Through the Eyes: A Play for One Actor Book

12. A Soldier's Heart by David French
The earliest of the Mercer plays, this long one act drama introduces us to an older generation of the family, Esau, Jacob's father, who was at the Somme with his brother Will and who is suffering from what we would call PTSD. Jacob wants to know more about what happened when his father was in the army and his only source of information is Bert, the train stationmaster, who served alongside Esau and Will. Will is about to leave home when his father finds him at the station. The secret is revealed and Jacob and Esau reconcile. Some critics have found Jacob too sympathetic to his father, but I found that endearing, and knowing Jacob's life and eventual fate, seemed almost prophetic. I also liked the graphic descriptions of life in the trenches in France.