The Convicts

The Convicts is a novel written by Iain Lawrence about the adventures of a boy named Tom Tin. The book starts talking about the problems his family faces from his sister dying to a man named Mr. Goodfellow trying to ruin his family. From the beginning of the book his life starts going down the drain, his father is taken away to debtor's prison and Tom is forced to leave home to find money to get his father out of jail and to get his family back into a good home. For Tom it is a wrong place wrong time situation. He first stumble into a grave digger and then after that he is mistaken for a member of a gang in downtown London and then is charged by police for crimes he did not commit. He is then sent to a ship prison (hulk) call the Lachesis and from there he is meant to be transported to Van Diemen's Land. After being sent to the hulk he finds out the horrors of the hulk from first hand experiences and he then spends the rest of his time trying to escape from the horrors of the hulk and to find his family again.

In the book two main themes were the coming of age and trust. They fit perfectly into the book because when he is forced out into the streets to find money to save his father and family he meets people that were shift and that make bad decisions. This forces him to make right decisions and to make friends with people that he can trust and that would not lead him into trouble.

The book is written through Tom's eyes which give the affect that you are seeing what he is sees so it is like you are there at the same time. The book also takes place in the early 1800s, therefore Iain Lawrence made the characters speak in a old english style of speaking which gave an affect that made it feel like you were back in time with them.

The problems in the book relate to teenagers because at this point in our lives we have to start making decisions for are selves that will affect are life in the future forcing us to think about what we are doing so that we make the right decisions that will lead us in the right path.

If i was Iain Lawrence i do not think i would change the book in anyway because it would take way from what the book is right now. It would not be the same because every part contributes greatly to the plot. I think it is great how it is.

I would recommend this book to everyone from the age of 13 to 16 and also to anyone that like to read about how life was back in the 1800s and to people who enjoy reading about sailing adventures. It is not a hard read and it is also a fast paced book that always has something exciting around the corner.

Many rhetorical devices were use in the book but i found that pathetic fallacies were use throughout the book. The whole book is set up in a very dark and gloomy atmosphere that fits the situation and the characters that Tom reacts and spends his time with in the book and the also foreshadow that even worse events are going to happen later in the book. Another rhetorical device that were used were metaphors. All throughout out the book he talks about his fathers ways of describing situations in this sailors talk. For instance he describes a problem and how it will all turn out better in the end by talking about how stormy weather has to end sometime and that winds change directions constantly and that not every time things go your way and that no matter what happens you have to continuing pressing on.

Overall the book was amazing and i cannot wait to read The Cannibals the next book in the series.