The God of War

The God of War by Marisa Silver is a heart wrenching novel on how a young boy is thrown into a life full of responisbility which becomes too much for him. 12 year old Ares' lives in a very desolate place which isnt visited by many other people on a usual basis. He has a 6 year old step brother whom was a witness to a murder but cannot tell anyone due to his disabilities. He cares for his brother because his mother doesnt care. Ares' longs for a different life, he wants to be in combat, in war, anywhere but in the trailer park where he lives looking after his brother, Malcom. The closest thing he gets to fun is to go out into the desert where he and his brother play war games. Ares' feels as if he is the only one protecting Malcom from a harsh world. Until he meets the librarian who starts tutoring Malcom, he becomes friends with her and he soon trusts her. This novel shows how some children must provide for their younger siblings in a time of need. No one makes these children help they choose to do it because of the undying love they have for their siblings. In countries which are facing war, and poverty siblings are all that is left to hold onto. Parents have been forced to go into combat and usually dont return, kids are given guns to help fight, their made to grow up sooner than they should which puts them in harms way because of all the dangerous possibilities of what could happen to them. Most die, but some live with the burden of knowing they are responsible for their family, if they have one, and without even knowing why they were made to kill someone. In this novel you see this from a great point of view which tells all.