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Pirates are hot, and nowhere hotter than in the publishin' world, where the Pirate Guys aren't the only ones with a book on the subject. Here are just a few that have come across our bow. Check our links page for still more piratical books
Books for junior pirates
Even the littlest ones are gettin' in on this pirate stuff. Why, from th' looks o' the recent publishing lineup, pirates may be the dinosaurs of the decade..
June 2007: Two new titles for the wee ones
Pirates Don't Change Diapers
by Melinda Long, David Shannon
# Harcourt Children's Books (2007)
ISBN-10: 0152053530
Ol' Chumbucket says:
Let's just say it – David Shannon is a genius. That's all there is to it. Without his work, Melinda Long's two pirate books for kids would be good. With them, "How I Became a Pirate" and the new sequel, "Pirates Don't Change Diapers" are fantastic, two of the best read-along picture books I've seen.
The new book is wonderful, in some ways, even better than the original. "How I Became a Pirate" showed a kid in a pirate's world. In "Pirates Don't Change Diapers," the new book, the pirates come into his world and are comically confounded by all sorts of things, especially .... the boy's baby sister.
The story is fun, but like I said, the illustrations are fabulous.
My son and I especially got a kick out of the drawing of the pirates trying to figure out the disposable diaper, with one getting the thing caught on his hook and another wearing one over his head like a very different eye patch.
"Pirates Don't Change Diapers" is a terrific book for the little pirate in your life. You'll have as much fun reading it to the nipper as he or she will while you read it aloud. It's another instant classic.
And David Shannon is a genius.
Pirate Mom
by Deborah Underwood
Random House Books for Young Readers (2006)
ISBN-10: 0375833234
Ol' Chumbucket says:
This is an early reader story that tells of a boy who loves pirates and his mom who doesn't – until she's accidentally hypnotized and thinks she IS a pirate! There's trouble with the neighbors, with the mailman, with the PTA and the police. The story is a level 3 "early self-reader" book and my son, Young Chumpail, gobbled it up and loved it. It's a book you'll enjoy reading with your kids, but a youngster can read by him or herself. Definitely add it to your kid's bookshelf.
Books for grownup pirates
The Pirate Primer
by George Choundas
Writers Digest Books (March 29, 2007)
ISBN-13: 978-1582974897
Ol' Chumbucket says:
" ... a college-level seminar on how to speak the language of pirates. It has everything – everything – you'd ever want to know about the pirate lexicon. ...:
(Read the complete review in The Poopdeck)
Will Eisner's Hawks of the Seas
by Will Eisner
Dark Horse (July 23, 2003)
ISBN-10: 1569714274
ISBN-13: 978-1569714270
Ol' Chumbucket writes:
" ... the almost complete collection of a comic strip that ran in the late 1930s. It tells the swashbuckling adventures of The Hawk, a hero almost too good to be true. He and his crew are not exactly pirates – they are on a mission to stamp out the slave trade and turn their nose up at the very thought of ill-gotten booty – but their adventures and actions are all in the best buccaneering tradition.
"Eisner's drawings are terrific, his composition and framing were years ahead of their time, and here they lend a dramatic urgency to the action that's just terrific. The story of "Hawks of the Sea" is good. The art work is terrific.
"Eisner, who died in 2005, was one of the patron saints of American comics. His early work is as alive today as it was when he drew it for a society just discovering the fun of graphic entertainment. "Hawks of the Sea" is a valuable addition to any seafarer's collection of piratey literature."
The Sea Witch
by Helen Hollick
BookForce UK Ltd (February 6, 2007)
# ISBN-10: 1905108141
# ISBN-13: 978-1905108145
Ol' Chumbucket writes:
" ... part pirate tale, part romance, part historical novel, part a story of witchcraft and magic, and probably a couple of other things I’m not quite clever enough to have noticed. ...While there's plenty of swashbuckling and adventure in this yarn that spans the Atlantic and touches on four continents, , the main business of the book is the seemingly doomed romance between the buccaneer Jesemiah and the lovely white witch Tiola. ... Alongside the two lovers are a cast of colorful characters – from pirates to evil lubbers and even a prim and proper governess. It all makes for a fun read..."
Order the book from Amazon.com
And there's many, many more book reviews to come. I'm way behind on my reading, and my apologies to all the authors and publishers who've sent books (or in one case hand-delivered it.) I'll get them all done soon. In the coming weeks reviews will include:
- "Real Caribbean Pirates," by Dan Asfar
- "Caribbean Pirates," by George Beahm
- "Cap'n Billy 'The Butcher' MacDougall's Guide to Pirate Parenting," by Tim Bete
- "Real Canadian Pirates" (that's not a typo) by Geordie Telfer
All are worth a read for very different reasons. For the full reviews, watch upcoming issues of The Poopdeck!
Black Beard
America's Most Notorious Pirate
by Angus Konstam
Wiley & Sons, New York
ISBN 0-471-75885-XOl' Chumbucket says:
" ... it's fascinating, and does a nice job of balancing myth and fact and showing why the things we "know" aren't always so. A good addition to any pirate fancier's library."
(Read the complete review in The Poopdeck)
Previously recommended:
How I Became A Pirate:
by Melinda Long, David Shannon
# Harcourt Children's Books (2003)
ISBN: 0152018484
Harcourt's Children's Books weighs anchor with How I Became a Pirate, a picture book for the baby-preschool set by Melinda Long, with marrrr-velous piratical illustrations by Caldecott-winner David Shannon.
Ol' Chumbucket says:
"Jeremy is ... playing at the beach when a pirate ship sails into view. The pirates, who have a treasure chest that needs burying (and what pirate crew doesn’t?) are so impressed with Jeremy’s sand digging that they invite him to join the crew. He agrees, as long as he’s home for soccer practice the next day ...
"The highlight of this book is (David) Shannon’s illustrations. These wonderfully whimsical pictures invite you to stare, and you find more and more humorous detail every time you look. ... Ol’ Chumbucket is here to tell ya that they perfectly capture life on a pirate ship. That’s exactly the chaotic scene of dinner around the pirates' mess aboard MY ship (or would be if I had a ship, Aaarr!)."
More of Shannon's illustrations, courtesy of the publisher:
The Pirates of Pensacola
by Keith Thompson
Thomas Dunne Books, 2005
ISBN: 0312334990
Order
from Amazon.com
Ol Chumbucket says:
"Terrific, hilarious. A modern day pirate story that's part Robert Louis Stevenson, part Jimmy Buffett and part Doug Adams."
More reviews coming soon!
Looking for the other books that used to be listed here? Go to our links page!
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