What readers think of Fagin the Thief, plus links to write your own review.

Wow! Allison Epstein has provided the reader with lots of new imagery for Victorian England in her book, Fagin the Thief. A semi-new Fagin is revealed. Her in-depth characterization shows Fagin being a manipulative, cunning, greedy, corrupt man, but a "softer" side of him is developed. He does still exploit children-mostly orphans- but he also provides care, shelter and food. There is no debating that Fagin is a criminal mastermind leading a "gang" of young pickpockets in deplorable England. Sometimes his caring for these "wards" makes him a vulnerable character. To say that Fagin is a complex character is an understatement.

The author weaves the anti-Semitic portray of Fagin as well as the stereotyping of Jewish people during Victorian England into his character. At times Fagin feels unsafe in his adventures and doesn't always exhibit confidence in targeting "customers". He is know to other as "the Jew" which he feels is condescending.The darker corrupt side of Victorian England is vividly portrayed. The squalor of living conditions stands out in the novel. The only time the reader views the wealthy is through the characters Fagin targets to rob.

I would definitely recommend this novel to book clubs. The discussions could go in many different directions. This book would also be great for a literature class either in high school of college. Fagin, in both Oliver Twist and Fagin the Thief should provide lively discussions.

Thank you BookBrowse for giving me the opportunity of reading an advanced copy.

When I first started this book I almost sent BookBrowse a "Just not my forte" note - but I decided to read on and now must say I absolutely loved this book!! It was a depiction of early to mid- nineteenth century London at its best and its worst.. It enveloped sadness, hatred, kindness, selfishness - and just the simple joy in living. The characters in Epstein's novel were so vivid and each one so different from the other as were the scenes depicted in this story so vivid of a sordid London. I, as the reader was transported to a much seamier time and place and side of life that is unknown to most of us. Yet the novel was so full of life!!
For me this was one of those rare books that one does not want to end -but alas, all good things must come to an end!

I admit at first that I was struggling with the narrative of this book. In fact, I reread the beginning chapters several times to comprehend the content and format of this book. However, the more that I continued reading this book, I became a captive reader. By the time I had read more than 50 percent of this book, I became so engrossed in the book I that anxiously awaited the availability of my time to read as many pages as possible. I couldn't foresee how the book would end, but when I reached that end, I was totally captivated. What an enjoyable experience I had reading this book and encourage others to embark on the trials and tribulations experienced by the characters in this book.

This was a 3.5 for me. Fagin the Thief is a reimagining of Oliver Twist, from the perspective of Jacob Fagin - the best pickpocket in London. I completely missed that when I first read the description, and was just drawn to the story. I’ve never read Oliver Twist and all I know about it is the “please sir, I want some more” line I remember from some kind of parody.

For me, the book but it wasn’t an easy read. Between chapters varying in times and the various characters, there wasn’t an even flow. I was bored with the story at times and couldn’t figure out where it was going.

The antisemitism in the book was prevalent and seemed overused. I know it was true to the time, and the author’s note explained the origin of it from Oliver Twist. That being said, it was almost distracting and took my focus away from the rest of the story.

I’m fairly certain I was at a disadvantage not knowing the characters and their stories. This book may be better suited to someone familiar with Oliver Twist.

This book wasn’t for me but I’d definitely read more from the author.

I read Oliver Twist several decades ago and was fascinated by the opportunity to read this reimagining of the villain of Dicken's novel set in the mid-nineteenth century. Somewhat to my surprise, a sympathetic Jacob Fagin appears in Allison Epstein's novel. Jacob is a boy abused by his father, who was also a thief, and loved by a mother who tried to point him in a different direction, to no avail.

I took an interest in the extreme anti-Semitism in London at that time, as Jacob Fagin was a secular Jew, but a Jew nonetheless. The attitude toward him by society was, "Of course, he's a thief, he's a Jew, isn't he?" The story takes us through his early life as a ragamuffin pickpocket on the street, eventually becoming a master thief. In the Dickens story, it appears that Fagin deliberately gathered boys into his lair, sending them out into the streets to pick the pockets of the rich and bring the spoils back to him.

Epstein presents a different storyline: Boys seek him out to escape their fate and be trained by him. He becomes a reluctant rescuer of these boys. Jacob is not a kindly hero, but he does have a soul and a conscience, of sorts. Oliver, interestingly enough, is not a major character in this novel but does appear and takes part, against his will, in an abortive home robbery that goes awry.

At this point, Epstein imagines a different story concerning the violent Bill Sikes and his girlfriend Nancy, which becomes the main focus of the rest of the book. Without giving spoilers away, they all come to an end differently than in Dicken's novel. If your remembrance of Dicken's version is strong, you might object to Epstein's version, but I frankly thought it was well done and actually made more sense. And a novel is, after all, a novel, so the author can go anywhere they wish. I highly recommend it. Thanks to BookBrowse for providing a pre-publication version for review.

3.5 stars Thank you to BookBrowse and Doubleday for allowing me to read and review this ARC. Publishes Feb 25, 2025.

I am pretty skeptical about retellings. Seldom do I care for the changes that are made to the original story or characters. However with this book, it was not so much a retelling as it was a deeper probe and continuation into the lives that Dickens made popular.

We are reintroduced to Fagin, as an adult. Along with Nancy, Bill Sikes, Dodger and the dog, Bullseye. Fagin takes them all under his wing, along with a few more, and makes sure they are the best pickpockets in Victorian London. Until Sikes tries a job that puts them all under the thumb of the law.

I will be following the writing career of Epstein, having enjoyed this book. Sadly to say, her other two books are in eras that I do not particularly like to read about, so hoping that a future book will liken back to a time period that I do enjoy.

Fagin the Thief treads the now familiar trope of an alternate POV of a classic story. It does so without the Antisemitism of the original and makes Fagin out to be a sympathetic character dealing with the extreme poverty of 19th century London and early loss of parents. he is given a childhood thieving mentor which he in turn becomes to other boys over time. I'll not spoil the ending but it was satisfying.

An interesting re-telling of Oliver Twist. The author writes well and offers interesting insight into the characters. The historical background and depiction of the "justice" system was intriguing.