A Kestrel For A Knave

A Kestrel for a Knave is a 1968 British Social Realist novel by Barry Hines. It portrays the difficult life of a young boy, Billy Casper, as he tries to navigate the pressures and oppression of growing up in a working-class mining town in Yorkshire. Though there are flashbacks, the entire narrative present occurs within the course of one day, as Billy deals with challenges at home, school, and his job. His love of nature and animals is presented as a counterpoint to his physically demanding and dangerous work as a miner. The novel explores themes of The Difficulty of Escaping Class Oppression, The Dangers of Equating Vulnerability With Weakness, and Nature as an Escape.

This guide uses the 2000 Penguin Classics Reprint Edition.

Content Warning: The source material and guide feature depictions of child abuse, bullying, substance use, gender discrimination, sexual content, and animal cruelty and/or death.

Plot Summary

In a South Yorkshire mining village, 14-year-old Billy Casper lives with his neglectful mother and abusive elder brother, Jud. The novel opens with Jud’s alarm clock waking Billy in a cold, curtainless room. Jud takes Billy’s bike, forcing him to complete his newspaper delivery round on foot. Before heading to school, Billy goes to his refitted shed to check on his trained kestrel, Kes. Billy has a great deal of care and affection for Kes and displays a high level of knowledge when handling the bird.

Billy goes to school, a strict and punishing environment. Teachers are cruel, dismissive, and quick to resort to corporal punishment for minor disruptions. It is a rigid, perfunctory education that appears more interested in instilling obedience in pupils than exploring their potential. Principal Gryce, in particular, expresses a special contempt for the boys under his care and uses a cane to strike several boys, including Billy, across the hands.

Mr. Farthing, the English teacher, is an exception to the pattern of abuse and neglect found among other teachers and administrators. An active and engaged teacher, he involves the students in his lessons. During a lesson on fact and fiction, he gets Billy to tell a story about himself. Billy reluctantly talks about his experiences training Kes. Mr. Farthing prompts Billy to expand on this, as the class listens in rapt attention. Billy grows increasingly enthusiastic during his talk, defying his reputation as a “no-hoper.” Mr. Farthing is impressed by Billy’s passion, and for the first time, an adult sees potential in him.

During the break, Billy gets into a scuffle with another boy named MacDowall. Mr. Farthing breaks up the fight. Afterward, Mr. Farthing expresses interest in seeing Billy fly Kes.

Mr. Sugden, the physical education teacher, bullies the boys through a game of soccer, making the game run too long because he refuses to allow a tie. Billy, worried about getting home in time to feed Kes, lets a goal in, throwing the game. In retribution, Mr. Sugden forces Billy into an ice-cold shower.

Mr. Farthing is fascinated by Billy’s bond with Kes and visits him at home to watch him fly the bird, marveling at the power of Billy’s bond with Kes and the incredible level of expertise and skill Billy has developed. Mr. Farthing offers Billy a lift back to school, but Billy declines, instead running an errand to place a bet for Jud.

At the last minute, he decides that it’s unlikely Jud’s chosen horses will win and instead spends the money on fish and chips and meat for Kes. Jud’s horses win, and upon finding out that Billy didn’t place the bet, Jud turns up to school seeking retribution. Billy evades him and attends a career orientation meeting for kids about to leave school, as education is no longer compulsory after 15. Billy doesn’t reveal his passion for falconry, instead simply insisting that he doesn’t want to work as a miner like much of the local, male working population.

Billy returns home to find that Kes is missing. Jud, unable to find Billy, killed Kes in revenge for his lost bet. Billy flees the house with Kes’s body and takes shelter in an abandoned building. In a series of flashbacks, he recalls the day his father left over his mother’s infidelity. He then returns home, buries Kes, and goes to bed.