Gawain the goose is really devoted to King Basil the bear and so he takes his job as Chief Guard of the Royal Treasury seriously. When rubies, then gold ducats, and finally the world-famous Kalikak diamond vanish from the treasure house, there is no way to account for the disappearances. Only Gawain and the King have keys! Woe and misery must be borne—by Gawain, by King Basil and the entire community, as well as by the real thief—before the goose's good name is restored. Brought to trial, Gawain escapes from his faithless friends into lonely self-exile. Now the thief, burdened by guilt, sees that the right thing must be done and determines, heroically, to do it. (Setting all this straight is no small job for one mouse, even such a mouse as Derek.) William Steig's many admirers will find in The Real Thief a book worthy of standing beside Dominic and Amos and Boris .
Author
William Steig was born in New York City in 1907. In a family where every member was involved in the arts, it was not surprising that Steig became an artist. He published his first children's book, Roland the Minstrel Pig, in 1968, embarking on a new and very different career. Steig's books reflect his conviction that children want the security of a devoted family and friends. When Sylvester, Farmer Palmer, Abel, Pearl, Gorky, Solomon, and Irene eventually get home, their families are all waiting, and beginning with Amos & Boris, friendship is celebrated in story after story. http://us.macmillan.com/author/willia...
