Sorry for the delay writing you back on this. By now you’ve probably finished your essay.

That was a good idea to write about Ren’s hand, because his hand is not only a physical part of him that is missing, it is also the missing piece of his own history.

But your question seems to be about human nature. What does Ren learn about human nature? Well, he is exposed to a great deal of darkness, but within that darkness, also light. He learns that the world most often falls somewhere in between those two places. I don’t want to give you the answers, but if you check out chapter 15, that’s pretty dark. So is the chapter where Pilot eats soup with the bartender’s hand, or any chapter that features McGinty. As for the lightness, look for the sections of the book where the characters show each other kindness. Look for Mrs. Sands.

Best,
Hannah

I’m glad to hear you and your sons enjoyed the book so much. I am hard at work on a new novel, which I hope to finish soon!

Thanks for writing in.

Cheers,
Hannah

I have started to read your book and so far its great but could you please answer a few question for me as i am in the process of doing a uni assessment on your novel. The question is as followed: Ren has been on a journey to discovery, from the day he left the orphanage with Benjamin untiol a sunny afternoon in the graveyard. What has Ren dicvoered about human nuture within the good thief?? ok this is my question for my essay ive vchoosen to talk about his hand becaseu he only has one and talk about the differences from the other characters within the novel and today within socitey that has changed, i need some more ideas about human nuture from the novel to add within the essay im a tad stuck. could give give me some ideas??

Kind Regards Sadie

Glad you enjoyed the book. I’m guessing you were assigned it for a class, since you’re asking about themes.

I can’t answer that for you–it wouldn’t be fair–but I’ll point you in the right direction. Let’s start by figuring out what a “theme” means. A theme is an idea, expressed through a work of art. So you need to figure out: what is Hannah Tinti writing about? If you read the Q&A above, you’ll find some answers. You can also go here to get a list of stuff that inspired The Good Thief.

Good luck, and try to answer the question yourself, instead of looking it up on line. Your teacher will notice. And you might even enjoy it.

Best,
Hannah

I can’t tell you how exciting it is to receive an email like yours–to know that a reader was so concerned about my characters that it kept them up at night! So I guess I’m a bit nervous too, writing you back.

First, let me put your mind to rest: Benjamin would never commit suicide. He is NOT going off to drown himself. He is leaving town to protect Ren–and to take the blame for McGinty’s murder. It’s a very unselfish thing for him to do, which is a big step for him. But I imagine Benjamin going off and having a bunch more adventures, and maybe one day coming back, when Ren is a lot older.

The last line: “missing, missing, missing, missing” is really about what’s going on inside of Ren, emotionally. He finally has the thing he always wanted: a home and a family. But to gain these things he had to go through a lot of hardships, and he lost some things along the way (including Benjamin), and a part of himself is always going to be missing and he’s always going to be missing Benjamin and Dolly. I wanted to give Ren a happy ending, but all happy endings I think are also tinged with a little bit of sadness.

I hope that answers your questions. Thanks so much for writing in and telling me what it was like for you to read The Good Thief.

Best wishes,
Hannah

I’m not exactly sure how to word this; this is my first time actually speaking to an author in any way and it feels as awkward through the keyboard as it would be if I were seeing you face to face and I’m ridiculously nervous.

I can’t think of any other way to say it so I just will: This book is just AWESOME! The first half drew me in, and the second half had been hanging off the edge of my seat and flying from page to page like a fish reeled in on the end of the line and I simply couldn’t stop until I read all the way to the last line and then some and back again to read it over once more. I always struggle to try and crack a new book, being the routine-stickler-never-try-new-stuff kinda person, so it was wonderful finding this and being so drawn in that everything else around me was shut out.

Now, the inevitable question-time; I just finished reading The Good Thief about ten minutes ago, actually, and the epilogue and closing two paragraphs are gnawing at my brain and I’m sure I wont sleep until I ask:

The reference to Ren “always looking for [Benjamin]“, then the “promise of deep water”, as well as the last line “always missing, missing, missing, missing.” confused me quite a bit and is leaving me with a strange feeling of dread. Plus earlier on, Tom mentioned that Benji would always come back, then when Ren asked while they were eating on the floor if Benji would come back Tom shook his head, and I’m also getting an odd feeling about Benjamin’s words “I’m going to have to disappear for a while” and “I’m trying to do what’s right”. The deep water in particular is especially troubling me, and I can’t shake the feeling that Benjamin, for some reaon or another, (maybe becuase he felt he finished his duty to help Ren?) got out of the city and drowned himself. Please tell me I’m wrong! Thank you!

Good to hear from you again. I’m glad your class enjoyed The Good Thief!

Talking with Minnetonka was pretty special, and I loved your “skipper swag” shirts. I have done skypes and a lot of school visits across the country. It’s one of my favorite things to do, besides bookclubs.

Thanks for reading! Hope you have a great Sophomore year.

Best wishes,
Hannah