The Whipping Boy

Jemmy is an apprentice rat catcher who has the misfortune to be recruited as royal whipping boy, collecting the blows due to the obnoxious Prince Brat. When the prince decides to do a runner, he takes Jemmy with him as a servant, and their relationship evolves through several stages as they endure pursuit by soldiers, cut-throats and a runaway bear. Before their adventures climax in a rat-infested sewer, an understanding of sorts has developed between them. This is a brisk and eventful tale which keeps you wondering, almost to the last episode, as to whether the capricious prince will be humanised or not. It should maintain the interest of children acquiring independence in reading, and an author's note at the end, confirming the authenticity of the whipping boy custom, should generate some passionate discussion.