Topic: Ocean

The Library Fish

It seemed like an ordinary day until Mr. Hughes the librarian found a fishbowl on the library steps. Mr. Hughes didn’t hesitate. He welcomed the fish into the children’s room, gave her a home in his world of books and stories, and named her Library Fish. 

Then one morning, when a snowstorm closes the library, the Library Fish decides today is the day she will leave her fishbowl and see the library and its stories up close—at last!

The Library Fish’s title doesn’t capture the imagination and fun that is hidden in the pages of this book. From Library Fish’s point of view, young readers are introduced to children enjoying the library. As Mr. Hughes reads to a group of diverse children, Library Fish imagines herself in the pages of books. The illustrations perfectly capture Library Fish meeting a superhero, going to a distant planet, and having other adventures. One page shows that everyone can find a book since there are books about poetry, meerkats, puppies, graphic novels, and even books in Spanish.  

While Library Fish loves it when the library is full of children, a snowstorm allows her to explore the library on her own. But first, Library Fish needs to find a way out of her fishbowl. After several failed attempts, Library Fish uses a story for inspiration and finally is able to “blast off” like a rocket ship. Readers will cheer when Library Fish can explore the library, but the best part is the magic that happens when Library Fish shares a story with a friend. 

Even though The Library Fish is a picture book, the story is intended to be read aloud to a child, rather than for the child to read it for the first time independently. While some pages have no words, other pages have up to seven sentences. Most of the words appear in blocks of text, but when someone is speaking the text appears in quote boxes. Most of the story focuses on Library Fish, but the illustrations also showcase a diverse cast of people with different skin tones, and one child is in a wheelchair.  

The Library Fish shows readers the magic that is hidden inside books. The book’s theme highlights the importance of books and the vast range of topics that children can read about. The colorful illustrations are beautiful and full of small details that will captivate readers. If you’re looking for a book that will show readers the wonders that can be found in the library, then The Library Fish is the perfect book for you. Add another imaginative book that revolves around the library by also reading Bunny’s Book Club by Annie Silvestro.  

Sexual Content  

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Violence  

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Drugs and Alcohol  

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Language  

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Supernatural 

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Spiritual Content  

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Little Black Boy: Oh, the Things You Will Do!

Fascinated by marine wildlife, a little Black boy dreams of one day swimming in the ocean alongside all the creatures that make it their home. It will take courage to move from the safety of the swimming pool to the vastness of the ocean, but as he begins his journey of discovery, he soon finds there’s nothing he can’t do. He realizes if he cares about the animals in the ocean, he must also care about their home and sets out to preserve the beaches he loves by picking up trash. This little boy is determined not only to reach his dream of becoming a marine biologist but also to make a difference in the world and to share his passion for environmental conservation with everyone. 

The beautiful illustrations will captivate readers as they go on a journey with the little Black boy. Along the way, the text imparts pearls of wisdom such as, “It’s okay If you laugh; it’s okay if you cry. It’s okay if you miss; what counts is you try.” The story also encourages the reader to “savor your youth” and “speak your mind freely.” Since the book has so many important life lessons, adults will want to read the book with their children again and again.  

Even though Little Black Boy is a picture book, the story is intended to be read aloud to a child, rather than for the child to read it for the first time independently. Each page has two to four sentences. However, the text does not always align with illustrations. For example, when the boy and his friends are cleaning trash from the beach, two boys stare at them. The text reads, “‘Toughen up,’ you may hear, or ‘Act like a man,’ things you’ll be told that you won’t understand.” Despite this, the motivational tone of the story will encourage readers to “know your own heart.”  

Little Black Boy begins by addressing the little Black boy in the illustrations. However, the book’s message applies to all readers. The book will inspire readers to “educate yourself” and to be a role model to others. Since the book gives a lot of advice, Little Black Boy should be read to older children. The book’s message of self-affirmation makes it a must-read book for anyone who looks to the future and wonders about all the things that they will do. 

Sexual Content  

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Violence  

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Drugs and Alcohol  

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Language  

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Supernatural 

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Spiritual Content  

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Otters Love to Play

On the edge of a river sits a neat pile of sticks, leaves, and grass. Last year, this was a beaver lodge, but now, in spring, it has become the home of a new family of otters! Inside this otter den, a mother otter feeds her three newborn pups (the pups’ father, readers will learn, is chased away by the mother after the pups are born). Readers will follow the mother otter as she shows the pups how to swim, hunt for fish, and perhaps the most important lesson for an otter pup – how to play!  

Written by the author of Froggy and nature-lover Jonathan London, Otters Love to Play is a quick and straightforward book that educates readers on the early lives of otters. While readers may already know that otters live in dens and hunt for fish, they may be surprised to learn that the species’ powerful tails and waterproof fur allow them to swim faster than Olympic swimmers! Each page features the otters learning something new – from walking to swimming. With each new thing the pups learn, the reader also learns a fact about the otters which are at the bottom of every other page. For example, while the story shows how fiercely protective otter mothers are of their pups, a note at the bottom of the page explains how adult otters can run up to eighteen miles an hour on snow, making them intimidating forces to predators.  

