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Montmorency: Thief, Liar,
Gentleman Eleanor Updale Orchard Books © 2004 |
When Montmorency finds himself in prison, he
is surprised that he still lives after an accident that should have cost him
his life. Now known as Prisoner 493, the other prisoners hate him. They are
envious of his special attention from Doctor Robert Farcett, a man who
stubbornly healed Montmorency and gave him the huge scars on his body. Soon,
Prisoner 493 becomes the talk of doctor’s lectures. He spends his jail time
still thinking like a crook. Slowly, he bides his time as a prisoner and
patient until one day, while waiting to be presented at a scientific lecture,
a man changes his life forever. He presents a map of London’s new sewage
system, which turns into Montmorency’s method of travel on future raids. After
Montmorency is released from jail, he becomes Scarper, Montmorency’s servant,
until eventually Montmorency can achieve his dream of transforming into a rich
gentleman who no longer has a need of thieving.
Montmorency is best suited for readers from ages twelve and up. The novel reveals the main character’s dexterity. He uses whatever resources he has and takes advantage of his situations. In prison, he knows that he cannot act physically, so he bides his time while making plans for his future mentally. Although a life of crime is thought of as filthy and dishonorable, Montmorency shows how the cleverest of criminals can outwit even the rich to make a living. Eleanor Updale makes Montmorency a likeable character, although he has a criminal status. She turns a person whom I would normally despise into someone whose craftiness and wittiness I admire. This novel reminds me of Sherlock Holmes because of the London setting, police involvement, and criminals. In my opinion, the ending wraps up nicely and explains enough of the future to satisfy the reader. In a way, Montmorency is a gentleman in the end, despite his past as a thief and crook. His act of returning stolen goods to people after he is done with them is indeed the thinking of a true gentleman. Montmorency shows how a crook must survive in the streets while giving him a chance to make a new life for himself as one of London’s richest citizens.
~Rebecca Theophanous, Boardman High School, Grade 11
Montmorency is best suited for readers from ages twelve and up. The novel reveals the main character’s dexterity. He uses whatever resources he has and takes advantage of his situations. In prison, he knows that he cannot act physically, so he bides his time while making plans for his future mentally. Although a life of crime is thought of as filthy and dishonorable, Montmorency shows how the cleverest of criminals can outwit even the rich to make a living. Eleanor Updale makes Montmorency a likeable character, although he has a criminal status. She turns a person whom I would normally despise into someone whose craftiness and wittiness I admire. This novel reminds me of Sherlock Holmes because of the London setting, police involvement, and criminals. In my opinion, the ending wraps up nicely and explains enough of the future to satisfy the reader. In a way, Montmorency is a gentleman in the end, despite his past as a thief and crook. His act of returning stolen goods to people after he is done with them is indeed the thinking of a true gentleman. Montmorency shows how a crook must survive in the streets while giving him a chance to make a new life for himself as one of London’s richest citizens.
~Rebecca Theophanous, Boardman High School, Grade 11