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[[quoteright:318:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_golden_dream_of_carlo_chuchio.jpg]]

This is a book by Creator/LloydAlexander, author of ''Literature/TheChroniclesOfPrydain''. Carlo, a good-for-nothing apprentice to his uncle, a merchant in an obviously medieval Italy-like city-state, finds a map in a mysterious book found in the city's BazaarOfTheBizarre. Deciding he does not want to be a merchant, he goes off in search of treasure. On the way he meets Shira, an innkeeper's daughter who is a runaway slave; Baksheesh, a lazy beggar turned caravaner, and Saloman, a mysterious old man who is WalkingTheEarth. The book follows their adventures along their journey in a mysterious land that is like the medieval [[UsefulNotes/TheSilkRoad Silk Road]]. Few things big happen along the journey; it is mostly a simple adventure tale. But it is done with imagination and love, and gives an insight into what Medieval travellers must have felt like.
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!!The Golden Tropes of Carlo Chuchio:
%%* AllThatGlitters
%%* ArabianNightsDays
* ArmsDealer: The slaver who captured Shira also sells arms to warlords along the way.
%%* BazaarOfTheBizarre
* CoolHorse: Shira escaped from the slaver by stealing a CoolHorse.
%%* CowardlySidekick: Baksheesh
%%* CrossingTheDesert
* DeliberateValuesDissonance: Just enough to make it appropriate to the setting.
* DontSplitUsUp: Subverted, as Shira is split up from her brother. She later meets him again.
* DuelToTheDeath: Carlo manages to survive one of these by a legalistic interpretation of nomadic custom.
%%* GoodParents: Shira's parents.
* HappilyMarried: Shira's parents. The father was a merchant who saw Shira's mother, fell into LoveAtFirstSight and stayed with her to become an innkeeper instead of continuing his voyage.
* HereThereBeDragons: Most of the world. This is a representation of the Middle Ages after all.
* HonorBeforeReason: Subverted but not very well. The nomads manage to be convinced to throw away [[GoodOldWays centuries old customs]] just a wee bit [[EasyEvangelism too easily]].
%%* IntrepidMerchant: They meet a few of these.
* IstanbulNotConstantinople: Several times they use old names for places. As these often roughly correspond to what they would have been in the RealLife Silk Road, it makes sense. For instance there is a mysterious country called Cathai far at the end. Cathay of course, once meant China.
* IWillFindYou: Inverted. It is Shira that finds her brother rather then her brother going on a quest to find her.
%%* LandOfOneCity: Several
%%* LovableCoward: Baksheesh
* LowFantasy: And very well done. It is mysterious and doesn't lose its wonder by being too blatant.
%%* MadeASlave: Shira
%%* MerchantCity: several
* MamaBear, PapaWolf, BigBrotherInstinct: All three are played straight at once, but tragically. Shira's mother and father are killed defending her when the slavers arrive. Her little brother tries but is to little to be worth the bother of killing and meets his sister again later.
* NobleSavage: The Mongol-like nomads they meet.
* PluckyComicRelief: Baksheesh. Sometimes [[LovableCoward not so "plucky"]].
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: Bashir, the nomad's chief
* {{Outlaw}}s: One of the hazards of the journey
%%* TheQuest
* QuicksandSucks: Averted. Saloman tells Baksheesh that it is impossible for a sensible person to be killed by it.
* {{Revenge}}: One of Shira's goals is to find the Slaver who captured her.
* SacredHospitality: The nomads give this to them.
* SergeantRock: The hardbitten ''Rais'' or Captain of a caravan with which they hitch a ride.
* ShoutOut: There are a remarkable number of {{Shout Out}}s to the history and legends of the RealLife Silk Road.
** Among them, it is implied that the mysterious TomeOfEldritchLore in which the map is found is ''The Literature/ArabianNights''.
** The treasure is hidden, in an area that, according to [[TheStoryteller tales]] was [[RapePillageAndBurn wasted]] by a [[TheHorde barbarian army]] which resembles that of Ghenghis Khan.
* TheStoryteller: There is a mysterious storyteller that they meet several times. He seems to have mystical powers.
* TheresNoPlaceLikeHome : One of Shira's goals.
%%This is an index. Replace it with a specific trope that fits.* {{Tomboy}}: Shira . Lloyd Alexander always has to have a HotBlooded tomboy.
* TomeOfEldritchLore: The book containing the map.
%%* TrueCompanions: One of the main themes.
%%* {{Tsundere}} : Shira.
* VigilanteExecution: Three captured outlaws are ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice by the orders of the caravan captain after an attempted attack, according to the [[GoodOldWays custom]] of the country.
* YeGoodeOldeDays: Subverted. The setting is not presented as TheDungAges, mainly because it is intended to be LighterAndSofter in style; at least enough to be read by children. However, the cruelty of their world is made clear, even if it is often more implied than shown explicitly.
%%* WalkingTheEarth
%%* WellExcuseMePrincess: Shira.
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