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The Thief Lord

Two brothers, Prosper and Boniface Hartleib, run away to Venice and are taken in by a group of street children who are led by a proud orphan named Scipio, AKA "The Thief Lord." The runaway boys' aunt and uncle figure out where they are and hire a detective, Victor Getz, to find them. While investigating the thief gang, Getz discovers that Scipio is actually the son of a successful doctor, Dr. Massimo, but the doctor is abusive and Scipio has run away from home.

A man calling himself the Conte asks the "Thief Lord" to steal a wooden lion's wing for him. The wing belongs to a woman named Ida Spavento. At her house, Ida tells them the wing is from a magical merry-go-round, which has the ability to change a person's age. She agrees to let them have the wing if they let her accompany them to the exchange. The gang, along with Ida, goes to make the exchange the next night, leaving Boniface and Caterina "Hornet" Grimani, the gang's only girl, to guard the hideout. When they return, they find Boniface and Hornet gone and discover the money they received for the wing is counterfeit. With Getz's help, they find Hornet and Boniface. While the others stay with Ida Spavento, Prosper and Scipio return to the Conte's island home to get the money they are owed. On the island, the Conte's sister, Morosina, catches them climbing the wall and locks them inside the stables.

The next morning, Scipio and Prosper meet the Conte and Morosina, who are now both young children. They tell him that the magical merry-go-round worked. Scipio demands a ride and comes off an adult. Just as Scipio gets off the merry-go-round, the gang's fence Barbarossa arrives, and also demands a ride. Barbarossa becomes a seven-year-old boy, but accidentally breaks the merry-go-round. Scipio and Prosper leave after promising the Conte that they will not talk about the merry-go-round. Barbarossa will be forced to give the Conte all the money in his shop safe.

The next day, Prosper, Scipio, and Barbarossa meet up with the gang again. They do not recognize Scipio or Barbarossa and Prosper cannot explain. Barbarossa is adopted by Prosper and Boniface's rich aunt Esther. Prosper and Boniface decide to live with Ida and go to school, along with Hornet. Esther catches Barbarossa stealing her jewelry and other possessions and sends him off to boarding school, where he becomes a menacing bully and takes over the title "Thief Lord". The adult Scipio works as Victor's assistant in his detective agency and is free from his father's envy and cruelty.

Availability
07240FChapter BookAvailable
Detail Information
Series Title
-
Call Number
F
Publisher
New York, USA : Scholastic Inc.,
Collation
349 pages : illustration ; 19 cm
Language
English
ISBN/ISSN
9780439420891
Classification
NONE
Content Type
text
Media Type
-
Carrier Type
-
Edition
-
Subject(s)
Orphans
Brothers
Detective and mystery stories
Thieves
Runaway children
Brigands and robbers
Italy
Italy--Venice
Specific Detail Info
-
Statement of Responsibility
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No other version available

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