War of the Buttons (novel) facts for kids
La Guerre des boutons (which means The War of the Buttons in French) is a famous French book written by Louis Pergaud. It was published in 1912. The full title is The War of the Buttons, a novel of my twelfth year. The story is about a fun "war" between two groups of kids from different villages in the French countryside. These villages are called Longeverne and Velrans.
The author, Louis Pergaud, got the idea for the book from a real village named Landresse. He used to teach there. The book's title comes from the main goal of the kids' "war": to collect as many buttons as they can from the other team. They do this by cutting the buttons off their opponents' clothes! Most of the story is told from the point of view of the kids from Longeverne.
What's the Story About?
The children from Longeverne, led by a boy named Lebrac, and the kids from Velrans, led by Aztec de Gués, are always fighting. They use sticks, stones, and even their bare hands in their battles.
If a kid gets caught by the other side, they face a funny but embarrassing punishment. Their buttons and shoelaces are cut off! Then, they have to go home looking a bit silly. This usually means they get into trouble with their parents.
Lebrac, the leader of the Longeverne gang, really wants to win every fight. He comes up with clever and unusual ways for his team to battle. For example, sometimes his team fights without their clothes on. This way, their clothes won't get damaged during the fight. If their clothes do get torn, the girls in their group help sew them back together.
