“Captain Barnacle Garrick displayed all the characteristics of the typical bad pirate; he was saucy, bold and selfish. His daughter, Augusta, however did not follow the pattern. Around the pirate ship she was kind-hearted and helpful, never saucy and bold. She could never be a bad pirate until she did something selfish! Was now the time to make her father proud?
This delightful pirate spoof uses vocabulary in an interesting way to develop the story. Key words such as saucy, bold, and selfish, plus typical pirate expressions such as Aye! Arr! and Land ahoy! are found in bold, large print. The dialogue in bubbles is also colloquial and fun. This text should be a great read-aloud.
Each page is filled with colourful, humourous illustrations depicting the pirate ship and swarthy crew. Emphasizing the common reference to pirates as ‘sea dogs’, each pirate on the ship is cleverly drawn as a different breed of dog, including ‘peg-leg Scully, a white bull terrier. Augusta, in contrast, is a winsome spaniel. This story should amuse and delight young readers as well as prove to be a starting point for interesting discussion regarding personal characteristics. It is highly recommended for both a classroom and school library collection.”