Otters Love to Play is brought to life by the illustrations of Meilo So. Throughout the book, readers witness the pups as they experience each season for the first time. So’s beautiful mix of colors gives life and variety to each season. Pages set in spring are painted with beautiful swabs of pink and purple skies, filling the reader with the same wonder felt by the pups, while pages set in winter are made with harsh whites and grays, sharing the idea of brutal climates and perilous conditions endangering the pups. All these illustrations are brightened by So’s adorable drawings of the otters, which are sure to delight readers of all ages. 

Even though Otters Love to Play is intended for younger readers, the story is intended to be read aloud to a child, rather than for the child to read it for the first time independently. As part of the Read and Wonder Series, Otters Love to Play introduces readers to natural history and fascinating facts that show how wonderful the natural world is. If you are looking for a book that educates young readers on a fascinating species while also providing plenty of fun and cute moments, Otters Love to Play is an excellent choice. Readers who love the ocean should jump in and read Way Down Deep in the Deep Blue Sea by Jan Peck. 

Sexual Content  

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Violence  

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Drugs and Alcohol  

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Language  

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Supernatural 

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Spiritual Content  

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Ultimate Shark Rumble

Sixteen different sharks battle it out in a huge underwater fight! Who will be the champion? 

This nonfiction read compares and contrasts 16 ferocious sharks. Readers will learn about each animal’s anatomy, behavior, and more. Then, they’ll the animals will compete before finally revealing the winner!  

Ultimate Shark Rumble’s fun format will appeal to most readers. Each page has large pictures of sharks as well as shark facts, true stories, language facts, and definitions. For example, one fun fact is that “some Native Hawaiians believe that tiger sharks are the spirits of their ancestors.” Each “shark rumble” explains the characteristics of each shark as well as which shark would win in a battle. The pictures show the battles, including a shark’s sharp teeth biting another shark; while not gory, some blood is shown.  

Anyone who wants to learn more about sharks needs to read Ultimate Shark Rumble. Similar to a picture book, each page has a full-page illustration. With six to eleven simple sentences per page, Ultimate Shark Rumble is accessible to most readers. However, younger readers may need help with some of the vocabulary such as cartilage, positioned, caudal fins, and remoras.  

Ultimate Shark Rumble is jam-packed with interesting shark information. The nonfiction book will spark readers’ attention and make them want to learn more about sharks. The Who Would Win? Series has 20+ books that will satisfy all kinds of animal fans. Readers who want to take a bite out of more shark-related books should add The Great Shark Escape by Jennifer Johnston and Shark Lady by Jess Keating. 

Sexual Content  

  • None 

Violence  

  • In each shark rumble, the text explains which shark would win and why. For example, in a fight between a hammerhead shark and a tiger shark, “the tiger shark glides to the side and bites off one of the hammerhead’s eyes. The hammerhead is in trouble. The tiger shark then bites it in the back. Tiger shark wins!”

Drugs and Alcohol  

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Language  

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Supernatural 

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Spiritual Content  

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The Stern Chase

The Herons are home in Skandia—preparing to celebrate two of their own and working on sea trials in the newly constructed Heron. But during a short excursion, they encounter an Iberian pirate ship raiding the coast of Sonderland, so Hal and his crew take action.

Though the Herons quickly triumph, the Iberians voice their fury at the Herons, vowing to take revenge. And soon they do—raiding the harbor and stealing or destroying as many ships as they can. Though there is little proof the Iberians are behind it, the Herons take their ship—the only one that survived the raid—and race after their enemy in hot pursuit. They will take down these pirates and get justice, no matter what.  

The Stern Chase lives up to its name since the majority of the story focuses on the Skandians chasing the pirate ship. At first, Hal and his crew, The Brotherband, are trying to discover what country the pirates come from. Then, they need to figure out which direction the pirates went. And then, they must find the pirate’s secret hiding spot. Unfortunately, the search lacks action and readers may quickly become bored with the chase. Another of the book’s flaws is that The Stern Chase follows the same format as all the other books in the series, which doesn’t allow any surprises to unfold.  

While the previous books in the Brotherband Chronicle are action-packed and interesting, The Stern Chase is stale. There is little interaction between the characters and none of the characters show any personal growth. The story begins with Invgar and Lydia’s engagement party, however, once the party is interrupted there are few scenes that feature the couple. The Skandian Oberjarl, Erik, also joins the expedition, but he only has a small role. Overall, none of the characters are given a chance to shine.    

One of the best aspects of the Brotherband Chronicles is the sense of comradery among the crew and the action-packed scenes. However, The Stern Chase is missing both of these elements, which will leave readers disappointed. If you’ve sailed through all the Brotherband books, you can find additional excitement and adventure by reading the Starcatchers Series by Dave Barry & Ridley Pearson and Lintang and the Pirate Queen by Tamara Moss. 

Sexual Content  

  • When a member of the Brotherband, Thorn, is about to leave to search for pirates, he says goodbye to his girlfriend and kisses “her on the lips. It was a long kiss . . .” 

