The Thief Lord (2000)

Really good read, sad at times but compelling, all the characters are well thought out, and the depictions of Venice really made me want to go! ( )

When I read the translations of Cornelia Funke's books (so the Inkworld books and this...) I feel like there's something missing. It might have got lost in translation or it might not have been there in the first place, but whichever it is, something doesn't feel quite right about this. There are some lovely descriptions and ideas in Cornelia Funke's work, it just somehow doesn't appeal to me. And I know her work is targeted at younger people, but I read plenty of YA lit and it doesn't have this effect.

I felt there was something more lacking about The Thief Lord than about the Inkworld books. I'm pretty sure it's older, but regardless, it's not quite up to that standard. The idea is interesting, but it doesn't seem to quite mesh with the world that she writes about -- at first, for more than the first half of the book even, Venice is entirely as in reality (give or take improbable orphans) with fantastical stories, but reality more or less as we know it. The Magical Roundabout doesn't seem to quite fit in with that for me, even though it does for the characters, because that's full of a kind of magic that I can't see in the rest of the descriptions of Venice.

I love the relationships between some of the characters here, in theory. For example, Bo and Prosper -- there's not much that gets me in fiction more than that kind of brotherly devotion in a relationship. But it just didn't click with me, the characters didn't feel real.

It's a nice enough read, not too heavy, but I guess I just didn't feel a "click" with it. Not quite my thing, maybe. ( )

A book that makes being a homeless (for a bit) kid in Venice sound like a lark. There are some pretty big holes in the plot, but I think they are balanced by a loving, detailed portrait of Venice. ( )

I was not expecting the mature themes I found in the Thief Lord. I had thought to find more derring-do and adventure, and while there is some of that, the focus of this story is the not so easy life of a collection of orphans, how they carve a place in the world for themselves and how that world eventually changes. In short, this is a story about growing up and what that really means to both children and adults.

There is a lot of excitement and mystery in this novel and the story picks up and never really stops moving. Each chapter entices you to read more by showing you in detail the ophan's lives and the charming Thief Lord. Every time one riddle is solved, a new one takes its place, always backed by the one big question, "Just who is the Thief Lord?". I kept promising myself one more chapter and ended up finishing it one sitting. In all the adventure, romantic history and whimsy are some very real moments where the kids worry about starving, being slaves and getting captured. I was impressed with how the 'villains' were portrayed - as simply very flawed people and not 'bad' people. Many children have different reasons to want to "run away from home" at some time or another. Funke makes Thief Lord a kind of cautionary tale, not by being preachy, but by showing the realities of what happens when children are on their own in the world with no one to look after them. I do wish that some of the characters full histories were revealed; they weren't necessary to enjoy the story but there were quite a few teasing hints that are never followed up on. I also believe that Prosper is a saint. The amount of patience that boy has is astounding.

I know that I would have bawled my eyes out if I had read this as a kid. As it was (in my twenties) I was rather misty eyed from time to time but I also smiled often too.

Context Free Quote:
Riccio self-consciously his his face between his soft toys. "From the Salute Church," he mumbled. "There are hundreds, probably thousands lying around there. So it doesn't really matter if I take a few every now and then. Why should we spend our precious money on candles? I swear," he grinned at Hornet, "I always blow a kiss for each one." ( )

RGG: Similar feel to Pullman's The Golden Compass. Orphans in Venice; an age-changing machine; kind and evil adults.