Story summary
Streszczenie książki Amatorski włamywacz
- 8 min czytania
- 7 parts
- Nagranie wkrótce
A ruined gambler threatens suicide before a cricket hero and gets a partner in crime instead.
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Amatorski włamywacz — najważniejsze informacje
Streszczenie: 8 min czytania
- Czas czytania
- Około 3 h 30 min2 h 45 min fast, 4 h 10 min slow
- Długość
- Liczba słów: 50 100
- Poziom trudności w bibliotece
- Łatwy short sentences, plain words
- Pierwsze wydanie
- 1899by E. W. Hornung
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). Ile czasu zajmuje przeczytanie klasyków · Zaktualizowano
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Amatorski włamywacz in short
The Amateur Cracksman follows a gentleman thief and his anxious friend through eight stories. A ruined man is drawn into a Bond Street burglary. Later tales take them from a millionaire's house to a cricket week in Dorset, an Australian bank, a stolen painting, an escaped convict in the Albany and a German liner.
What Amatorski włamywacz is about
What would you do if the man you admired most at school asked you to help him rob a jeweller? That is the question Bunny faces on a foggy March night in London. A gambling debt has ruined him, and he carries a loaded pistol to the Albany, a block of gentlemen's rooms off Piccadilly. There lives A. J. Raffles, England's finest bowler, welcome in every club and country house. He is also a burglar who lives by his wits.
The Amateur Cracksman is a book of eight linked stories by E. W. Hornung, published in 1899. Hornung, the brother-in-law of Arthur Conan Doyle, turns the detective tale inside out. We follow the thief, not the man who hunts him, and Bunny tells the tale with admiration and a little shame.
Dla kogo. Readers who love clever plans, charming rogues and Victorian London by gaslight will enjoy this book. It suits fans of Sherlock Holmes who wonder how the other side thinks.
The story in 7 parts
Key idea 1 · free to read
A ruined gambler finds a partner in crime
The book opens at half past twelve on a foggy night in the Albany. Bunny has gambled away an inheritance and written worthless cheques to his card partners. He begs Raffles for two minutes of his time. His family is gone, his furniture is under a bill of sale, and he carries a pistol.
Bunny puts the barrel to his own temple. Raffles shows wonder instead of fear, and that look stops Bunny's hand. Raffles takes the gun and says he is as broke as his visitor, with nothing to live on but his wits. He asks whether Bunny would do anything for a friend, even commit a crime. Bunny says yes, and Raffles says the money must be found that very night.
He leads Bunny through the fog to a jeweller's shop on Bond Street, with a key to the empty rooms above it. Raffles drills through a solid mahogany door with a brace and bit, oiling the bit each time to keep the noise down. Bunny holds the lantern and watches the street. Raffles empties the shop window of its gems and leaves the safe untouched.
At dawn, back at the Albany, Bunny feels horror at their crime but cannot turn his admiration into disgust. Raffles even unloads Bunny's pistol and hands it back. Bunny swears he will help again, and the partnership begins.
A man at the end of his rope will follow whoever offers him a way out.
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Pride and a purple diamond lead to trouble
A month later, London is talking about Reuben Rosenthall, a millionaire from the South African diamond fields.
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Cricket becomes the perfect cover for crime
Raffles explains to Bunny that a man who wants to commit crime safely needs a second, very public career.
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Raffles tells how his crimes began
After the Milchester week, Raffles finally tells Bunny the story of his first crime.
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A moneylender dies and a painting goes missing
After a quiet job in Ireland, Raffles comes to Bunny's rooms dusty and amused.
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A fugitive in the Albany asks for help
One foggy November evening, Raffles tells Bunny about Crawshay, the florid thief Bunny saw at an inn near Milchester.
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A German liner and an emperor's pearl
Months later Bunny is living quietly by his pen, short of money, when Raffles invites him on a sea voyage to Naples.
Read all 7 key ideas now
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Characters, plot and themes
Main characters
- A. J. Raffles A famous cricketer and charming gentleman who lives as a burglar, drawn to dangerous targets and clever plans.
- Bunny Raffles's old school fag and loyal partner, who tells the stories and follows his friend despite his fear and conscience.
- Inspector Mackenzie A patient Scotland Yard detective who suspects Raffles and appears in disguise, again and again, to catch him.
- Crawshay A florid professional thief who escapes from Dartmoor and turns to Raffles for help in getting out of England.
- Bennett Addenbrooke A shady London lawyer who hires Raffles and Bunny to recover a stolen painting for a wealthy client.
- Miss Werner A young woman on the German liner Uhlan whose friendship with Raffles forms part of his plan for the pearl.
How it ends (spoiler)
On the Uhlan, Raffles places the stolen pearl on the table and asks permission to say goodbye to Miss Werner. He announces he is engaged to her and kisses her, then climbs onto the rail and dives into the sea while Bunny holds the mate. Bunny is put in irons and later imprisoned. From his cabin he glimpses a dark speck in the water near Elba and never learns whether it is a swimmer.
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Pytania o Amatorski włamywacz
What is The Amateur Cracksman about?
It is a book of eight linked stories about A. J. Raffles, a famous cricketer who is secretly a burglar, and his friend Bunny, who tells the tales. They steal jewels, plan heists and dodge Scotland Yard in late Victorian London.
Who is Bunny in the Raffles stories?
Bunny is a younger school friend of Raffles, ruined by gambling, who becomes his partner in crime. He narrates every story, admires Raffles deeply, and often hides his fear behind loyalty and a sense of humour.
Is The Amateur Cracksman connected to Sherlock Holmes?
Yes. Hornung was Arthur Conan Doyle's brother-in-law, and he dedicated the book to A. C. D. Raffles and Bunny are a thief and a faithful narrator, in a pattern that echoes Holmes and Watson.
When was The Amateur Cracksman written?
It was published in 1899 and set in the late Victorian era. The stories are fiction but use real London places, such as the Albany, Bond Street and Lord's cricket ground, to give the plots a lively sense of place.
Is The Amateur Cracksman easy to read?
Yes, it is approachable. The stories are short and self-contained, the plots move quickly, and Bunny's lively voice keeps each heist clear. Readers can enjoy them one at a time or in sequence.
Zacytuj to wydanie
Hornung, E. W. The Amateur Cracksman. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-amateur-cracksman.
Hornung, E. W. (2026). The amateur cracksman. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-amateur-cracksman (Original work published 1899)
Hornung, E. W. The Amateur Cracksman. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-amateur-cracksman.
@book{hornung2026amateur,
author = {Hornung, E. W.},
title = {The Amateur Cracksman},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-amateur-cracksman},
note = {First published 1899}
}
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