Violence  

  • Iberians attack a trading ship and the Brotherband jumps in to help. “Thorn charged into the rank of the Iberian crew. His massive club smashed into one man, hurling him to one side, then he swung back again and took another in the chest as the startled pirate turned to face him.” 
  • The battle continues and the ship’s captain “leapt forward, bringing his long-bladed sword down onto the helmet of the pirate captain who had faced him. . . The sword blade sank deep into his helmet, cleaving a deep cut in the metal. The pirate’s last conscious thought was that he had dropped his own sword and was now unarmed and at the mercy of his former prey.” It is implied that the pirate dies. The scene takes place over four pages. 
  • The Brotherband captures the remaining pirates, who are closest to the harbormaster. “The pirates, their hands bound behind them and secured in a line by a rope around their necks, were marched down the quay by the trader’s crew. . . Piracy was a capital crime, and they had been caught red handed.” 
  • Pirates sneak into the Skandia harbor and damage their ships. In the morning, the Skandia guards are discovered dead. One of the guards is, “lying on his back, staring unseeingly up at the sky. . .he had been stabbed.” 
  • The pirates anger a bear that attacks them. “One massive, claw-laden paw swiped at him before he could bring his sword forward. The huge claws opened four red weals across his face. . .” The bear struck the pirate who smashed “into the rock wall behind him. His limp body slid slowly to the ground. The pirates run from the bear, but “the terrible bear snapped and smashed at those nearest it, leaving a trail of broken bodies.” Six men “paid the ultimate price, their bodies hurled to the rocks on either side, or lying still where they fell.”  
  • A sailor describes a pirate attack. His men were outnumbered and were quickly killed and “their bodies thrown overboard.”  
  • The Brotherband meet the pirates on the open sea. The pirates began shooting arrows towards the Brotherband. “An arrow flashed down at Thorn, grazing his arm and leaving a bloody welt.” Thorn “hurled the grapnel overhand back toward the ship behind them. . . Thorn’s blind throw had been effective. A man tumbled off the bow of the big ship, falling into the sea and being driven under by her plunging forefoot.” During the short confrontation, men on both sides are injured. 
  • Several members of the Brotherband spy on the pirates. The Brotherband hears a small party of pirates approaching. Lydia, a member of the Brotherband, throws a dart, and a pirate “felt a jolting impact in his right shoulder. The force of it spun him half around and the impact jarred the sword from his grasp. He staggered. . . then his legs gave way and he sank to the ground, gasping as he felt the first waves of pain seizing his upper body.” The man dies. 
  • The Brotherband tricks the pirates into following them. The Brotherband’s ship, Heron, purposely runs into the other ship’s oars. “The air was filled with the splintering, cracking sound of the oars being smashed and shattered. Lethal splinters of white oak flew above the two ships. . .” Several of the pirates “fell, struck by sharp daggers of white oak. . . Within seconds, a good half of the rowing crew were injured or disabled, lying groaning or unconscious on the rowing benches. . .” 
  • One of the Brotherband sets off “the Mangler,” which throws a giant bolt ball at the pirates’ ship. “It smashed into the men crowded around the mast, cleaving a deadly path through them, throwing bodies left and right before it sailed clear over the side into the sea.”  
  • The Brotherband boards the ship. “Thorn led the way. . . His massive club-hand smashed out to left and right, shattering shields, breaking limbs and fracturing ribs among those who opposed him.” 
  • During the battle, the Skandian Oberjarl, Erik, was wounded “but he seemed impervious to them, ignoring the blood streaking his arms and legs, dealing out quick vengeance to any who struck him. The pile of fallen pirates grew around him as he shattered and smashed his way along the blood-streaked deck.” The bloody battle is described over 12 pages. The pirates started with a crew of forty. After the battle there are “fewer than a dozen left standing.”   

Drugs and Alcohol  

  • The Skandians throw an engagement party. During the party, alcohol is put out “so that revelers could fill and refill their tankards as they pleased.” Many of the adults get drunk. 
  • The Brotherband finds a sinking ship that had been attacked by pirates. One of the wounded men is given a “painkilling draft.” 

Language  

  • Oh my Lord and Oh God are both used as an exclamation once. 
  • “Gorlog’s beard” and “Gorlog bite him” are both used as an exclamation once.  

Supernatural 

  • None 

Spiritual Content  

  • The Brotherband gives a sailor from another ship a funeral. Hal wonders how to perform the ceremony because he “wasn’t familiar with whatever gods the Gallicans might pray too, and Skandians weren’t a particularly religious group, regarding their own gods with a kind of affectionate disdain.”  
  • The pirates hear a “low rumbling sound, full of threat and menace, and wonder if such an unearthly sound might come from a djinn or a demon.” A djinn is an intelligent spirit of lower rank than the angels, able to appear in both human and animal forms, that can also possess humans. 
  • When the pirates see a bear, “one of the men. . . let out a yelp of fear, calling on his gods to protect him.”  

Dolphin Song

Martine’s class is going on an exciting school trip—a voyage to watch the Sardine Run off the coast of South Africa. But the trip takes a dramatic turn when their ship runs into a fierce storm, and Martine and her classmates are thrown into shark-infested waters! Luckily, a pod of dolphins rescues and transports them to a deserted island, but now the children—and the dolphins—face a new and terrible danger. Will Martine be able to use her special gift with animals to save them?

