The Good Thief By Hannah Tinti

When my mom first suggested this book to me I wasn't sure if I would like it, I'm more of a strong female lead kind of girl. My experience with historical fiction has been mostly with the Dear America diaries, almost all of which were weak female leads, and not the best writing I've ever read. So when I started reading I thought that I was in for a dry history lesson, but Tinti proved me wrong. She showed me that historical fiction can have interesting, three demential characters that are not total stereotypes. This book deals with a lot of issues, from orphanages to grave robbing and body snatching. Foremost is the issue of how people with physical deformities were treated in the late 19th century. We have a boy without a hand, a hairlip, a deaf woman, a giant and a dwarf, all of whom are trying to live as normal a life as they can. This book really captured the underbelly of society in the 19th century, complete with corrupt CEO's and double dealing doctors. I would recommend this book for anyone who can stand a little blood.