You Won’t Even See ‘The Thief’ Steal Your Heart

What on earth is better than a plot twist? I mean a genuine, out of nowhere, mindboggling, heart pounding plot twist. That’s right, absolutely nothing. I imagine avid readers can find it hard to unearth a book that legitimately throws a curve they did not anticipate. After all, reading countless books gives you that creepy sixth sense. One can start to effortlessly pick up on the subtle hints and foreshadowing an author carefully drops throughout the plot of their book like a trail of cookie crumbs leading to the mother of all cookies. Often that element of surprise is lost leaving behind just a well-written, entertaining piece of literature. I assure you that The Thief, by Megan Whalen Turner, is not that kind of book.

Behind a somewhat generic title and unassuming length, The Thief is a gem of a book. It bears with great pride that beautiful, shiny, silver crest signifying it as a Newbery Honor Book. At first glance it might seem to cater to the middle school age range. However, in reality this book is a phenomenal work of literature that should not be restricted so unjustly to one age group. As a high schooler I delighted in finding this book, as well as my college aged elder sister, and mother. This can be associated with the fact that it is written in a fluid, engaging style. The majority of the story deals with our characters traveling. Traveling! And yet I would have raced through it like I was sprinting for the last piece of chocolate chip banana bread if I’d had the uninterrupted time. The dialogue and other intangibles, like the authors voice, weave together perfectly to make riding a horse through a bunch of olive trees gripping. Like suddenly going to snitch some garden vegetables brings on a panic attack. Quite a few books need a ridiculous overload of drama and adventure to keep their little bookworms turning the page, but The Thief defied that requisite and succeeded.

The shining star and a massive part of The Thief’s appeal is the main character, Eugenides. One cannot help but adore every single itty bitty aspect of him. He is a smart-aleck, witty, deceptively stupid, and intuitive young man. His mix of characteristics, combined with a thrilling conclusion involving him, endears him to readers. I do not want to reveal to you the plot twist I so highly touted, but believe me when I say you would have to be an alien to not love Eugenides by the concluding page. Luckily, there are three books following The Thief so one can delve back into Eugenides’ story as I know you will want to.


If you ever find yourself looking for a quality book to read, or just browsing through your library, look no farther. The only reason I would caution someone not to get their hands on it would be because of the attention the author pays to the surrounding landscape. If you are one that abhors descriptions of scenery and location then I am not sure this would be the ideal book for you. Besides that, don’t let any aesthetics, judging-a-book-by-its-cover attitude, length discrimination, yada yada yada . . . you get my point. Don’t let it stand in your way! Also, trust me when I say you will need a friend on hand, doesn’t matter if they are imaginary or not, to share your overwhelming emotions with when you are kaput! And yes, that is a word in the English language.