While other students are looking forward to the class trip, Martine has been plagued with terrifying nightmares about being in the ocean and surrounded by sharks. Then Grace, a witch doctor, warns Martine about staying away from the ship’s gate, which increases Martine’s fear and confusion. Martine’s fear of the ocean is understandable, and it increases the story’s suspense. 

Despite the warnings, Martine’s greatest fears come true when she and several of her classmates are thrown into the raging ocean. The story takes an unexpected turn when Martine and some of her classmates are stranded on a deserted island and must fight for their survival. While much of the story revolves around survival, there is still plenty of animal action — a cage dive with sharks, an encounter with a man-o-war jellyfish, and a swim with dolphins. Through Martine’s experiences, readers will enjoy learning about various sea creatures as well as how sonar poses a threat to ocean life. 

Once the group of students lands on the island, they soon split into two groups, leaving Ben and Martine to join forces. During their time on the island, the kids only begin to work together out of necessity. However, they soon join forces to save the dolphins, and in the process, they learn the importance of giving someone a second chance. Along with this lesson, Dolphin Song weaves in many important life lessons including being able to fix your mistakes and the importance of standing up for what you believe.

Martine struggles with uncertainty, fear, and forgiveness, but her inner turmoil doesn’t slow the story’s action. However, readers will enjoy seeing Martine’s personal growth that leads her to more fully understand her best friend, Ben. In the end, Martine realizes “that was the thing about a friend. You could do things that weren’t really possible on your own. Friends made you brave. Friends made things fun.”

The Legend of the Animal Healer Series uses a unique approach that will give readers a new appreciation of sea life. The story educates readers about the importance of protecting all sea creatures. However, Dolphin Song does have several scenes that may upset sensitive readers. While Dolphin Song recaps the important information from the first book in the series, for maximum enjoyment, the books should be read in order. Animal-loving readers who want more action-packed animal adventures should also read the Wild Rescuers Series by Stacy Plays and the Survival Tails Series by Katrina Charman.

Sexual Content 

  • None

Violence 

  • Santa Carolina was known as Death Island, as it was a penal colony. “The jailers at Santa Carolina used to take prisoners to Death Island, a tiny shell sandbar, and tell them if they could swim the five miles or so back to the mainland—a stretch of water cursed by vicious crosscurrents and even more vicious sharks—they’d be freed. None of the prisoners ever survived.”
  • When the ship hits a terrible storm, everyone grabs a life jacket. One student, Claudius, “wrenched at Ben’s life jacket, trying to pull it off by brute force. Ben wriggled out of Claudius’s desperate grip and held up a hand in surrender.” Ben falls into the ocean without a life jacket, but he survives.
  • Martine is exploring a reef by a sunken ship when a manta ray pushes her toward the surface. “An instant later, there was a muffled, undersea explosion. . . the ray caught the full impact. Bits of cartilage, tissue, and manta ray skin rained down on the sea like lava.” Martine had a bloody gash on her arm, but the ray saved Martine’s life.
  • A group of bad men show up on the island and see Claudius. They think the boy might be a spy so they take him back to their hideout and tie him up. The skipper questions Claudius and “struck Claudius across the face. A palm print appeared on the boy’s cheek.” When the group finds out there is a reward for information about Claudius, they decide to treat him better.
  • A tourist, Norm, was cage diving with sharks when he fell into the water. A great white swims toward him, “like a torpedo sleek and deadly, shooting toward the stricken man. As it approached, its jaws stretched wide and its serrated teeth were plainly visible. In seconds, Norm would be missing an arm, his head, or even his torso.” Martine uses her gift to stop the shark.
  • An island, Santa Carolina, has a dark past that is discussed several times. Santa Carolina was “a notorious penal colony and Death Island, which was not an island but a shell bar, had seen many prisoners drowned after being abandoned by guards.”
  • Sonar can disorient and confuse dolphins and whales. The sound a sonar gives off “can carry up to a hundred miles and be as loud as a fighter jet takeoff. In some cases, it can cause whales to surface too quickly, leading to a fatal condition similar to the bends in human beings. They get gas bubbles in their organs. Their brains bleed. Dolphins’ lungs explode.”

Drugs and Alcohol 

  • One of the sailors drinks “a home-brewed concoction called palm wine.” 
  • A sailor tells Martine a story about a man who had a “skull-splitting headache.” A “witch doctor had started the treatment by putting a large pebble into his fire. . . blended herbs in a bowl made from a special wood and engraved with a cross, then added water. . . After making a series of tiny incisions in the man’s forehead, the witch doctor rubbed in a little of the herb point and sent him home. . .” After the story, the sailor says he uses aspirin for his headaches.
  • When Martine sees a sunken ship, she assumes the pirates had been drunk on rum.
  • A tribe of sailors would catch fish by crushing “the leaves of the lulla palm” which made the fish intoxicated. “When the fish were rolling drunk, the men would simply scoop them into a net.”
  • One of the student’s parents would leave him alone while they went to cocktail parties. 

