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Charley's War
Charley's War: A Boy Soldier in the Great War
From renowned UK comics writer Pat Mills ( Marshal Law , Requiem , Vampire Knight , Sláine ) and legendary artist Joe Colquhoun ( Johnny Red ) comes a truly classic piece of British comics history, by turns thrilling, humorous and horrifying. Often heralded as the greatest British comic strip ever created, Charley's War tells the gripping story of an underage British soldier called Charley Bourne fighting during World War I.
Now with completely remastered comic strips, this is the definitive edition of Charley’s War , covering Charley's first arrival in the trenches, the battle of the Somme, and a terrifying zeppelin raid over London. It is an ideal starting place for new readers.
Now with completely remastered comic strips, this is the definitive edition of Charley’s War , covering Charley's first arrival in the trenches, the battle of the Somme, and a terrifying zeppelin raid over London. It is an ideal starting place for new readers.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published October 14, 2014
2 people are currently reading
74 people want to read
About the author
Pat Mills
849 books232 followersPat Mills, born in 1949 and nicknamed 'the godfather of British comics', is a comics writer and editor who, along with John Wagner, revitalised British boys comics in the 1970s, and has remained a leading light in British comics ever since.
His comics are notable for their violence and anti-authoritarianism. He is best known for creating 2000 AD and playing a major part in the development of Judge Dredd.
His comics are notable for their violence and anti-authoritarianism. He is best known for creating 2000 AD and playing a major part in the development of Judge Dredd.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
September 21, 2015
Whodda thunk, a war-themed comic strip drawn in a pretty standard gritty war comic style, for a boys magazine is brilliant and profound and moving? This was really good, and hard to put down. Episodic storytelling about the existential and visceral horrors of WWI, a transitional war which used weapons including cavalry, newly introduced TANKS, and zeppelins -- the struggle b/w the old British upper crust officers just wanting to take their tea and have chats and the young, flinty privates doing the hard and dirty work. And it was dense! Basically, as not-a-fan-of-war-comics I still found this one to be very compelling and well told, and upon finishing it and finding out that there are further Charley stories! I was frustrated and eager to get my hands on the rest. How is this the omnibus, then? Give me morrrre. Highly recommended.
June 11, 2015
"Holy S&!£!" Jesus f>#%ng Christ!" "Gahh!" These are the kinds of thoughts I had repeatedly while reading this. It's Incredible and horrifying . . . and once I got into it, I found it hard to put down.
Note: I believe the description of this is misleading, making it sound like a best-of collection of strips from throughout the series. Its actually a compilation of the first three volumes of the ten-volume series (plus the first few strips from the fourth volume).
Note: I believe the description of this is misleading, making it sound like a best-of collection of strips from throughout the series. Its actually a compilation of the first three volumes of the ten-volume series (plus the first few strips from the fourth volume).
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January 30, 2021Garth Ennis calls Charley’s War his favorite comic, which was reason enough for me to seek it out. This story was published in the British weekly Battle from 1979-1986. It follows sixteen-year-old Charley Bourne who enlists in the British Army in 1916, when he arrives at the Western Front and continues to fight through the end of the War. This book contains the first third of the comic* (covering June 1916-February 1917), and it is excellent.
Charley’s War is solidly an anti-war story. It doesn’t glorify combat, but also doesn’t shy away from the horrific brutality of the First World War. In this we see the Battle of the Somme, where poison gas, the first tanks, and trench rats are employed. Many of Charley’s fellow soldiers die, and Charley comes close many times. This story shows the messiness of armed conflict, especially in the trenches, where improvisation was key and you didn’t know when a bomb was going to go off beside you. I’m no expert in World War I history, but I have to believe Pat Mills captures it accurately. Well done.
In addition to its accuracy, Charley’s War is a very human story. War exists on the edges of human experience where people do horrible things, but it also gives way to bravery and emotion, which this comic has in spades. Several scenes stood out to me: a traumatized soldier, the only survivor of his platoon, digging his own grave; a German soldier pleading mercy and telling British troops about his family before being executed; Charley’s letters to his family, including a letter where he asks his mom to stop getting tears on her letters because he can’t read them. Without question, Charley’s War is about the characters.
Joe Colquhoun’s art is outstanding. It’s incredibly detailed, and he really puts you in the middle of the trenches. This is some of the best art of the war genre I’ve seen. I found myself often pausing to look at pages. The zeppelin scenes toward the end are particularly stunning. And the way he captures emotion in faces - angry officers, terrified soldiers, Charley’s worried parents, even people laughing - is expertly done.
This is an older comic aimed at boys, and the writing is a bit clunky with exposition. I’m able to acclimate myself to this writing style, but some readers may have trouble with it. Even still, the storytelling is strong enough that I don’t think it’s a huge bother. You get used to it after 20 or 30 pages.
If you have an interest in World War I, or war comics at all, Charley’s War is well worth your time. It’s a sweeping, profoundly moving story filled with memorable characters and scenes, while also being an educational read. I want to track down the rest of the books because I want to know what happens to Charley. Thanks for the recommendation, Garth.
*The Goodreads description is inaccurate - this book is not a best-of collection, but contains the first 86 episodes of the strip.
