Martin of old London

A fourteen-year-old boy in London during the summer of 1666 struggles to find work and spends his hours by the river, where he notices ships, watermen, and a mysterious bearded seaman. After being dismissed from his employment he becomes involved with strange visitors and a brass-bound box, and a circle of boys is drawn into danger through kidnapping, confinement, and covert flights along the waterfront. The action shifts between rivercraft and shipboard encounters, leading to chases, fights, and inventive escapes that emphasize quick thinking and loyalty. When a great fire menaces the city, apprentices and friends are pulled into communal effort before the immediate threats are resolved.