Pirates and Privateers
The History of Maritime
Piracy
Cindy Vallar, Editor
& Reviewer
P.O. Box 425,
Keller, TX 76244-0425
Books for
Pirate Apprentices ~ Activities, Crafts, Games, &
Puzzles
The Book of Pirates: A Guide
to Plundering, Pillaging and Other Pursuits
by Jamaica Rose and Captain Michael MacLeod
Gibbs Smith, 2010, ISBN 978-1-4236-0670-3, US $12.99
Another
book on pirates? Yes, that was my initial reaction
to The Book of Pirates, but knowing Jamaica
Rose and Captain Michael, I plunged into this book
and was pleasantly surprised.
This volume is not just another overview of pirates
and piracy – far from it. As the introduction
states:
This book
contains everything a young buccaneer needs to
advance from landlubber to an accomplished Sea
Rover. We promise you the start of the adventure
of a lifetime.
We’ll give you
advice on how to:
- Make the
proper costume choices to be “piratically”
fashionable.
- Find just the
right pirate name.
- Make and wield
your cutlass.
- Get that
proper fearsome look of a buccaneer,
complete with a wicked scar or two. (8)
The basic history of
pirates, especially in the Caribbean, and how they
work is presented, but The Book of Pirates
is an activity book that provides pirate apprentices
with the knowledge and tools they need to assume
pirate personae. The goal is for the reader to have
fun while learning, as demonstrated in the first
chapter, “Pirate Facts and Fiction,” with Cap’n
Michael’s true or false quiz. This chapter also
includes a time line of piracy from 1176 BCE through
2009 along the bottom of the pages. Later, “Coins of
the Spanish Empire” are highlighted and explained.
An index rounds out the book.
Scattered throughout the narrative are
black-&-white illustrations and boxes of
piratical words that are defined. While some famous
pirates are illuminated, others are ones often
forgotten or glossed over in other tomes. From time
to time boxes highlight “Pirates in the Movies” and
websites to visit that have ties to piracy. Also
included is a rather extensive list of terms for
pirates with their definitions. Full-page diagrams
show how pirates (Edward England, Stede Bonnet, and
Blackbeard) dress. Diagrams depicting various parts
accompany the weapons showcased in “Sharp Pointy
Things and Things that Go Ka-Boom!” This chapter
also contains steps for basic sword drill and safety
rules for stage combat. Another noteworthy addition
is the “Pirate Insult Kit” that is similar to George
Choundas’s The Pirate Primer, but on a much
smaller scale. If I have one complaint about this
book, it’s the type size. Hopefully, younger pirate
eyes won’t be quite so challenged.
Perhaps the gems within this volume are the
activities, most of which aren’t found in other
activity books of this type. Known as “Pastimes for
Scurvy Dogs,” these include:
Writing Yer
Own Rules
Using a Message in a
Bottle
Bobbing for Bottles
There’s a Pirate in
Your Closet
Behind Every Scar is a
Really Good Story: Special Effects Makeup
Make Yer Own Foam
Cutlass
Finding Yer Inner
Pirate
Making Antique Paper
for Maps, Messages, and More!
Invite Yer Crew
Open the Treasure Chest
Treasure Hunt
Makin’ Yer Own Treasure
Chest
Leave the Treasure to
Us
A Black Flag Would Be
as Good as Fifty Men
Flying Yer Colors
Drat! They’re Rats!
Belly Timber: How Do
You Feed a Crew of Hungry Pirates?
Rolling the Bones
Makin’ Yer Own
Sweat-cloth Game
The authors also include
several food recipes to try: Make Yer Own
Cannonballs, Traditional Hardtack, Jerk Pork,
Watermelon Pirate Ship, Limeade Grog, and
Blackbeard’s “Gunpowder and Rum” Punch. To really
liven up the party, you’ll find some “Pirated
Riddles” to try out on your friends.
Jamaica Rose (alias Christine Markel Lampe) and her
husband, Cap’n Michael (Michael Lampe), are
eminently qualified to write about pirates, for
they’ve been publishing No Quarter Given for
fifteen years and are founding members of the Port
Royal Privateers. Whether a pirate apprentice or an
older landlubber seeking to join the brethrens’
ranks, readers will find The Book of Pirates
a worthy sea chart for navigating your way into
shark-infested pirate waters.
Review
Copyright ©2010 Cindy Vallar
Click to contact me
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