Unfortunately this book was just not for me. I hate bullying in school, no, I hate bullying anywhere and I have an even further aversion to cruelty to animals. The first chapter did me in. I should have read the description a little bit better. I have to give this book 1 star. If I could have gotten past the animal thing, I don't think it was going to get any better by the time we got to the actual child. I should have never chosen this book. Unsettling and was unable to finish. War is a horrible thing, even though this is a fiction novel, having children this age think they are pretending and getting ready for war by acting out and behaving in this fashion truly need parental supervision. I read books to further my knowledge or take a few hours to enjoy a different kind of life, and to calm myself each evening before going to bed, this book did the exact opposite, I turned it off.
I thank Net Galley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book for my review, I'm sorry I should have read the description better. This was not a book I should have picked.