1/25/2019 12 Comments Cornelia FunkeAuthor’s Name: Cornelia Funke
Dates: 1900-1950 (My guess) Alive: Yes (?) Location: Venice, Italy Major Works: Dragon Rider, The Thief Lord, Inkheart series, Reckless Major Themes: Family, Trust, Faith, Supernatural, Deceit, Choice, Youth, Being able to choose your family Novel Choice Plot Summary: After their mother dies and their aunt Esther wants to separate them, brothers Prosper and Bo run away to Venice, believing it to be a beautiful and wondrous place from all the stories their mother spun. They meet another orphan girl named Hornet, who brings the brothers into an orphan group of thieves, consisting of her, Mosca, Riccio, and their leader Scipio; the Thief Lord. Esther won’t give up on taking Bo back and sending Prosper away to a boarding school, so she manages to track them to Venice and hires a detective, Victor, to finish the job. The bonds of their friendship are tested when everything falls apart and the Thief Lord’s mask finally falls. Analysis of Main Characters: Prosper: Prosper is about 12 and tries to be a good big brother to Bo, and sometimes has to put his foot down for Bo’s safety. Prosper is shown to be stubborn and persistent, being able to put a stoic front against the also stubborn yet cheap shop owner, Barbarossa. Prosper didn’t need to survive off stealing unlike the rest of the orphans and is old enough to know it’s not right,(but has no qualms against the other orphans pickpocketing) he prefers to take the money they get from selling valuables and going to shops. He’s also logical and protective, willing to take Bo and leave his friends to throw off the tail of the detective that was close behind them. Bo: Bo is only about 5-6 years old and has been passed down the same stubbornness from Prosper. Bo loves adventure and has a wonderful imagination, as he loved listening to his mother’s stories of Venice. Bo always wants to go on escapades and help the Thief Lord steal things, but is never allowed to and throws fits. He’s also too young to understand the dangerous and scary situation he’s in and forgets to be cautious when talking to strangers. He told a complete stranger basically everything about them, including their whereabouts and about some of the things that have been stolen, and the stranger turned out to be the detective. (Yeah, you’re going to be annoyed with Bo a lot.) Scipio: Scipio, also known as the Thief Lord, is about 13 years old and is pretty mysterious, as none of the other kids know who he really is. However, he is incredibly generous and found them all a warm and dry place to sleep. He also steals valuables from people’s homes and has the kids pawn off the valuables for cash, helping pay for substantial meals and clothes. Not much is known about him around the beginning of the book (no spoilers), but he isn’t who he says he is. Riccio, Hornet, and Mosca: Riccio, Hornet, and Mosca are the three orphans Scipio first found and brought to an abandoned movie theatre. They are about 12-13 years old. Hornet and Riccio are excellent actors and pick-pocketers. Mosca enjoys the canals of Venice and fixing things like his boat and radio. Theme: The most important theme of this book is having the ability to choose your family. “The blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb.” How did the author’s life influence his writing in this novel? (2-3 paragraphs) Cornelia Funke was tired of illustrating for other author’s boring books and wanted to illustrate and write her own with believable and realistic fantasy and supernatural elements. When Cornelia was in Venice, she remembered her love of Peter Pan and the idea that instead of children wanting to stay children, one wishes to grow up instead. There isn’t much else to say; Cornelia is inspired by every book she reads. Works Cited: The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke, https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/articles/teaching-content/cornelia-funke39s-interview-transcript/ By: Chelsea M.
12 Comments
Jason Zimmitti
1/31/2019 10:02:19 am
What is the thief lord's mask and what does it symbolize? It isn't made clear in the description of the story.
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Chelsea
1/31/2019 10:17:36 am
The Thief Lord's mask is bird-like and similar to a plague doctor's. It symbolizes his second persona, like he's another person; when he wears the mask, he is the infamous Thief Lord, when he doesn't have it on, he's just Scipio.
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Madison Lucas
1/31/2019 10:03:33 am
Did they ever make it to Venice?
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Chelsea
1/31/2019 10:16:10 am
Yes, the setting of the story is in Venice.
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Isabella
1/31/2019 10:05:41 am
Why is one of the themes supernatural?
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Chelsea McKay
2/4/2019 07:56:48 am
I don’t want to spoil anything if you want to read the book, but I’ll just say a character grows up in more ways than one.
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Sasha
1/31/2019 10:12:31 am
What would have happen if Bo and Prosper never met Hornet and the orphan group of thieves? Would the plot change drastically?
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Chelsea
1/31/2019 10:18:39 am
Definitely. A major theme in the story is friendship and being able to choose your family. If Prosper and Bo had never met Hornet, that theme would be lost and they'd probably be caught by the detective.
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Tyler Berendsohn
1/31/2019 10:16:45 am
Why does the aunt go through so much to take both of the kids back even though shes planning on sending one of them away?
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Chelsea McKay
2/4/2019 07:58:59 am
She wants to keep Bo because he’s a “perfect child” and can grow up to be a “fine young man”. She would only keep Prosper because they’re family, but send him away to a boarding school because she thought he was disobedient.
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Hannah O'Connor
1/31/2019 02:44:33 pm
Why do you think Scipio decided to help the other children? Is he just a kind person or was there something in his past that made him so generous and caring?
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Chelsea McKay
2/4/2019 08:00:46 am
I think he wanted to feel important and respected (and obviously he wanted to help) because things happened in his life for him to feel neglected and useless
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