A curiosity from the early 1960s, a suspense novella about a misguided plot to kidnap a child as way of publicizing the "talents" of a down-at-heel psychic. A very well written character study that preserves a snapshot of a post-war, pre-Swinging 60s Britain of bad food, poor housing and cramped little lives.
As others have commented, this was adapted into a 1964 movie starring Richard Attenborough and Kim Stanley, and although the movie was superficially very faithful to the book, the book is much, much better. Crucially, the movie makes two changes to the book which were probably meant to satisfy the nervous moralizing of film-making at the time, and make World's Worst Kidnappers Myra and Bill a bit more palatable and relatable. The book, therefore, is harder and nastier, and much better for that.
As others have commented, this was adapted into a 1964 movie starring Richard Attenborough and Kim Stanley, and although the movie was superficially very faithful to the book, the book is much, much better. Crucially, the movie makes two changes to the book which were probably meant to satisfy the nervous moralizing of film-making at the time, and make World's Worst Kidnappers Myra and Bill a bit more palatable and relatable. The book, therefore, is harder and nastier, and much better for that.