Language 

  • There is some name calling among the kids including runt and loser.
  • Martine gets angry at Ben and says, “You are a wimp. You’re pathetic.” 
  • One of the kids tells Martine, “I thought you were a fruitcake.”
  • One of the kids says Ben is “a tree-hugging nutcase.”
  • Oh my God is used as an exclamation once.

Supernatural

  • Martine is able to heal animals with her touch. When she finds a beached dolphin, Martine touches the dolphin, and “the electric current zapped her. . . She kept her palms on the dolphin’s side . . . then her palms heated up to the point where they were almost sizzling . . .” After the dolphin is healed, Martin and a kite surfer put the dolphin back into the ocean and it swims away.
  • Martine goes to a secret cave where she sees paintings that show her future. When Martine sees a new painting, she thinks the paintings are “as if the forefathers were reaching out from beyond the grave.”
  • Claudius, one of the stranded school kids, gets stung by a man-o-war jellyfish. Martine tries to help him. She “laid her hands on him. Almost immediately her palms began to heat up. . . The energy went as far as Claudius’s skin and then stopped as if blocked by an impenetrable barrier.” Martine’s gift didn’t help.
  • While trying to use her gift to help Claudius, Martine has a vision. “The scene at the beach swam away and she saw smoke and Africans in animal masks and then, out of nowhere, a mental picture of Grace’s plant. . . came into her head.” Martine uses the plant to save Claudius.
  • Grace, a witch doctor, uses bones to tell the future. She believes that “everythin’ is already written” and that you cannot change fate’s path. 

Spiritual Content 

  • Ben is Buddhist and also half Zulu. He says, “Buddhism does allow the eating of meat; we’re just not supposed to cause pain. . . Buddhists believe that animals are equal to people.”

Carrie and The Great Storm: A Galveston Hurricane Survival Story

Twelve-year-old Carrie is excited to spend the night at her best friend Betsy’s house one Saturday night in Galveston, Texas. But when her parents receive a last-minute invitation to a high-society party, they insist Carrie stay home to babysit her little brother, Henry. Despite a storm brewing — and Carrie’s protests over the change in plans — her parents go to the party. As the storm approaches, the streets begin flooding. Henry is scared, and Carrie tries to calm him. But then a hurricane hits, and the house is shaken from its foundation. Carrie must make some quick decisions to save herself and her little brother from the Great Galveston Hurricane. 

Carrie and The Great Storm: A Galveston Hurricane Survival Story focuses on Carrie, a typical fashion-loving girl who is upset when she has to cancel a sleepover to babysit her brother, Henry. When the storm hits, she has only herself to rely on, but she doesn’t let fear overtake her. Instead, she uses quick thinking and bravery to save herself and her brother. When Carrie and Henry’s raft gets stuck between trees, Carrie’s main concern is survival. However, when she sees a young boy, William, floating in the water, Carrie jumps in and saves his life. After seeing the city’s devastation, Carrie realizes how lucky she is to be alive. 

While most of the story focuses on the Great Storm, segregation is mentioned several times. The author’s note explains that one positive outcome of the storm was that people came together and helped each other, despite their racial differences. This ties into the story because Carrie helps William, who is African American. Afterward, one man gives Carrie a strange look when they see her walking with a black boy. However, Carrie didn’t care about William’s race because at that point they were the same—they were survivors. 

To make the story easy to follow, each chapter begins with Carrie’s location and the date. In addition, every ten to seventeen pages there is a black-and-white illustration that focuses on Carrie’s experiences. Readers can learn the real story of the Galveston Hurricane of 1900 from the nonfiction information at the back of the book. A glossary, discussion questions, and writing prompts are also provided.

Readers will be pulled into the story because Carrie is a likable character with a relatable conflict, and it doesn’t take long for the action and suspense to begin. Even though Carrie and The Great Storm: A Galveston Hurricane Survival Story is educational, readers will love the story because it is also entertaining and easy to read. Through Carrie’s experiences, readers will see that “Your actions, no matter how large or small, can make a difference.” For more water-related survival stories, check out Tara and the Towering Wave: An Indian Ocean Tsunami Survival Story by Cristina Oxtra and the I Survived Series by Lauren Tarshis.

Sexual Content 

  • None

Violence 

  • Carrie and her brother are home alone when the storm hits. Carrie looks out the window and, “through the rage of the storm I could see shapes in the water. A panicked horse swam past, kicking and neighing. A woman’s head surfaced. She screamed and was pulled underwater again.” 
  • When Carrie’s house is destroyed by the hurricane, she and her brother are on a makeshift raft. As she and her brother huddle for warmth, Carrie sees “the face of a young black boy emerge. ‘Help me!’ he cried before the water swallowed him up again.” Carrie is able to pull the boy, William, onto her raft. 
  • William tells Carrie the story of his family. He was working at his family’s store when, “I got swept away. . . I could still see the store though, through flashes of lightning. And then all of a sudden I couldn’t see it anymore. It collapsed.” Later, William finds out that only his father survived.
  • After the water recedes, Carrie is walking and sees “a huge pile of debris. A pair of boots stuck out from the bottom of the pile. And then I realized that the boots were attached to a pair of legs.” 
  • Carrie hears cries for help, and then sees “a group of men digging through the rubble, looking for survivors.” 

