The Button War

The Button War is written by the children's author Avi, but it is quite a dark novel and would be hard for a young child to read.   The Button War takes place during the beginning of World War I.  AS the author and many reviews of the novel mention, it is a story of how young boys who start out as friends, can loose sight of the fun nature of a game and contest and become very competitive and threatening to each other.

Avi takes the reader back to a small town in Poland at the start of World War I.  This is a town that is isolated and self sufficient.  We start out with seven boys who spend their days playing and exploring together.  Their town is occupied by Russian soldiers, which displeases the townspeople.  One day the Russians leave and German soldiers arrive moving into some the citizens homes.

Patryk is the narrator and tells about how the boys meet up and sit on a ledge above the water pump.  They are watching as their village changes with the German soldiers arriving.  Jurek is the instigator, daring the others to take risks and he starts the contest to find the best button.  As the boys each try to get a button from the clothing of either a Russian or German soldier, the stakes get higher and more dangerous.   As the boys get caught up in the competition they mirror the fighting between the Russians and the Germans.  It all seems to be fighting without clear knowledge of how to recognize the winner.  The stakes get higher and people start getting hurt and dying, but then who wants to be the first to cry Uncle and admit to being scared?

Avi says he based this dark story on a tale his father-in-law shared with him from his childhood.
The collection of buttons from soldier's uniforms developed into this serious thought provoking plot though Avi's imagination.  His father-in-law's interest in the buttons was much more innocent.  read this book with your child and be able to have a discussion about war and how following a leader blindly can lead to serious trouble.  It is a great message for our present day political climate.  It is also a important lesson to learn for children in general.