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A Bandit’s Tale: The Muddled Misadventures of a Pickpocket Audiobook
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From an award-winning author of historical fiction comes a story of survival, crime, adventure, and horses in the streets of 19th century New York City.
Eleven-year-old Rocco is an Italian immigrant who finds himself alone in New York City after he's sold to a padrone by his poverty-stricken parents. While working as a street musician, he meets the boys of the infamous Bandits' Roost, who teach him the art of pickpocketing. Rocco embraces his new life of crime—he's good at it, and it's more lucrative than banging a triangle on the street corner. But when he meets Meddlin' Mary, a strong-hearted Irish girl who's determined to help the horses of New York City, things begin to change. Rocco begins to reexamine his life—and take his future into his own hands.
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Narrator P. J. Ochlan embraces this spirited novel, documenting eleven-year-old Rocco Zaccaro’s adventures with such gusto and spunk that you’d swear you’d traveled back in time to 1887…Capturing the characters’ voices perfectly, Ochlan delivers Rocco’s animated storytelling, the slang of his newfound gang of pickpockets, and the accents of the city’s many immigrants, whether Irish, Scottish, German, English, or Italian. Historical notes, including a pickpocket’s glossary, complete this excellent production.”
— AudioFile
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“[This] picaresque novel…covers heavy topics including immigration, child labor, and animal welfare, Rocco’s conversational voice resounds with humor, compassion, and an inspiring energy for change. A dynamic historical novel ideal for both classroom studies and pleasure reading.”
— Publishers Weekly (starred review) -
A strong choice for fans of Rodman Philbrick’s The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg (Scholastic, 2009) and those who enjoy adventures about scrappy and resourceful kids who have to rely on their own smarts and the kindness of strangers to change their lives.
— School Library Journal starred review -
A dynamic historical novel ideal for both classroom studies and pleasure reading.
— Publishers Weekly starred review -
“[A] lively, fast-paced novel…[for] those who enjoy adventures about scrappy and resourceful kids who have to rely on their own smarts and the kindness of strangers to change their lives.”
— School Library Journal (starred review) -
“Hopkinson’s writing is so inventive that it’s almost impossible to guess what will happen next. Every scene contains a little surprise. Rocco…[is] endlessly funny and clever…[and] reliably entertaining till the end of the story.”
— Kirkus Reviews
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About Deborah Hopkinson
Deborah Hopkinson has written many award-winning author books for children, including Beatrix Potter and the Unfortunate Tale of a Borrowed Guinea Pig. Her picture books include Sky Boys: How They Built the Empire State Building, named an ALA-ALSC Notable Children’s Book and a Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor Book. Her historical fiction includes A Boy Called Eel, which has been featured on more than a dozen state award lists and was a finalist for the Oregon Book Award.
About P. J. Ochlan
P. J. Ochlan is an Audie Award–winning, multiple Earphones Award–winning, and Voice Arts Award–nominated narrator of hundreds of audiobooks. His acting career spans more than thirty years and has also included Broadway, the New York Shakespeare Festival under Joseph Papp, critically acclaimed feature films, and television series regular roles.