Drugs and Alcohol 

  • None

Language 

  • None

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content 

  • None

The Diary of Margaret Ann Brady: Voyage on the Great Titanic

Five years ago, Margaret Ann Brady’s older brother left her in the care of an orphanage and immigrated to America. When the orphanage receives an unusual request from an American woman looking for a traveling companion, Margaret’s teachers agree she is the perfect candidate to accompany Mrs. Carstairs on the Titanic, so that once Margaret arrives in New York she will be free to join her brother in Boston. But the Titanic is destined for tragedy, and Margaret’s journey is thrown into a frozen nightmare when the ship collides with an iceberg. Will she live to see her brother again?

The Diary of Margaret Ann Brady: Voyage on the Great Titanic based is told in diary format and is based on Margaret’s personal diaries and includes a lot of Margaret’s reflections. Margaret has the unique opportunity to see how the wealthy live. She is fascinated by their privileges and is especially interested in their fashion and food. Since the story is in a diary format, there is little suspense and Margaret’s life on the Titanic has few exciting scenes. However, Margaret is a likable character and her experiences give readers a peek into the life of a servant in the early 1900s. 

Even though Margaret’s story lacks action, the book is perfect for young readers who want to learn about the Titanic, but are not ready to be exposed to graphic descriptions of the ship’s sinking. During the disaster, Margaret shows how wealthy women and children were given preferential treatment when it came to loading the lifeboats. Today’s readers may have difficulty understanding why the serving class was not allowed to board the lifeboats and instead were left to die. In addition, Margaret does an excellent job showing the bravery and courage of the Titanic’s crew. In her diary, Margaret writes: “I think the Titanic’s crew may have suffered the most devastating percentage of deaths. Stewards, cooks, engineers, postal workers – even the entire band perished. How admirable they were! How admirable all of them were!”

Although Margaret survived, she struggled to understand the events that happened the night the Titanic sank. Throughout her life, Margaret suffered from survivors’ guilt because she felt that by taking a seat on a lifeboat, she had doomed “others to their helpless, frozen fate. . . I doomed Robert; I doomed complete strangers. I hope I can figure out some way to understand all of this. . . Most of all, I hope I can learn how to forgive myself for still being alive when so many others are not.” 

Readers interested in learning about the Titanic have a wide variety of books to choose from. Readers who want a view into a survivor’s experiences will find Margaret’s story worth reading. However, if you want an exciting action-packed tale that also teaches about the Titanic, put Survival Tails: The Titanic by Katrina Charman and Disaster on the Titanic by Kate Messner at the top of your reading list. 

Sexual Content 

  • On several occasions, Margaret spends time with a young steward named Robbie. When he realizes he is going to die, he says, “Would you mind doing me one small favor? I should like to remember I kissed a pretty girl tonight.” When Margaret agrees, “he gave me a small peck on the lips. This was all new for me, and I was not sure if I was supposed to respond in kind.” 
  • Margaret and Robbie kiss again. “This time our kiss was warm and tender. Robert hugged me very tightly, and then stepped back, looking pleased.” 

Violence 

  • When Margaret is disrespectful, one of the nuns “tells me that I am very, very wicked, and then slaps a ruler across my knuckles to punctuate the scolding.” 
  • After being orphaned, Margaret and her brother, William, live with Mr. McDougal and his brother, who “would come home much the worse for drink. They would be spoiling for a fight, and Mr. McDougal would swing out a big hand at anyone who looked at him cross-eyed. After I got knocked down a time or two, William grew to fear for my safety . . .”
  • When the ship begins to sink, Margaret sees people “leaping into the water from all directions, while others scrambled toward the stern in a frantic, hopeless attempt to save themselves. . . Then with an almost stately grace, it gradually slipped beneath the surface of the ocean.” 
  • Margaret is safe in a lifeboat, but “after the Titanic sank, the unspeakable shrieking of hundreds of people dying filled the night. Frenzied, terrified screams. . . I could distinguish individual voices begging for help, calling out for people they loved, and praying for salvation.”
  • The lifeboat that Margaret was in, went to help others. “We were able to pull five or six half-frozen men out of the water. Each time, I prayed that one of them would be Robert, and each time, my prayers were not answered.”
  • The people who were in the ocean had no hope of living. Margaret describes “the screams of the dying seemed to last forever. It was a horrifying, unearthly sound that would have sickened the very Devil himself. I am not sure which was worse: the screams themselves, or the way they gradually faded away.”   

Drugs and Alcohol 

  • While having dinner on the Titanic, the adults drink wine, but Margaret “elected not to drink any wine, and satisfied myself with water, instead.”
  • While on the deck, Margaret sees a man who “lit his cigarette—right in front of me!” She notices that the man “also smelled of whisky.” 
  • When the Titanic begins to sink, Margaret takes a few minutes to talk to a young steward. He says the other stewards are, “Gone, I guess. Maybe having a bit of a nip for courage.”
  • One of the men on the lifeboat “was clutching a bottle of brandy, and the Quartermaster Perkis tossed it overboard, since the man was obviously already intoxicated.”
  • After being rescued, Margaret is given a hot drink. “There may have been some brandy in there as well.” 

