As promised, here is DODGER!

If you know the words 'Please sir may I have some more, you also know who said it and which book.  Oliver Twist, to some, is the best known of Charles Dickens' books.  Yes, A Tale of two cities and Great Expectations are also well known but did not honour being made into a Disney Animated Film or a musical.

As with many books, the title character is not always the one that people end up liking.  In the case of Oliver Twist, the Artful Dodger is the character that steals the show and how appropriate for Terry Pratchett to take this lovable character and give him the Pratchett makeover.

Those of us who have read the Discworld novels and novels such as Nation know that anything is possible once Pratchett has taken a character into his world.  For some, it might be disappointing to realize that there was nothing magical in Dodger.  That is to say nothing magical as in the Discworld novels.

Knowing who Dodger is and knowing the brilliance of Pratchett, one can only tremble with anticipation when holding the book in your hands.  As is fitting, the story plays out in Victorian England.  Dodger is a young man in his early twenties and still very wise in how to move around London, so no one sees him, be that in the sewers or in disguise,  and a master at looking after things that are 'lost in the streets.

He rescues a girl from an attack and meets very important people, Charles Dickens and Henry Mayhew two men who are well known for their interest in the poor of London and their living conditions.

The novel takes us into a world in the sewers built by the Romans and utilized by the toshers to move around London unseen, as well as their hunting ground for money and other valuables washed down with the rain.

It becomes clear that this novel is more of a Romantic Suspense than a true fantasy.  Pratchett indeed combines facts with fiction to give the story that fantasy feel.  For instance, we meet Solomon, who has travelled through Europe and met Karl Marx and other historical figures.  Dodger meets Sweeney Todd, Disraeli, Charles Babbage, Robert Peel, Dick Turpin, and we learn that Dodger's first name is Pip.  

Throughout the novel, allusions are made to the works of Dickens.  One can only smile at the intended humour as you would miss it if you did not know this era and the people mentioned in the novel.  The humour lies in the fact that Dodger, who comes from the sewers, moves up in status and start to rub shoulders with the prominent people of the Victorian age.

Dodger, in my mind, is a Victorian Romance upside down.  In the traditional Victorian and Regency romances, the characters are from the nobility, and the stories follow their drama.  However, Dodger focuses on the life and circumstances of the people in areas such as Camden Town and the Seven Dials.

I had a good time reading Dodger and would recommend it to any fan of Pratchett's and anyone who loves reading about historical London and the people who made it a vibrant city.