The Patron Thief of Bread by Lindsay Eagar - ADVISABLE

The Patron Thief of Bread by Lindsay Eagar, 438 pages. Candlewick Press, 2022. $16

Language: G (0 swears, 0 ‘f’); Mature Content: PG (theft, grooming for a gang); Violence: G (mild danger)

BUYING ADVISORY: MS - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

The opening is told in the gargoyle’s point of view and the statue sees a young woman carrying her baby while running from men. As they almost capture her, she jumps into the river while holding onto her baby. Eight years later, Duck is a young girl within a group of traveling thieves. She’s trying to prove that she’s helpful and ends up as a baker’s apprentice to infiltrate the bakery and steal from inside. She continues to give bread to her thief group, the Crowns, but doubts more and more that she’s doing the right thing because she’s feeling loved by the baker. As the stakes rise, Duck will have to make some tough choices and decide who her family is and who she’s loyal to.

I like the baker;mshe’s tremendously generous and kind. I appreciate the author’s writing of Duck’s conflicts between right and wrong and in finding her sense of belonging. This is a clean read with a good message. Ethnicity is predominantly white.

LynnDell Watson; Delta HS Librarian