| How I Became a Pirate by Melinda Long |
HOW I BECAME A PIRATE by Melinda Long
Illustrated by: David Shannon
Release Date: 9/1/03
Publisher: Harcourt
Pages: 44
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by: Allison Fraclose
While at the beach, a young boy named Jeremy Jacob looks up
from his sand castle to find a pirate ship approaching the beach.
He tries to tell his family, but they are all too busy, and no one
notices when the pirates pull up in their rowboat and ask Jeremy
if they have reached the Spanish Main. When he says no, they
are at North Beach, the pirate captain notices Jeremy’s
sandcastle. They need a good digger, so they invite Jeremy
along with them to bury their treasure.
Life as a pirate starts out very exciting. Jeremy finds that pirate
table manners don’t include saying “please” or chewing with
mouths closed. He doesn’t have to eat vegetables (since there
aren’t any on board), and he even teaches the pirate crew how
to play soccer before the ball ends up overboard in a shark’s
mouth.
After a hardy pillow fight, Jeremy heads to bed without brushing
his teeth…but he can’t sleep. Pirates don’t tuck in, or read
bedtime stories. And when a terrible storm hits the ship, Jeremy
is forgotten in the chaos, and being a pirate isn’t much fun
anymore. He’ll have to do some quick thinking to escape the
ship and get back home in time for soccer practice the next day.
A hilarious read with goofy, guffaw-inducing illustrations, this
whacky tale of a modern boy pirate teaches the important lesson
that getting what you wish for is not always best. Even the
bravest little pirates may realize after reading that a safe life at
home, watching pirates in books and movies, may be more
appealing than an actual life out at sea.
Illustrated by: David Shannon
Release Date: 9/1/03
Publisher: Harcourt
Pages: 44
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by: Allison Fraclose
While at the beach, a young boy named Jeremy Jacob looks up
from his sand castle to find a pirate ship approaching the beach.
He tries to tell his family, but they are all too busy, and no one
notices when the pirates pull up in their rowboat and ask Jeremy
if they have reached the Spanish Main. When he says no, they
are at North Beach, the pirate captain notices Jeremy’s
sandcastle. They need a good digger, so they invite Jeremy
along with them to bury their treasure.
Life as a pirate starts out very exciting. Jeremy finds that pirate
table manners don’t include saying “please” or chewing with
mouths closed. He doesn’t have to eat vegetables (since there
aren’t any on board), and he even teaches the pirate crew how
to play soccer before the ball ends up overboard in a shark’s
mouth.
After a hardy pillow fight, Jeremy heads to bed without brushing
his teeth…but he can’t sleep. Pirates don’t tuck in, or read
bedtime stories. And when a terrible storm hits the ship, Jeremy
is forgotten in the chaos, and being a pirate isn’t much fun
anymore. He’ll have to do some quick thinking to escape the
ship and get back home in time for soccer practice the next day.
A hilarious read with goofy, guffaw-inducing illustrations, this
whacky tale of a modern boy pirate teaches the important lesson
that getting what you wish for is not always best. Even the
bravest little pirates may realize after reading that a safe life at
home, watching pirates in books and movies, may be more
appealing than an actual life out at sea.
