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Skullduggery [Hardcover]

Kathleen Karr (Author), Troy Howell (Illustrator)
4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)

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Product Description

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"Interested in medicine?
Dr. ABC seeks bright lad.
Training and board.
Apply number 113, Broadway."

Twelve-year-old Matthew Morrissey can't believe his luck when he spots this ad in the paper. He is interested in medicine--he wants to find a cure for the cholera that wiped out his whole family and left him orphaned. Alone on the streets of 1840s New York, Matthew leaps at the opportunity to help this Dr. ABC, whomever he is. As it turns out, he is the plump, puffy, rumpled Asa B. Cornwall, a kindly-if-obsessed phrenologist who hopes to someday perfect mankind through his study of the contours of human skulls, particularly those of flawed characters. "Give me a skull, and I can conjure up the very soul of a man!" he cries passionately. Matthew is eager to please this eccentric man, if only for a warm bed and all the oatmeal he can eat.

In time, however, his apprenticeship intensifies when he learns he must help his master rob graves for real specimens. And can the doctor really mean that he wants Voltaire's skull from Paris? Things heat up even more when they discover they have a mysterious enemy with a brow "broad and low," clearly the skull of a criminal. Kathleen Karr's delightful, well-crafted adventure is witty, suspenseful, and deliciously Dickensian; most of all, it has a great deal of heart. Watching the older man and his young charge plow forward through near misses and comedies of errors is pure fun. And we, like the dynamic duo, come to learn that their companionship is far more valuable than a chest of gold, an acre of skulls, or Dr. ABC's relentless pursuit of perfection. (Ages 10 to 14) --Karin Snelson

From Publishers Weekly

Karr's (The Great Turkey Walk; Man of the Family) comical, fast-paced novel reveals the seedy practices of 19th-century scientists. After his family falls victim to cholera, orphaned 12-year-old Matthew Morrissey survives on the streets of New York in 1839, until he reads about a position as assistant to Dr. ABC (Asa B. Cornwall). The shabby but flamboyant doctor is an expert in phrenology, "the scientific study of the mind through the surface of the skull." Matthew soon learns that his job entails not only impressing the wealthy clients who come in for character analyses but also robbing graves of famous heads. Matthew's literal hunger as well as his thirst for education outweighs his ethical reservations, and he quickly demonstrates his ingenuity in building and organizing the doctor's practice. The doctor's ambitious research and the duo's flight from a terrifying and mysterious body snatcher take them along the East Coast and across the Atlantic. Liberally packed with references to and witty details about important works, leaders (a final pursuit involves exhuming Napoleon's body from St. Helena for its transport back to Paris) and philosophies (e.g., Voltaire's famous "Liberty, Equality, Fraternity"), Karr's latest is part history lesson and all entertainment. Ages 10-up. (Mar.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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Customer Reviews

4 Reviews
5 star:
 (2)
4 star:
 (1)
3 star:
 (1)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.2 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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3.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Start but Tepid Finish, July 20 2001
By A Customer
This review is from: Skullduggery (Hardcover)
This book has a very creative premise, is well-written with interesting characters, and got off to fascinating start. Halfway through this book I would have rated it with 5 stars. However, I found the last third somewhat disappointing. After creating a mysterious and fascinating antagonist, the author seemed to run out of plot ideas in terms of how to satisfactorily resolve the conflict between the protagonist and antagonist and as a result the ending was very flat as the story seemed to run out of gas without any real or compelling resolution.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting and unique!, Sep 25 2000
By 
"mollycc" (Colorado, USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Skullduggery (Hardcover)
This book has it all -- history, suspense, friendship, and dark humor. Kids will be intrigued to learn about the 19th century practice of phrenology -- analysing someone's character and personality by the bumps and shape of one's head. Although the history and grave robbing scenes are interesting, it is really the friendship between the doctor and the boy that makes this book great.
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4.0 out of 5 stars Very Interesting, but neat!, July 12 2000
By A Customer
This review is from: Skullduggery (Hardcover)
Ok, I don't know why I found this book intruiging! It took me awhile to read it, because it didnt started out slow. Then it gets moving! And thats why I give it 4 stars! Good book! Wonderful author! RECCOMEND... especially to anyone that wants to be a brain surgeon! This book is about how they would dig for skulls, so the DR. could help in his work. They got some famous skulls too!
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