Language 

  • When Mrs. Carstairs refuses to go out to the deck, Margaret thinks she’s “stupid.”
  • While on a lifeboat, a woman sees the Titanic sinking. She says, “My God. She really is going down.” 

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content 

  • One of the sisters took Margaret to Easter mass. The nun “explained that St. Botolph is the patron saint of travelers, and she wants to be sure I leave with his blessing. Our fellow worshipers were a bizarre mix – ranging from prostitutes to the very flagrantly pious . . .”
  • Margaret goes to “a religious service . . . I took great solace from this, which suggests that I may be more devout than I would have estimated.” 
  • When Margaret realizes that some people will not survive, she thinks, “God help us.”
  • After being rescued, the captain held a brief service. “He and a reverend gave thanksgiving for the approximately seven hundred of us who had been saved, and then led us in prayer in memory of the more than fifteen hundred people who had been lost.” 

Wave Riders

Twelve-year-old Jess and Jude live a dream life on a battered old yacht, sailing from one exotic destination to the next with their guardian, Gabe. But when he vanishes one night after an argument with a stranger, the twins are left alone, facing an incoming storm and an unknown enemy. The sea almost killed them, and now it must lead them to the truth in this standalone middle-grade eco-mystery about twins lost on the high seas from the author of the bestselling novel The White Giraffe.

Surviving at sea is just the start of an adventure that will take them an ocean away to the former home of their missing parents and pit them against one of the world’s most powerful men. How far do they dare go, and what will they risk to find the truth about who they really are?

Wave Riders follows Jess and Jude as they try to navigate life once their guardian, Gabe, disappears. When the Blakeney family offers to foster Jess and Jude, everyone believes the twins are lucky to be taken in by a wealthy family. However, Jess and Jude’s enthusiasm about their new home quickly wanes. The Blakeney family is full of secrets, and they clearly have no desire to foster the twins. The kids are quickly dispatched to separate boarding schools where they feel lonelier than ever. 

Jess and Jude are likable characters, but many readers will not relate to the twin’s conflict. Even though the twins meet a lot of new people, the interactions are short and do not help develop the twins’ personalities. Jess desperately wants to learn more about her parents, as well as find out why the Blakeneys are fostering them. However, every time Jess tries to investigate, the Blakeneys quickly squash her efforts. Because of this, the twins are not able to follow any clues. Instead, they discover the Blakeney’s secrets due to luck, which takes some of the joy out of the story.

Jess and Jude’s story emphasizes the importance of rejoicing in the small things. Since the twins weren’t raised in a traditional or wealthy family, they have learned to appreciate people with different backgrounds. In addition, the twins were taught that people are more important than money. For example, when the twins inherit an old forest grove of trees, they preserve it for future generations instead of allowing land developers to purchase it. Even though the siblings must deal with many difficulties, they remain kind people who care about others.

Unlike Lauren St John’s other series, Legend of the Animal Healer and Wolfe & Lamb Mysteries, Wave Riders lacks action and suspense. While there are a few exciting moments, most of the story revolves around Jess’s and Jude’s inner musings. This slows the story’s pacing and some readers may struggle to finish the book. However, readers who are dealing with grief may connect to Jess and Jude and find comfort in their story. 

Readers who want a fast-paced mystery should read Lauren St. John’s other book series. If you’re looking for another book that deals with family and grief, The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise by Dan Gemeinhart would be an excellent book to add to your collection.

Sexual Content 

  • None

Violence 

  • When the kids’ guardian, Gabe, goes missing, the kids know he died after they hear a news radio broadcast. “The body of an unidentified white male has been found by a fisherman near the Cowrie Sands Resort.”
  • After their guardian disappears, Jess and Jude are sailing alone. A storm hits and Jude falls into the ocean. When Jess sees him, “he hung lifeless in his red life jacket, blood streaming from his head.” Jess jumps into the sea and saves Jude.
  • When a housekeeper pokes Jude in the chest, Jude “knocked her flat in the snow.”
  • While riding horses, a drone hits Jess’s horse. Jude thinks Caspian, his foster brother, is to blame so he “punched him. He would have hit him again had [the housekeeper] not run in and dragged him away.” 

Drugs and Alcohol 

  • Jude believes that a waitress put “a sleeping potion” in their drinks.
  • One of the adults has a gin and tonic.

Language 

  • There is some name-calling among the children. The following terms are used once: freak, geek, weasel, brain-dead losers, and idiot.
  • Regine is a woman who taught the kids to cook. During the cooking lesson, she tells Jude that he should learn to cook so when he grows up, his partner doesn’t “sling his sorry ass out on the street.” 
  • When upset, Regine says, “Sardine, sardine, dang and blasted sardine!”
  • Omigod is used as an exclamation once. 
  • Allegra says that her son Caspian will be glad to have someone to spend time with other than the “old farts around here.”
  • A group of environmentalists interferes with a fox hunt. Later, they are called “fox-hugging, tree-worshiping nutters” and “nutjobs, vagrants, and trespassers.” They are also called “unhinged eco warriors.” 
  • The boys at school nickname Jude stink bomb.
  • Allegra calls a woman a “batty old crone.”

