His Name Was Walter chapter sampler

Mrs Fiori stirred. When she spoke her voice sounded a bit slurred, and Colin wondered if she’d been asleep. ‘It seems young to us now, Grace, but it was once quite normal. And of course, in lots of other countries of the world, right now, children start work even younger. You know that, surely!’ ‘Yes, but the writer shouldn’t have made Walter do it!’ Grace retorted. ‘It’s not fair! And I hate the way that Matron changed his name!’ ‘It’s just a stupid fairytale!’ muttered Lucas, and even Grace was so surprised to hear him speak that she fell silent. Colin felt a timid hand on his sleeve. ‘Read some more,’ said Tara Berne. ‘Yes, Colin, keep going,’ Mrs Fiori urged, a bit too obviously delighted that Tara had ventured out of her shell. So Colin turned the page, and at once was transfixed by another illustration. This picture was dark and gloomy. It showed a dim cave filled with rows of high desks where mice wearing eyeshades and white shirts with stiff collars sat chained to tall stools, their heads bent over their work. At the far end of the cavern, on a raised platform, a hawk in a business suit brooded, surrounded by boxes of gold coins. Just looking at the painting made Colin feel trapped. He could almost smell the cavern — he could smell the ink, the dusty paper, the dank, stuffy air and the

22