Dodger by Terry PratchettMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Dodger, by Terry Pratchett, was an interesting step back into time, Victorian England. Pratchett does a good job of helping us see this time period through the eyes of Dodger, a “tosher.” A tosher is one who frequents the underground sewer system in hopes of finding detritus that might have worked its way into the sewer system. Dodger is particularly good at this. He also is good at making his living on the street, although he has found shelter living with an eccentric Jewish fellow named Soloman. Dodger enters into a whole new world when his good heart drives him from the sewer to intervene in the beating of a young girl. He rescues the girl, and soon becomes involved with Charles Dickens, Disraeli, and other prominent figures as they discover the reason why someone wants the girl named Simplicity, dead. It is hard not to be charmed by Pratchett’s vivid description of the sordid aspects of Victorian London. He really captures it. The story is quite involved and may lose some middle school readers for that reason, but for exposure to this time period, it can’t be beat.
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