"The Thief Lord" by Cornelia Funke - Book Talk
Overview:
Bo, five, and Prosper, twelve, are
brothers on the run from their aunt Esther and uncle Max Hartlieb in Venice.
Esther wants to adopt Bo and send Prosper to boarding school, away from his
brother with the angel face, after their mother’s death. The boys chose to run
away to Venice because of the stories their mother used to tell them about the magical
city of Venice. Esther hires a detective, Victor Getz, to hunt the boys down in
Venice. The boys meet Hornet who helps
them find a place to live, the Star Palace an old closed movie theater, where Hornet
and her friends, Riccio and Mosca, live. Scipio or “the Thief Lord” takes care of
the group by stealing and selling items to Ernesto Barbarossa, “Redbeard”.
One
of Barbarossa’s clients offers a job to the Thief Lord; the Conte hires Scipio
to steal a treasured wooden wing from Ida Spavento. Victor finds the brothers
but before he can take them back to their aunt the kids capture him and trap
him in the Star Palace. Victor lets himself be goaded by the children and
reveals Scipio true heritage. Scipio originally told the other children that he
had been on his own since a young age but in reality his father is a wealthy
man that owns the movie theater where the children are living. The children are
devastated and betrayed by this news and no longer trust or want Scipio around.
The
group still decides to go through with stealing the wing. But they are caught
by Ida, the owner of the wing. Ida tells the children the story of the
merry-go-round that the wing belongs to; the merry-go-round is magical and can
turn a child into an adult and an adult into a child. The children and Ida give
the wing to the Conte and later the group realizes the money is fake.
The
theater is raided, Prosper and Scipio go to the island, and Esther takes a boy
home with her. Read to find out what these twists mean for the group of
children in the Star Palace.
Rationale:
I
chose this book for a book talk as an excuse to reread one of my childhood favorites.
I hadn’t read it since about the fifth or sixth grade. Rereading it I realized
why I liked it so much as a child since I related so much to the characters
desires to be a grown-up, something that I now can’t believe I wanted to be. I
would use this book in a middle school classroom sixth or seventh grade The Lexile
level is 700 making it an easier read for the grade levels mentioned above but
after rereading the book I think that it would work in middle school classrooms
because of the rich details and the age of the characters.
Teaching Ideas:
1.
Lit circles: pairing this novel with other
coming of age novels for students to read and looking at the themes that
revolve around growing up. Stargirl would
be a good pairing as it deals growing up in a different way. Finding a
collection of coming of age novels in different settings and with different
points of conflict would create an opportunity for discussion on growing up
with students.
2.
Book Report: This would be a great book for a
book report. In middle schools book reports are a large part of making sure
that students are reading books and understanding the elements within the
story. The Thief Lord is a great book
for students to create a book report on because of the rich detail student’s
creativity in creating a book report can go crazy and as in depth as the students
want. The multi-layered plot and multiple characters creates a story that
students will have to read and understand in order to create a complete and thorough
report.
3.
SSR: I would keep this book in my class library for
sure no matter how old my students are. Growing up is always a weird thing to
think about and deal with. This novel presents a perspective on a rushed growing
up in a number of different facets and on wanting to be young again. Having coming
of age stories are important to have in the classroom library because students
are dealing with growing up in all kinds of ways and in all kinds of settings.
4. Discussion: Holding discussion on growing up and
what it means to grow up can be valuable in the classroom. Looking at the problems
and issues and how the children in the story deal with the problems and how students
agree and disagree with the actions of the children in the story. Talking about
their fears about growing up would also be a good discussion point. All of
these talking points could also be used as writing prompts for a journal or
paper.
Obstacles:
Bo
and Prosper are running away from their family. Students who may not have
stable home lives and are thinking of running away themselves may see the novel
as a testament to running away as a viable option in life. For students who read
this book or if the book is used in the classroom I will make sure there is a
disclaimer that the novel is fiction and that running away is not an option but
that there are other options that we can discuss if they feel comfortable talking
to me later. Parents may not love that students are reading a book about
students running away from home, but this is a thing that most kids think about
at some point in their lives. A letter will be sent home, if this book is used,
letting students know what their students will be reading and that if they have
any questions they are welcome to email me with them.
Fun Facts:
- The Thief Lord was made into a movie in 2006, it has a 40% on Rotten Tomatoes. So I don’t think I would recommend it.
- The book was originally published in Germany and later translated into English.
- Cornelia Funke is known best for the Inkheart trilogy
- Won the Indies Choice Book Award for Children's Literature
References
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