Synopsis: Pip is a blacksmith’s apprentice – but he longs to be a famous knife-fighter like his dead father. Alone in London, he meets great danger….and two odd allies. One is hairy and hungry. The other is William Shakespeare. Pip’s extraordinary adventures have begun…

 Review: ‘Bearkeeper’ is a novel set in the dirty, boisterous streets of England’s greatest historical city: London. We join Pip at the tail-end of the Tudor period, where, on his quest to find his missing father, who he thought dead, bumps into a certain Will Shakespeare and a group of men who wish to spill Pip’s blood. Welcome to an exciting and informative peek into an England four hundred odd years in our past and a London that flares from the pages.

This is the first book I have read by Lacey and I have never read one quite like it. The book is an intriguing blend of story and authorial intrusion on a grand and rather unique scale. The story is simple enough to follow and one that I think all children from Year 3 to Year 6 will enjoy (especially if they’re studying The Tudors): it will end up hitting the ‘reluctant boy’ market quite well too with the sword fights and cutthroats and exciting cover.

 Will, who lives with his family in the countryside, wishes to embark to London where he believes his father (who he thought dead) is living. The story takes him to the Globe where he befriends the crew who performed there (many famous names crop up if you’re interested in Shakespeare).

There is no doubt that Lacey builds up the story well; his writing style is very easy to go along with and fun to read. You could either see it as a good book for those readers just taking flight in Year 4 or 5, a whole class read to Year 3 upwards, or a fun, easy read for the more accomplished reader.

However, the thing that grabbed my attention were the two voices that come clear throughout: the author’s and the story’s. Part way through the story, Lacey cuts in with his times in London, or how he came to research a particular place. Lots of his interjections are ‘Did you know that in Tudor times….’ Or ‘Although you might find it shocking, Pip was would not have been put out by….’. At times, he’ll have a whole chapter devoted to this information and reflections; other times it could be a sentence or two slipped into a scene. At first I didn’t know what to make of it. I hadn’t read a book that quite did this. It was a story that was trying to build up an image of Tudor London and keep it exciting, whilst also making sure we had interesting facts and footnotes from this time. Upon reflection, I can safely say that although I wouldn’t want every book to do this, I felt that it worked perfectly. Lacey chooses his information only to help build up a scene or add to the drama – I was just as drawn to the facts from the author as I was to Will’s story.

Overall,  ‘Bearkeeper’ is a fun book that will appeal to a broad range of reader. It’s clearly a great story to read to the class if you’re studying the Tudors and a part of me feels that may have been its primary goal. Although I feel the title and cover are pretty misleading (the bear really hardly plays a part at all and definitely isn’t fierce), I enjoyed the tale and welcomed a very different approach to children’s books of which I am accustomed to. I’m sure other readers with a curiosity in history and adventure will feel the same way too.

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2008-06-15