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In the second installment of their series, Pete, Inna, Vicky, Aaron and Gary are finally getting their hands dirty with some real pirating work. Being lookout in the midst of a storm isn’t a whole lot of fun, but they consider it the most important job on the ship. Rotten Teeth might not…but the Captain repays him for his doubts by sticking him up in the crow’s nest til morning, which makes it all worth it.
Early the next morning, Pete wakes up and spies a surprising sight through his spyglass–a Ghost Ship! Rotten Tooth just sets to laughing at them again when they tell him about it, so they go to Clegg instead, because Clegg knows everything. He tells them Ghost Ships are very important and its their job to find out what it wants.
With special permission from the captain to sleep on deck, the kids set about to do just that, trying to save the day yet again. Even when it seems no one believes them, these kids stick to their guns and do what they know is right. Which is lucky for their crew mates, since as of yet, this little crew hasn’t been wrong!
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As the series starts off, pirate-hopefuls Pete, Inna, Vicky, Aaron and Gary all left their respective ships behind to come crew the Sea Rat, whose Captain—Stinky Beard—wanted to start a Pirate School. Rotten Tooth, the best pirate on the ship, was given the job of being their teacher. He didn’t much appreciate the job, so his students had yet to learn anything much more than how to clean and stay out of his way. But they were determined to find a way to make him see that they were ready to be real pirates.
After a number of backfired plans, the group strikes gold: the crew is set to take off on a Treasure Hunt on Snake Island. The kids seek out Clegg, the pirate who knows all, to ask him about the curse of the snake of Snake Island. They also copy themselves the treasure map. Then, with permission from the captain to camp on the beach for the night, they’re set to try and save the day. The plan? Get that treasure first! And prove they’re ready to be pirates.
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Desperaux Tilling was a disappointment to his mother from the day he was born–the only of his litter of mice babies to survive. But with his big ears, and his wide-open eyes, the family immediately decides there’s something wrong with him. Indeed, Despereaux does seem to be lacking all requisite mouse desires.
His brother tries to teach him to scurry, but he would rather enjoy the stained glass windows. His sister tries to teach him to nibble books, but he would rather read. While his family hears nothing but the sounds of falling food, Despereaux is drawn to a sweeter sound, one only he seems to hear. And so it is he finds himself in the Princess Pea’s bedroom, listening to her father the King sing to her.
This is the last straw for the mouse community. They call together the council and together decide he must be sent to the Dungeon. No mice ever come back from the rat-infested dungeon. This is surely the way to rid themselves of this danger.
But this is the story of an unlikely hero, and Despereaux does come back from the dungeon. Just in time to be too late to warn anyone of the dangers to the princess. When her father the King won’t listen to Despereaux’s advice on what’s happened to the missing girl, he realizes it will be up to him to save her. And so he sets off, one little mouse, about to do the impossible.
This was a really quick read and a really cute book. I’ll probably be buying it for my permanent collection. Definitely worth a read.
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Now living at Awful End with his Mad Uncle Max and Even Madder Aunt Maud, Eddie’s life continues right on with the crazy. Awoken early one morning by his uncle to come down and see the driver-less hearse in the driveway, Eddie has no idea what to think. And before he can decide, an even bigger catastrophe happens.
While recovering from that, Eddie and not-Mr. Collins are nearly hit by a crashing hot air balloon, which does in fact hit his Mad aunt Maud, who labels it quite an exciting experience.
From there things just get crazier, as Eddie is arrested, set free, gets lost on the moors, falls in with some convicts and wonders how anything will get set right again.
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As stated by the author, this book came about because rather than write his nephew boring letters while he was at boarding school, his Uncle chose to write him stories instead. Eddie’s stories.
When Eddie Dickens’ parents take ill with an odd disease, they send him off with his Great-Uncle, who happens to be mad. Much to Eddie’s chagrin, upon arriving in the carriage, his Great-aunt is even madder. Naturally, many mishaps ensue. From sleeping in a trunk to rescuing an orphanage full of kids, Eddie is kept on his toes.
Fun, playful, zany little book. Can’t wait to see what happens in his next episode!
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