War Horse

This book's simple vocabulary makes it accessible to kids from age 10, but there is a good deal of violence and death in War Horse. It would be unrealistic if a novel whose action happens largely in the thick of battle didn't include injuries and death, but horse lovers should be forewarned. Horses are occasionally mistreated by their humans before war breaks out; during battle, horses are maimed and killed. Living conditions are brutal for the horses, and some die when their systems weaken due to exposure and poor nourishment. In one scene, some horses are auctioned off to a butcher. Humans also are wounded and killed, though human injuries are described with less detail than the horses'. In addition, in Albert's world on the farm in Devon, his father becomes aggressive and verbally abusive when he drinks.