The book tells the story of two young boys who were born on the same day and are identical in appearance: Tom Canty, a pauper who lives with his abusive, alcoholic father in Offal Court off Pudding Lane in London, and Edward VI of England, son of Henry VIII of England. What happens when the two boys change clothes and places, and each one learns how the other half lives? Mark Twain's satirical and suspenseful novel about the thin line that separates prince and pauper is a perennial favorite.