The Devil and His Boy (Paperback)

by Anthony Horowitz (Author) "It was just before midnight when Queen Elizabeth slipped out of bed and went in search of her magician..." (more)
Key Phrases: Sir Richard, The Garden Players, Gamaliel Ratsey (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal
Grade 5-7-Finding himself in London when he fully expected to spend all of his days in Framlingham where he worked, or more precisely slaved, for Sebastian and Henrietta Slope, young Tom Falconer hardly knows what to make of the startling turn of events in his life. Taken from the Slopes' inn by a gentleman who is then murdered by the highwayman, Ratsey, Tom is now on his own. Befriended by a pickpocket, Moll Cutpurse, he decides he wants to be an actor. As luck would have it, no appropriate parts are available for him in Will Shakespeare's new play at the Rose Theatre, so he accepts work with the mysterious Dr. Mobius, whose play The Devil and His Boy is to be presented before Queen Elizabeth. The fast-paced plot quickly thickens. Tom finds himself pursued by Ratsey, warned of danger by a fellow actor, and caught up in political intrigue. Needless to say, when he lands in the lap of the queen while trying to save her life, Tom finds himself in more trouble than he ever thought possible. Horowitz paints his characters, or in some cases, caricatures, with broad strokes and keeps the melodramatic story moving at a rapid clip. There's no subtlety here, but it's a rollicking good tale that is mostly based on historical fact, or at least historical rumor.
Barbara Scotto, Michael Driscoll School, Brookline, MA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist
Mixing history with adventure, Horowitz offers a rousing story set in Elizabethan England. Young Tom Falconer has had a miserable existence working at The Pig's Head Inn. When a mysterious gentleman appears to take Tom to a new life, it seems like a miracle. Then the gentleman is murdered, and Tom is left to find his way around London. Characterizations are thin, but Horowitz provides plenty of action and, to his credit, does not try to pretty up Elizabethan life for his audience: Tom's legs are almost cut off by a Faginlike character who wants to make him into a beggar boy; other dirty and disfigured characters are described in detail. When Tom gets involved with a group of players putting on the show The Devil and His Boy, he doesn't suspect it's a ruse to overthrow the queen or that he'll wind up saving her. A pleasant surprise is the afterword, which details the parts of the story that are true. Even the story's secret (the queen has a grandson) has some basis in fact. Pair this with Susan Cooper's King of Shadows (1999), in which William Shakespeare also makes an appearance. Ilene Cooper --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
  
• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Puffin (January 11, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0142407976
• ISBN-13: 978-0142407974
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #402,526 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THe Devil and his boy, May 16, 2001

A Kid's Review

This review is from: The Devil and His Boy (Hardcover)

This Book is terrific. It is a thrilling and advenurous story. I have never read a better book. It is about a boy who wants to be in a play but his parents are dreadfully mean and wont let him.His real parents are the King and Queen of england but noone but the queen knows. He sneaks away from his Guardians and gets tied up with the most sinister and pulverizing murders in all of London. This is deafinatly a great book and once you start reading this book you won't be able to stop reading. It will keep you asking for more. I really liked this book, and I hope u do to.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The Devil and His Boy, December 13, 2003

By	Matt Mondfrans "[e-mail]" (Napa, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Devil and His Boy (Paperback)

The Devil and His Boy

This story begins in the small town of Framlingham, where young Tom Falconer is cruelly treated by Sebastion and Henrietta Slope, the owners of the Pigs Head Inn. Tom Falconer is an unhappy young man who isn't having any luck in life. However, this rapidly changes when a mysterious man arrives at the inn and demands that he take Tom back to London. After a short struggle they are both on horseback and on the path to London but trouble is not far off. They soon encounter a masked criminal, Gamaliel Ratsey, who promptly murders Tom's rescuer and would have murdered Tom if he hadn't quickly rode out of sight on the horse.
After the attack Tom finds himself on the streets of London starving and without money. He soon finds himself a home however, when he is recruited by Dr. Mobius to play a part in his play, The Devil and His Boy. He lives and rehearses on a weather-beaten boat with the troupe of actors who call themselves the Garden Players. He is sure he is being left in the dark, that there is something Dr. Mobius isn't telling him, and his suspicions are confirmed when an unknown man appears on the boat and makes some kind of deal with Dr. Mobius. Tom soon finds out that the play is to be performed in front of Queen Elizabeth of England and he allows himself to dream of riches and glory. Unfortunately, Tom has no idea that the play he will perform is actually the beginning of a dark plot of destruction set by Dr. Mobius himself!
I believe that the two major themes in this book are those of morality and honesty. However, these two themes are touched on very lightly. Crime is a common thing on the streets of London and Tom is pressured several times into a life of thievery. His best friend while in London is Moll Cutpurse, who herself is a master pickpocket. While he stays with her they often go to places full of criminals who brag of the riches they have accumulated through treachery. This is a strong temptation for young Tom but he stays with what he knows is right in his heart and becomes an actor, one of the few things that makes him happy.
Honesty is also a theme that is present in this book. When Tom first decides to join the Garden Players he doesn't know if he should trust Dr. Mobius or the other actors. He is very suspicious especially when Dr. Mobius goes into several fits of anger. I think morality could tie into this too because his good sense of morality tells him that these people were not to be trusted.
Overall, I think this book does an excellent job of portraying a plot that keeps you on your toes and shows how a good sense of morality can do a lot for a person. Also, a large amount of information in this book is actual fact and many characters were real people. This puts a bit of English history into a fascinating plot, which showed that a little imagination can go a long way.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Witty and thrilling, a superb historical novel from Horowitz, April 21, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Devil and His Boy (Hardcover)

After such great children's books as 'Granny', 'Groosham Grange' and 'The Switch', Anthony Horowitz has now turned to the Elizabethan age for his latest work. Packed full of wonderful description of the period, which he obviously researched superbly, this book will transform any child's perception of what they may have thought of as a boring period in history. It brings the time and the characters of the time (including Queen Elizabeth herself and Shakespeare!) to life and makes them seem fun and interesting in much the same way as 'Shakespeare in Love' did at the cinemas recently. The characters are brilliantly depicted and children will identify with both Tom and Moll as well as laugh at some of the great villains and revolting adults that Horowitz is so good at creating. I have recently read the story to my Year 6 class (11 year olds) and I could not get them to go home! They always wanted me to read on and adored every minute of it. Probably Horowitz's best book yet - many of the children certainly thought so. Extremely well written and reminiscent of Dickens at times. We successfully turned the story into a play, which we performed at school at the end of July 1999 - it made a wonderful play too! Someone should make a film of this book! Horowitz is truly the master of children's fiction today.

Also recommended: Other Horowitz classics - 'Granny' 'Groosham Grange' 'The Unholy Grail' 'The Switch' 'The Falcon's Malteser' 'South by SouthEast' 'Public Enemy Number Two'