"Know ye that I have devotedly carried out my charge...And the results are" — here it adopted a more normal, sardonic tone — "you're an idiot."

A magician’s apprentice is supposed to be obedient, attentive, and humble, and Nathanial has faithfully followed these unwritten tenets ever since he was place in the care of his master at the tender age of five. Since then he has worked hard and put up with his master’s often unkind treatment. Then, when he is ten, a powerful government employed magician, Simon Lovelace, humiliates Nathaniel in the most mortifying way and Nathaniel’s master, Arthur Underwood, does nothing when his young apprentice is cruelly ill-used. In fact Underwood punishes Nathaniel for having the cheek to antagonize a fellow magician.

   Furious and ashamed, Nathanial decides to emulate the great Gladstone who “avenged himself on anyone who wronged him: he had upheld his honor and was praised for it.” Determined to have his revenge on Simon Lovelace, Nathanial gets to work and hatches a plan. For two years he diligently studies and practices to improve his magical skills, and by the time he is twelve, Nathanial is far more knowledgeable in the art of magic than he should be for a boy of his age. 

   Finally prepared to put his plan into motion Nathanial summons up a powerful 5,010-year-old djinn called Bartimaeus to help him put Simon Lovelace in his place. Bartimaeus is not at all pleased to be forced to work for a twelve-year-old boy, indeed, he finds the situation that he finds himself in to be very demeaning and annoying for a djinn of his exalted caliber. However, Nathaniel has cast his spell properly and with great care and there is nothing that Bartimaeus can do to magic or trick his way out of his current circumstance. Bartimaeus is bound to the will of the impertinent boy and when he is told to steal the Amulet of Samarkand, a highly magical artifact, from Lovelace, Bartimaeus reluctantly does as he is told.

 At Lovelace’s house Bartimaeus encounters two other djinn whom he has encountered in the past. One is Jabor, a djinn who is "moronically strong to the point of being indestructible" and who is partial to blowing things up. The other is Faquarl, an djinn comparable to Bartimaeus in power and guile who is also Bartimaeus’ “nemesis.” Jabor and Faquarl are bound to Simon Lovelace and so they do their utmost to reclaim the amulet that Bartimaeus has stolen; to no avail. Bartimaeus gets away only to be accosted in an alleyway by a mysterious gang of youths, who attempted to steal the Amulet from him. 

   Bartimaeus is summoned back to Nathaniel who orders him to hide the amulet in Underwood's study for safekeeping. Charged to return to Nathaniel after completing that task, Bartimaeus is with him when Mrs. Underwood calls the boy by his birth name, Nathaniel. When a djinn knows its master’s name it acquires at least some control over its life and it can even use the knowledge to challenge its oppressor. 

   Nathaniel knows all too well how powerful this knowledge can be for a djinn and he counteracts this by casting a Perpetual Confinement spell which forces Bartimaeus into a sealed tin of rosemary, which is agonizing to gjinn.  The spell binds Bartimaeus to serve Nathaniel for a month and a day, and he cannot harm the boy in any way.

  Not long after the theft of the amulet Nathaniel is officially given his magician name,  John Mandrake. That night Nathaniel accompanies magician Underwood and his wife to parliament to watch a state address. Nathaniel witnesses a wild looking youth release an elemental sphere into the throng of magicians at the address, which results in a large explosion. Apparently the attack was the work of the Resistence, a group of young people who are eager to upset the current political (and magical) status quo.

   Now protected by his new name, Nathaniel summons Bartimaeus again and orders him to spy on Simon Lovelace and to discover all he can about the man’s acquaintances and his connection to the Amulet of Samarkand. Bartimaeus follows, and then waylays, Lovelace’s messenger imp, taking its place and its appearance. In this form the djinn goes to Pinn's Accoutrements to learn all he can about the amulet. Sholto Pinn's foliot assistant reveals that the amulet was under government protection before it was stolen.

   Nathaniel now understands that Lovelace stole the amulet from his own government, which clearly indicates that he is up to something nefarious in the extreme. When Lovelace puts his considerable powers to work to retrieve the precious magical artifact, Nathaniel, and Bartimaeus, realize that they have become entangled in a very dangerous conspiracy of epic proportions.

   Set in a modern-day London which is ruled by magicians, this deliciously funny and highly entertaining book is told from the point of view of both Bartimaeus and Nathaniel. Bartimaeus’s often sarcastic and scornful observations about the magicians and their world are highly amusing, and the longstanding conflict between the djinns and the magicians adds a delightful soupcon of intrigue and history to the story. The story also serves up a healthy dose of insight into the human condition. Throughout the book, the characters demonstrate different forms of power and the consequences it brings. From the corrupt government officials, to the magical abilities of the main character, Nathaniel, power is shown to be a double-edged sword that can easily consume and corrupt those who possess it. In addition, the story presents the author with a unique way to raise and explore the insidious issues of class and elitism in society.

Quotes from the book:

   

“I am Bartimaeus! I am Sakhr al-Jinni, N’gorso the Mighty, and the Serpent of Silver Plumes! I have rebuilt the walls of Uruk, Karnak, and Prague. I have spoken with Solomon. I have run with the buffalo fathers of the plains. I have watched over Old Zimbabwe till the stones fell and the jackals fed on its people. I am Bartimaeus!”

“That did it. I'd gone through a lot in the past few days. Everyone I met seemed to want a piece of me: djinn, magicians, humans...it made no difference. I'd been summoned, manhandled, shot at, captured, constricted, bossed about and generally taken for granted. And now, to cap it all, this bloke is joining in too, when all I'd been doing was quietly trying to kill him.” - Bartimeaus

“A dozen more questions occurred to me. Not to mention twenty-two possible solutions to each one, sixteen resulting hypotheses and counter-theorems, eight abstract speculations, a quadrilateral equation, two axioms, and a limerick. That's raw intelligence for you.” – Bartimaeus

"I warn you," the boy went on. "I am a magician of great power. I control many terrifying entities. This being you see before you" - here I rolled my shoulders back and puffed my chest up menacingly - "is but the meanest and least impressive of my slaves." Here I slumped my shoulders and stuck my stomach out.” - Nathaniel

The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud can be purchased at your local book store, or online at Bookshop.org, Amazon, and other online retailers. Bookshop.org works to connect readers with independent booksellers all over the world. Every purchase on the site financially supports independent bookstores. The platform gives independent bookstores tools to compete online, and financial support to help them maintain their presence in local communities.

Art by Varsam Kurnia