Dodger (English)

● Título: Dodger
● Autor: Terry Pratchett
● Género: detectivesco
● Editorial: Random House / Corgi
● Año de publicación: 2012
● Idioma: inglés
● Precio: 1,00€ en el mercadillo solidario

 This fascinating young adult novel is written by Terry Pratchett, an English author who has written the famous Discworld series. This prolific novelist has published more than 60 works, has been entitled Sir by the Queen Elizabeth II in 1998, and has also won several awards but unfortunately he suffers from alzheimer.

This book is set in the Victorian London, and it tells the story of Dodger, a young and poor tosher who earns a living searching for coins and expensive jewellery in the mud of the London sewage system. Being an antihero like Lazarillo de Tormes or Don Quixote, he starts from the bottom, living in poverty, and becomes rich and famous whilst the plot unfolds.

The story begins with our main protagonist rescuing Simplicity, a misterious young lady who is being beaten by two men in the middle of the street in a deluge. Afterwards, he has the mission to find out who exactly the girl is and to defeat the ones who want to see her dead. In his path he will get to know a large amount of characters based on reality, such as Charles Dickens, Henry Mayhew or Angela Burdett-Coutts; and based on fiction, like Sweeney Todd.

The pace of the story is fast in the set-up and in the resolution, but slow in the confrontation. This might be because there is more descriptive text than actions. Despite this, the plot is very gripping and profound, always having the characteristic comic touch of Pratchett's writing style.

I really loved the book. The plot has been really entertaining and thanks to it I have discovered a new world I didn't know about. Now I have more knowledge about a tosher's life and the great amount of poverty settled in the London of the XIX century.

My favourite characters are Dodger and Onan, his stinky dog. Dodger has the personality I love the most: he is valiant, honest, adventurous, and fulfills all the promises he makes. Onan has a minor role, but he is very cute and brave. All characters have taught me something new, and that is something that adds value to me.

If you are fond of the fantasy and comical novel genre, you definitely have to read Dodger. It is rally worth it, and I assure you will not regret having read it. I highly recommend it!

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