Bizarre tale of period skullduggery
Timothy Baghurst
Issue date: 11/14/08 Section: Lifestyles
Hannah Tinti's "The Good Thief" is a very unusual tale about Ren, a 12-year-old boy with a missing hand. Having been raised in a Catholic orphanage since birth, he knows very little about the outside world and nothing about his family. His life soon turns upside down when a mysterious stranger comes to collect him.
With dreams of a comfortable home life, Ren is taken from the orphanage only to find that his supposed "father," Ben Nab, is actually a petty criminal wanted by many. Ren is soon up to his neck in trouble helping Ben to survive. This often involves unpleasant tasks such as robbing the dead and stealing from the unsuspecting.
Ren's life takes another unexpected twist when a powerful man in the community takes an interest in Ren. Could Ren be his long lost relative? How did Ren lose his hand? Answers are revealed at the very end of the book, resulting in a clever and satisfying conclusion.
Although this is a very readable book full of interesting characters and unusual scenarios, a lack of depth makes it akin to mind candy. Characters' histories are not investigated and many characters are given only a cursory consideration. The period in which this book was set provides an interesting backdrop, but Tinti fails to incorporate it into the storyline as a whole.
The book is available for purchase at the University of Arkansas Bookstore.
With dreams of a comfortable home life, Ren is taken from the orphanage only to find that his supposed "father," Ben Nab, is actually a petty criminal wanted by many. Ren is soon up to his neck in trouble helping Ben to survive. This often involves unpleasant tasks such as robbing the dead and stealing from the unsuspecting.
Ren's life takes another unexpected twist when a powerful man in the community takes an interest in Ren. Could Ren be his long lost relative? How did Ren lose his hand? Answers are revealed at the very end of the book, resulting in a clever and satisfying conclusion.
Although this is a very readable book full of interesting characters and unusual scenarios, a lack of depth makes it akin to mind candy. Characters' histories are not investigated and many characters are given only a cursory consideration. The period in which this book was set provides an interesting backdrop, but Tinti fails to incorporate it into the storyline as a whole.
The book is available for purchase at the University of Arkansas Bookstore.
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