Pirate Books -- Kid Lit

Pirate Book Reviews! These are samples of books I am making available to the kids in my March Break program.

Series Information
Allison Lassieur and Liam O'Donnell. The Real World of Pirates. Mankato, Minnesota: Edge Books, 2007.

My Review
Take a trip back to the Golden Age of Piracy and learn about what it took to become a pirate back in the 1700s. From pirate gear to pirate treasure, this series of short books describes pirate life using clear vocabulary and vivid illustrations. In addition, each book is sprinkled with trivia facts about pirates. Did you know that Blackbeard wove hemp into his hair and lit it on fire to frighten his enemy? Great for nonfiction-loving reluctant readers.

Book Titles

The History of Pirates: From Pirateers to Outlaws
The Pirate Code: Life of a Pirate
Pirate Gear: Cannons, Swords and the Jolly Roger
Pirate Hideouts: Secret Spots and Shelters
Pirate Ships: Sailing the High Seas
Pirate Treasure: Stolen Riches

Book Information
Lock, Deborah. Pirate. DK Publishing, 2005.

My Review
In the tradition of DK books, opening this book is like having a museum in print format. It's filled with pirate information in bite-sized facts, with many informative photographs of pirate artefacts.


Book Information
Havercroft, Elizabeth. A Year On a Pirate Ship.  Minneapolis, MN: Orpheus Books Ltd, 2008.

My Review
This book discusses pirates in more of a story format, with some "Where's Waldo?" style item-finding throughout the book. Not a book to work with if you need solid facts, like dates and/or names.

Fast Food (Introducing Issues with Opposing Viewpoints series)

Book Information
Friedman, Lauri S., ed. Fast Food (Introducing Issues with Opposing Viewpoints). Missouri: Greenhaven Press, 2010.

My Review
Readers who enjoy a well-rounded discussion about current issues should open any book in the series Introducing Issues with Opposing Viewpoints. Fast Food  covers almost every issue imaginable on the subject of fast food. Is fast food making Americans fat, or is obesity a question of lack of self-care? Should fast food be regulated, with restrictions on its marketing? Can fast food ever be considered healthy?

The essays included in Fast Food are drawn from a variety of sources, from the New York Times website to Alternet.org, an independent news website whose aim is to "inspire action and advocacy on the environment, human rights and civil liberties, social justice, media, health care issues, and more" (http://blogs.alternet.org/about/). Fast Food presents information in a way that is simple and clear, with thought-provoking questions at the end of each essay.

Faces of Opportunity by Opportunity International Canada

Book Information
Opportunity International Canada. Faces of Opportunity. Canada: Opportunity International Canada, 2009.

My Review
In Faces of Opportunity, readers meet 20 successful entrepreneurs. These business owners funded their organizations using microloans from Opportunity International, a nonprofit organization that aids the working poor in 27 developing countries

The stories of the business owners in this small, thin book are very clear, concise, simple and powerful. Through their successes, some of these individuals have become leaders within their own communities. Facts on loans, international poverty and small businesses are sprinkled throughout the book. The beautiful pictures of the business owners deepen the links of understanding between the reader and the book. The stories are inspirational and encouraging.

My Notes
As part of a new work project, I have been updating a local tourism directory. Daily, I encounter news of small business closures. I am constantly reminded of the many needs and difficulties that challenge small businesses today. Reading this book was quite a morale boost for me. These successful entrepreneurs are more than faces of opportunity. They are faces of hope.

Department Stores by Claire Masset

Department Stores by Claire Masset. Shire Publications, 2010.

For those who enjoy shopping, this is a slim history on the development of department stores in Britain. Readers can breezily flip through the many pages filled with historical photographs and early advertisements. To quote the famous Henry Selfridge, this book demonstrates that a department store is a "social centre, not a shop."

It now seems funny that Harrods, after installing its first escalator, offered smelling salts to help customers recover from the ride. How lifestyles have changed over the past hundred years! And what an enjoyable, colourful trip through the past!

Liked this one?
Check out The Victorian Hospital for more British history in a slim, quick book.

My Notes

Readers might get a good laugh from an early Harrods ad, proclaiming it to be one of the cheapest stores in town! I would like to add that the font size in this book is quite small.

The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett

Book Information:

The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett. Isis, 2010.

 

My Review and Summary

If you were Queen for a day, what would you do? Travel the world? Make a large donation to the charity of your choice? Take a trip to... the library? The LIBRARY! For a Queen, after all, reading is a luxury as she always busy with public duties... And can one stop reading easily after just one book?? Alan Bennett's "The Uncommon Reader" is a lighthearted, fun story of a Queen like Queen Elizabeth who is addicted to reading. It's a relatively fast read as it is quite short, and can be finished in a couple of sittings.

No More Victims

Natasha Cooper. No More Victims. Great Britain: BBC Audiobooks and Barrington Stoke, 2008.

Summary

Candy and her son Adam are trying to put their past behind them. Candy has recently been divorced, and Adam is constantly bullied at school. When one of Adam's classmates is murdered, Candy is horrified, and suspects that her son is keeping a deadly secret. When she falls in love with one of the detectives, the situation becomes almost too hard to handle.

Review
Natasha Cooper is a notable mystery author, who was Chairman of the Crime Writers' Association in 2000/2001. "No More Victims" is part of the series "Shortlist books", whose books are written for a fast-paced read. Beginning readers will enjoy this book, which is published in a vision-friendly large print. It is quite a thin mystery novel, and easy to tuck into a purse or briefcase for a quick, on-the-go read. The one area that this book lacks in is character development, as the histories and thoughts of characters are not provided. Otherwise, it is quite an enjoyable mystery.