Charley’s War is solidly an anti-war story. It doesn’t glorify combat, but also doesn’t shy away from the horrific brutality of the First World War. In this we see the Battle of the Somme, where poison gas, the first tanks, and trench rats are employed. Many of Charley’s fellow soldiers die, and Charley comes close many times. This story shows the messiness of armed conflict, especially in the trenches, where improvisation was key and you didn’t know when a bomb was going to go off beside you. I’m no expert in World War I history, but I have to believe Pat Mills captures it accurately. Well done.
In addition to its accuracy, Charley’s War is a very human story. War exists on the edges of human experience where people do horrible things, but it also gives way to bravery and emotion, which this comic has in spades. Several scenes stood out to me: a traumatized soldier, the only survivor of his platoon, digging his own grave; a German soldier pleading mercy and telling British troops about his family before being executed; Charley’s letters to his family, including a letter where he asks his mom to stop getting tears on her letters because he can’t read them. Without question, Charley’s War is about the characters.
Joe Colquhoun’s art is outstanding. It’s incredibly detailed, and he really puts you in the middle of the trenches. This is some of the best art of the war genre I’ve seen. I found myself often pausing to look at pages. The zeppelin scenes toward the end are particularly stunning. And the way he captures emotion in faces - angry officers, terrified soldiers, Charley’s worried parents, even people laughing - is expertly done.
This is an older comic aimed at boys, and the writing is a bit clunky with exposition. I’m able to acclimate myself to this writing style, but some readers may have trouble with it. Even still, the storytelling is strong enough that I don’t think it’s a huge bother. You get used to it after 20 or 30 pages.
If you have an interest in World War I, or war comics at all, Charley’s War is well worth your time. It’s a sweeping, profoundly moving story filled with memorable characters and scenes, while also being an educational read. I want to track down the rest of the books because I want to know what happens to Charley. Thanks for the recommendation, Garth.
*The Goodreads description is inaccurate - this book is not a best-of collection, but contains the first 86 episodes of the strip.
May 25, 2025
I bought this very cheaply, and when it comes to value for money, I could not have done much better.
For what are 3-4 page episodes, they pack a lot in, but never felt rushed. For comics that were essentially written for 11-12 year olds, they don't shy away from the utter horror of trench warfare in 1916 onwards. Grenades, machine guns, poisonous gas, and flame throwers. And a sorry episode with a firing squad. All awful stuff. Except for Charley himself, no character is safe, and dozens of characters are introduced and killed. That's the meat-grinder that was WW1. There's no getting around that.
There is a point near the end of this book (which from my understanding, barely covers half of Charley's War) where Charley gets to go home on leave, which after everything he's been through is wholly deserved, but he barely gets to rest before his home town and family become targets of the German Zepellins. This is a facet of The First World War that I wasn't really aware of, and these episodes were especially indicative of actually how educational this strip was, and still is. I would highly recommend this volume (and the entire strip I guess) to anyone who is interested in World War 1, not just comic fans.
For what are 3-4 page episodes, they pack a lot in, but never felt rushed. For comics that were essentially written for 11-12 year olds, they don't shy away from the utter horror of trench warfare in 1916 onwards. Grenades, machine guns, poisonous gas, and flame throwers. And a sorry episode with a firing squad. All awful stuff. Except for Charley himself, no character is safe, and dozens of characters are introduced and killed. That's the meat-grinder that was WW1. There's no getting around that.
There is a point near the end of this book (which from my understanding, barely covers half of Charley's War) where Charley gets to go home on leave, which after everything he's been through is wholly deserved, but he barely gets to rest before his home town and family become targets of the German Zepellins. This is a facet of The First World War that I wasn't really aware of, and these episodes were especially indicative of actually how educational this strip was, and still is. I would highly recommend this volume (and the entire strip I guess) to anyone who is interested in World War 1, not just comic fans.
November 2, 2020
Some superbly made funny books right here. Can't wait to get my hands on the rest of the series.
August 4, 2015
Drawn in black and white to satisfy the demanding schedule of a weekly comic. Contains most of the strips from the first four volumes of Charley's War. Interesting commentary from the author is included that is worth reading in conjunction with each strip.
This set the bar for boy's war comics. There are a lot of stereotypes typical to the genre (Germans are ugly, cruel madmen who spent most of their time saying 'ach' or 'nein') but there is a deeper level that takes it beyond boys' fiction. The comic deals with desertion, gas attacks, shell shock, rats, bad food, idiotic Staff officers, lousy soldiers and the ever present dead bodies. If you have ever read any texts on WW1 then these are indelible parts of the conflict.
Enjoyable overall. I imagined it would be a darker rendering of life in the trenches but I had to remind myself of the original target audience.
It would be fantastic to see a contemporary color version aimed at adults.
This set the bar for boy's war comics. There are a lot of stereotypes typical to the genre (Germans are ugly, cruel madmen who spent most of their time saying 'ach' or 'nein') but there is a deeper level that takes it beyond boys' fiction. The comic deals with desertion, gas attacks, shell shock, rats, bad food, idiotic Staff officers, lousy soldiers and the ever present dead bodies. If you have ever read any texts on WW1 then these are indelible parts of the conflict.
Enjoyable overall. I imagined it would be a darker rendering of life in the trenches but I had to remind myself of the original target audience.
It would be fantastic to see a contemporary color version aimed at adults.
March 28, 2015
Superb series.
October 28, 2015
Amazingly researched and accurate portrayal of trench life, this graphic novel is a real treat for WWI buffs.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews