaped their own lives. Albert marries his girlfriend, Maisie Brown, and they start a family together. Albert takes over the farm from his father, who is now a much kinder man. After a long and terrible war, Joey and Albert are ready for whatever new beginnings come their way.