In Lon­don, enveloped by a dense fog in 1853, thir­teen-year-old Arthur nav­i­gates the oppres­sive atmos­phere with his father. The thick brume dulls the world, and Arthur hur­ries behind his father, who hasti­ly insists he finds an appren­tice­ship after his pro­longed absence. Once a source of warmth, his father’s demeanor has soured, reflect­ing the fam­i­ly’s finan­cial strug­gles. Arthur, though only recent­ly out of school, has been labor­ing tire­less­ly to sup­port his fam­i­ly. He scav­enges, col­lects manure, trades old clothes, and even dives into filthy waters to gath­er leech­es, all while car­ing for his younger sib­lings as their moth­er works few­er hours.

Despite some nos­tal­gic yearn­ing for the struc­tured life of school, Arthur rec­og­nizes his respon­si­bil­i­ty to pro­vide for his fam­i­ly in a world where child labor pre­vails, with his peers exist­ing in dire con­di­tions across the city, often risk­ing their lives in haz­ardous jobs. As they walk, Arthur’s curios­i­ty about the job oppor­tu­ni­ty sparks ques­tions, all met with harsh rebuffs from his father. Ten­sions esca­late when Arthur’s inquiry about the nature of the work they are head­ed to earns him a vio­lent rebuke.

Their jour­ney leads them into St Giles, noto­ri­ous for its squalor and vice, where Arthur feels a mix of shame and anger at his father’s cru­el­ty towards a des­per­ate pros­ti­tute. This encounter leaves a mark on him as they ven­ture onward to Brad­bury & Evans, a promi­nent pub­lish­ing house.

Upon their arrival, Arthur’s father attempts to lever­age a con­nec­tion with a local chemist for a job. How­ev­er, the pub­lish­ers inform them that they are not hir­ing. Des­per­a­tion takes hold of Arthur’s father as he pleads for a chance for Arthur, claim­ing his son is a genius. After some hes­i­ta­tion, the pub­lish­ers engage Arthur, chal­leng­ing him to recall spe­cif­ic dates from the past, impress­ing them with his extra­or­di­nary mem­o­ry but leav­ing him emo­tion­al­ly con­flict­ed regard­ing the events he recalls.

Even­tu­al­ly, they agree to take Arthur on as an appren­tice, pro­vid­ed they can assess his abil­i­ties over a week. Arthur is simul­ta­ne­ous­ly excit­ed and appre­hen­sive as he steps into the world of print­ing and pub­lish­ing, ignit­ed by curios­i­ty and a bur­geon­ing love for lit­er­a­ture and learn­ing that he had long craved yet been denied .