The Thief Lord

The Thief Lord is a children's novel written by Cornelia Funke. It was published in Germany in 2000 and translated into English by Oliver Latsch in 2002 for The Chicken House, a division of Scholastic publishing company. It was Funke's first novel published in the United States and was adapted into a film in 2006. Plot summary Orphaned and unwilling to be separated, brothers Prosper and Boniface Hartleib run away to Venice where they are taken in by a group of street children led by a proud orphan named Scipio, AKA "The Thief Lord." A man calling himself the Conte asks the "Thief Lord" to steal a wooden lion's wing for him. The runaway boys' rich but shallow aunt and uncle wish to adopt only sweet-faced Boniface. They hire a detective, Victor Getz, to find them. Over the course of his investigation, Victor has several run-ins with the gang. He discovers that Scipio is actually the son of a wealthy doctor, Dr. Massimo, but the doctor is emotionally abusive, so Scipio leads a double life on the streets. Victor finds their hideout, but is ambushed and tied up by the kids, who fear he will expose them. Victor distracts the gang by sending them to Dr. Massimo's house, where they learn Scipio's secret. In the meantime, Victor escapes, leaving a note saying he would not turn them in unless they went forward with stealing the wing. 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 Victor'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.