The Spook's Apprentice facts for kids
Book cover for The Spook's Apprentice
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| Author | Joseph Delaney |
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| Country | Great Britain |
| Language | English |
| Series | The Wardstone Chronicles of Spook's |
| Genre | Children's fantasy novel |
| Publisher | The Bodley Head |
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Publication date
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2004 |
| Media type | Print (hard & paperback) |
| Pages | 325 pp |
| ISBN | 0-09-945645-1 |
| OCLC | 60768078 |
| Followed by | The Spook's Curse |
The Spook's Apprentice, also known as The Last Apprentice: Revenge of the Witch in America, is an exciting fantasy novel written by Joseph Delaney. It's the very first book in The Wardstone Chronicles series. The story is about a 13-year-old farm boy named Tom. He lives in the countryside of "The County," which is a place much like Lancashire in England. Joseph Delaney, the author, lives there with his family. Tom is special because he is the seventh son of a seventh son. This means he can see things that most people can't, like boggarts, ghasts, and ghosts.
Contents
The Story of Tom Ward
Tom Ward has always lived in a place called "The County." Because he is the seventh son of a seventh son, he has a special ability. He can see ghosts and fight other spooky creatures. His parents decide he should become an apprentice to the Spook. The Spook is a mysterious man named John Gregory.
The Spook travels around The County. He helps people by getting rid of troublesome creatures. These include boggarts, ghosts, ghasts, and witches. Tom needs to learn how the Spook fights "The Dark." This way, he can become a Spook himself one day.
The Spook tells Tom that his past apprentices didn't finish their training. Some were too scared, some didn't listen, and some even died. One apprentice, Billy Bradley, died after a dangerous boggart bit off his finger. Tom moves into the Spook's house in a village called Chipenden. A boggart protects this house from unwanted visitors. The Spook made a deal with the boggart. As long as the house stands, the boggart must guard it. It also cooks and cleans for the Spook and his apprentices.
One day, Tom goes to get food for the house. The Spook gives him a strict warning: "Do not talk to women wearing pointy shoes." On his way home, some boys try to bully Tom. They threaten to beat him if he doesn't give them his food. Tom refuses. Just as the boys are about to attack, a girl with pointy shoes appears. She scares them away by saying someone important is back. The mysterious girl's name is Alice. She is related to some very dangerous witches in The County, like Mother Malkin and Bony Lizzie.
Main Characters
- Thomas Ward: A 13-year-old farm boy. He becomes an apprentice to the Spook. He is special because he is the seventh son of a seventh son.
- John Gregory: He is the Spook for The County. He teaches Thomas how to fight dark creatures. He was also a priest before.
- Alice: A young witch who becomes friends with Tom.
- Bony Lizzie: A mean witch. She is Alice's aunt and used to be her teacher. She uses a type of magic called Bone Magic.
- Mother Malkin: A very evil witch. She is Bony Lizzie's aunt. The Spook had trapped her in a pit.
- Tusk: Mother Malkin's son.
- Mam: Tom's mysterious mother. She seems to have the power to see into the future.
- John Ward: Tom's father.
- Jack Ward: Tom's oldest brother. He took over the family farm.
- James Ward: Tom's second oldest brother. He works as a blacksmith.
- Ellie Ward: Jack's wife.
- Mary Ward: The daughter of Ellie and Jack.
- Father Gregory: The Spook's brother. They haven't talked to each other for over forty years.
Film Version
The Spook's Apprentice was made into a movie in 2014. It was called Seventh Son. The movie was shown in 3D and IMAX 3D. The film changed a lot of the book's story. It also added new parts, probably to make it more exciting for older viewers. The movie stars Ben Barnes, Jeff Bridges, and Julianne Moore.
Play Script
In 2014, Joseph Delaney's son, Stephen Delaney, turned The Spook's Apprentice into a play. It is 160 pages long and is called The Spook's Apprentice - Play Edition.
Other Books in The Wardstone Chronicles Series
- The Spook's Curse (2005)
- The Spook's Secret (2006)
- The Spook's Battle (2007)
- The Spook's Mistake (2008)
- The Spook's Sacrifice (2009)
- The Spook's Nightmare (2010)
- The Spook's Destiny (2011)
- Spook's: I am Grimalkin (2011)
- The Spook's Blood (2012)
- Spook's: Slither's Tale (2013)
- Spook's: Alice (2013)
- The Spook's Revenge (2014)
Related Books
- The Spook's Tale / Interception Point: This short story was put together with another story for World Book Day UK in 2009.
- The Last Apprentice: The Spook's Tale And Other Horrors: This book is a collection of four short stories. It includes The Spook's Tale, Alice's Tale, Grimalkin's Tale, and A Gallery of Villains. It was released in the U.S. in 2009.
- The Spook's Stories: Witches: This is another collection of four short stories about witches. It was published in the U.S. as The Last Apprentice - A Coven of Witches in 2009.
- The Spook's Bestiary: This book is a guide to all the different creatures found in The Wardstone Chronicles world. It was published in the U.S. as The Last Apprentice - The Spook's Bestiary: The Guide to Creatures of the Dark in 2010.
- The Ghost Prison: This book is set in the same world as The Wardstone Chronicles. However, it has different characters and a new story. It came out in 2013.
- The Last Apprentice: The Seventh Apprentice: This is a shorter novel about the Spook's seventh apprentice, a boy named Will Johnson. It was published in 2015.
- The Spook's Stories Witches (2015)
- The Spook's Special Edition (2015)
More Information About the Book
