Smith by Leon Garfield
A Great Read
This brilliant, picaresque novel follows the adventures of an illiterate young
ragamuffin known only as Smith. Smith picks the pocket of a stranger, only
to witness immediately the strangers murder. Smiths booty from the theft is
an Important Document, no doubt worth quite a lot to somebody, which is
proved by the pursuit of Smith by two very shady characters. Smith artfully
dodges them and winds up in the odd company of a wealthy blind man,
who takes Smith into his home and provides him with an education. But
this new comfort is lost when Smith himself is suspected of the very
murder he witnessed. Smith was a Boston Globe--Horn Book Honor Book,
winner of the Phoenix Award, and a Carnegie Honor Book.
Personal Review: Smith by Leon Garfield
Here's a fun game for you to play. Walk up to your local children's
librarian. Comment idly on the weather, the news, the local sports team,

etc. Banter. Then, when the moment presents itself, slyly drop the name
of Leon Garfield. If you're dealing with a librarian that knows their chops
and has, in the course of their work, come across this most magnificent
author, you're bound you be treated to an extended dialogue regarding the
most noble qualities of that fine and outstanding writer. If, on the other
hand, you are dealing with an amateur fan of kiddie lit who's knowledge
extends only so far as the latest "Magic Treehouse" offering, you may not
garner much of a response. Pity them, in such a case, for Leon Garfield is
one of those writers that restore your faith in the beauty of children's
literature (especially after reading the aforementioned "Magic Treehouse").
If you don't know where to start in the Garfield oeuvre, I recommend the
eclectic, "Smith". Winner of a Phoenix Award (given to those great works
of children's literature that are gone but not forgotten), the book has been
republished relatively recently and is well worth your perusal. If you
haven't read this book, you're in for treat.
Picture yourself in Victorian England. Better yet, picture Smith there. He's
a twelve-year-old ragamuffin with a penchant for picking ample sized
pockets. Living by his wits (and in the care of his two elder seamstress
sisters), Smith leads a relatively happy life. That is, until he picks the
pocket of a soon-to-be-dead man. With a piece of parchment in his hand
that is the sole reason the old man was killed, Smith must learn to read
and unravel the paper's mystery. Along the way he'll be hunted, jailed,
frozen, and taken under a blind man's wing. Smith runs, jumps, and skips
from one desperate situation to another. By the book's finale the reader is
so thoroughly engrossed that Smith's adventures seem to burst off the
page. You've never rooted for a gamin quite as plucky (or snarky) as
Smith. And you probably never will again.
There's one word that pops into the brain when you read "Smith":
Dickensian. If you've a kid that you want to lure into the world of Charles
Dickens and you've exhausted your "A Christmas Carol" resources,
consider "Smith" to be a book in the same vein. The character of Smith
himself is almost the anti-Oliver Twist. For where Oliver was a pale saintly
little urchin who detested his underworld companions, Smith's more along
the lines of the Artful Dodger. A pickpocket by trade, he rubs shoulders
with some of the dingiest characters imaginable. Everyone from
highwaymen to the upper crust of the debtor's prison. Leon Garfield
conjures up a remarkably lifelike England of old. You see the dirt that
encrusts little Smith. You smell the rank streets and unwashed masses.
His prose is at some times remarkably beautiful. Consider this sentence
that describes a lonely graveyard: "Still and silent was the little garden
where the dead were planted and bloomed in stone". This is an average
lovely Garfieldian statement. At the same time, this book is chock full of
fun and wit. What good is it to be a good writer if you can't be funny from
time to time? "Smith" is funny and jovial and brimming with good humor,
even in its bleakest moments.

Kids today have acquired a newfound taste for somewhat gothic tales of
old. The ever popular, "A Series of Unfortunate Events", draws upon a
variety of classic Victorian themes. If you've a child that's been hooked on
those books, it might be remarkably easy to connect them to "Smith" as
well. Also consider pairing it with Joan Aiken's, "The Wolves of Willoughby
Chase" or Philip Pullman's, "The Ruby In the Smoke" for a classic touch. I
should clarify that "Smith" is more than just an Intro to Dickens, or
particularly repetitive. It's an original work in and of itself and deserves to
be examined in that light. Though it was written roughly 40 years ago, it's
still a lively jaunty little tale. There's not a trace of mildew about it. Nothing
old or decrepit. No, "Smith" is just the kind of well-written book of fiction
that makes you wish every undiscovered classic was this good. A gem.
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