Will Sparrow's Road

By: Karen Cushman

Narrated by: Katherine Kellgren

Will Sparrow, liar and thief, is running away—from the father who sold him for beer, from the innkeeper who threatened to sell him as a chimney sweep, from his whole sorry life. Barefoot and penniless, without family, friends, or boots, Will is determined to avoid capture and, of course, to find something to eat.

Some of the travelers he meets on the road have a kind word for him and a promise of better things to come, such as coins and juicy beef ribs. Eager to go along, Will repeatedly finds himself tricked by older and wiser tricksters. Each time, he resolves afresh to trust no one and care for no one. But luckily for Will, he can’t keep his guard
up forever.

The lively goings-on behind the scenes of Elizabethan market fairs provide a colorful, earthy backdrop for Karen Cushman’s wise and funny story of a runaway who finally, and unexpectedly, stops running.

Rollicking Medieval Fair Fun

I loved the progress of Will Sparrow, a runaway, becoming more concerned about his companions and others in general when he finally was able to develop relationships in his broken life as a sold child in Elizabethan England. He also was able to come to more rational conclusions about people as he recognized his own ability to judge character and not be swindled. Although Cushman writes for Young Adults, she hints at deeper traumas and abuses suffered by children in historical settings. Her depiction of Grace is bittersweet as the girl realizes she is a person and not an oddity to be profited from and exploited. The depiction of Fair culture in England is well researched. Realistic imagery prevails as people on the fringes of society learn to survive and protect one another as well as entertain fair-goers who are escaping from their own work and drudgery.