Treacle Walker

By: Alan Garner

Narrated by: Robert Powell

Shortlisted for the 2022 Booker Prize

An extraordinary, “playful, moving, and wholly remarkable” (The Guardian) coming-of-age novel filled with myth and magic from one of England's greatest living writers.

An introspective young boy, Joseph Coppock is trying to make sense of the world. Living alone in an old house, he spends his time reading comic books, collecting birds’ eggs, and playing with marbles. When one day a rag-and-bone man called Treacle Walker appears on a horse and cart, offering a cure-all medicine, a mysterious friendship develops and the young boy is introduced to a world beyond his wildest imagination.

Luminous, evocative, and sparely told, Treacle Walker is a stunning fusion of myth, folklore, and the stories we tell ourselves.

Critic reviews

"British actor Robert Powell narrates the magical story of an English boy, Joe Coppook, who encounters strange folkloric characters who confound him as he wrestles with the nature of time and of good and evil. Powell shows his theatrical skills in his portrayals. Whimsical characters—such as the bog man, the heroes and villains from a 1940s comic book, the rag-and-bone man called Treacle Walker, and, of course, Joe—are all expertly brought to life."

imaginative

short chapters good to pick up listen to in short segments . would read another from this author