Two boys identical in appearanceone a beggar the other the Prince of Walesaccidentally swap lives and learn how the other half lives The prince suffers the brutality of the laws he will one day administer while the pauper struggles with the stifling etiquette of the court The novel is a plea for social justice arguing that a ruler must understand the suffering of his people to govern wisely It is a gripping historical fable about empathy and the ...