Reading about Venice, Italy

One of my biggest concerns as a teacher is that I am able to find books that appeal to all people.  One of the questions that I often ask my guy friends is, "What books did you enjoy as a child?"  I recognize that boys' interests are different than girls' interests, and I want to make sure that I am not shutting down anyone's excitement to read.  One of my guy friends recommended The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke.  I dutifully put it on my to-read list.

When I finally picked up the audio version of this book, I was thrilled to discover that it takes place in Venice, Italy.  Not only had I heard many wonderful things about Venice, but I was planning a trip to Italy that would end in Venice.  I eagerly began the book, but had to put it on hold as I experienced Venice for myself.  I actually got to immerse myself in the sights of the Grand Canal, the islands, and the gondoliers that are all in this charming book.  Of course, after being there, the book took on a whole new life as I remembered the places that I had visited like San Marco's Square as the characters visit them.

The Thief Lord is an adventure novel that begins when two brothers, Prospero and Bo run away from their aunt and uncle to stay together.  They head to Venice because of all the magical stories that their late mother told them about the city on water, a city where the lighting is magical, stone lions with wings abound, and everyone must get around on a boat.  There they join leagues with a group of orphan children who are led by a thirteen year old boy, Scipo, who calls himself the Thief Lord.  The Thief Lord's reputation leads to a trist with a mysterious man who calls himself the Conte who wants The Thief Lord to steal something made of wood.   From there, the adventures continue throughout the lagoon of Venice.  Meanwhile, Propero and Bo's aunt and uncle come looking for them which send the police on the trail of the band of thieves.

This book was charming, suspenseful, and well-written.  My personal favorite part of this book was the memorable characters and seeing them fit into the weavings of the story.  Victor Getz is the private investigator who is assigned to find the two runaway brothers.  He is a fascinating man who has two pet tortoises and a host of disguises to help him with his investigating including his favorite--a big bushy mustache.  Ida Spaveno is the lady that owns the wooden object to steal and who wields a rifle that no longer works.  And then of course there are the children like Bo, the adorable five-year hold who has a hard time keeping secrets.  I would recommend this book to children especially in the upper elementary grades.  Since many of the chapters are from a different perspective, younger children may have difficulty following the story-line, but could enjoy it with the guidance of an adult reader.

Just a fun note at the end of this lovely blog post for all of you who have been faithfully following my blog (all two of you):  Because of my travels this year to Italy and Germany, my classroom theme for the year is traveling and exploration.  At the school that I will be at this year, teaching fourth grade, I get to teach world history, and I have organized it to teach about various countries including Germany and Italy.  In the final quarter, we will even be looking at Venice specifically.  With that exciting news, I also wanted to say, that I will be transitioning this blog into a classroom blog of what we are doing as a class. Stay tuned for lots more reading, lots more excitement, and lots more learning!

Arrivederci!