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content 

  • None

Wake Up, Crabby!

It’s bedtime for Plankton and Crabby! Crabby just wants to go to sleep, but Plankton has other ideas. Plankton wants Crabby to take a bath. Plankton wants Crabby to tell a bedtime story. Will Crabby ever get to sleep? With comic speech bubbles and full-color artwork throughout, this Geisel Award Honoree early reader series is sure to be a hit with new readers.

Young readers who are learning to read will love Wake Up, Crabby. Each short story is 10 to 11 pages which makes it perfect for readers who tend to get squirmy quickly. Plus, Wake Up, Crabby will appeal to readers because of the uncluttered pages that have brightly colored panels featuring Crabby and his friend, Plankton. The cranky crab is contrasted with Plankton’s enthusiasm, which leads to some surprising and funny situations.

While some of Wake Up, Crabby’s pages tell the story only through pictures, other pages have up to six simple sentences. The text uses simple sentences and easy vocabulary, and the speech bubbles are color-coded to distinguish each speaker. Each page contains five or fewer sentences, which makes the story accessible to new readers. 

Wake Up, Crabby is full of humor and each story’s ending has a silly surprise. With easy-to-read text, a comic-story format, and full-color artwork on every page, the book will boost reading confidence and fluency. Readers will laugh their way through the book and will be eager for another Crabby story. Beginning readers will fall in love with Plankton and Crabby and will want to read more about the two friends’ adventures. 

Sexual Content 

  • None

Violence 

  • None

Drugs and Alcohol 

  • None

Language 

  • None

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content 

  • None

The Missing Prince

Will Treaty and his apprentice, Maddie, have been urgently summoned to Castle Araluen. When they arrive, they learn a shocking truth: the Prince of Gallica is missing—and the King of Gallica has asked for help. All reports suggest that the young prince has been taken prisoner by the dangerous and powerful Baron Joubert de Lassigny. King Duncan knows that sending troops to Gallica to rescue the prince could start a war, as could openly helping Gallica resolve internal conflict. But there’s another way to save the prince: the Ranger Corps.

Soon, Will and Maddie are on the road to rescue the missing prince, disguised as father and daughter jongleurs. Maddie will have to use her knife throwing skills to keep up her disguise, and her ranger’s apprentice training to complete the mission. But going undercover is dangerous—and the road presents its own hazards. Can she and Will use all of their talents to save the prince, or will the arrogant Baron uncover their plans and put their lives– and their kingdom– at risk?

Unlike the other books in the Ranger’s Apprentice Series, The Missing Prince is missing action. For most of the story, Will and Maddie are traveling to the castle where the Prince of Gallica is being held captive. Along the way, Will and Maddie face bandits which adds excitement to the story. However, their trip drags and when the two finally reach their destination, the book suddenly ends leaving the reader wondering what will happen in the next book, Escape from Falaise.

Will and Maddie are admirable characters who willingly face danger in an attempt to free the missing prince. However, the book’s slow start focuses more on the political reasons to help the Gallican prince. In addition, Maddie’s mother is reluctant to let Maddie go on a ranger mission. Readers may quickly become bored with the political and parental aspects of the story. Despite this, fans of the Ranger’s Apprentice Series will be happy that Will Treaty plays a major role in The Missing Prince.

Some of the story’s plot feels redundant because Will again disguises himself as a jongleur. Despite this, fans of the Ranger’s Apprentice Series will enjoy Will and Maddie’s relationship and the two working together. Plus, the conclusion has several surprises and leaves readers with several unanswered questions. Even though The Missing Prince lacks the action of other books, the cliffhanger will have readers reaching for Escape from Falaise.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • To stop a band of thieves, Will dresses like an old farmer. When the thieves see Will, they try to stop him. Will shoots an arrow and “Jem was down, rolling in agony on the ground and clutching an arrow that had transfixed his left calf.”
  • One of the bandits, Barton, tries to hit Will, who lifts the man and throws him. “Barton landed with a heavy thud, flat on his back. . . When he recovered, he found himself looking along the blade of a very sharp saxe knife, which pricked the soft skin of his throat.” Will and Maddie take the men to the local law.
  • While Will and Maddie are entertaining, thieves appear and demand everyone’s money. A young man tries to intervene, but “the bandit leader stepped in close to him and swung the butt of the crossbow so that it slammed into Simon’s forehead.” The man is injured.
  • As the thieves are celebrating their newfound wealth, the leader “held his bottle up prior to drinking from it. Will’s arrow smashed through it, showering the drunken bandit chief with wine and shattered fragments of glass, before thudding, quivering into a log lying ready by the fire.” To take down the bandit leader, Maddie “whipped the sling up and over and the lead shot hissed through the air across the clearing, striking Vincent’s skull behind the ear with an ugly thud. The bandit’s eyes glazed, and he let out a sickly little moan. . . he crashed to the forest floor, stunned.” The scene is described over four pages.
  • While Will and Maddie are restraining the bandits, “a man rose onto one knee and leveled the crossbow.” Will sees the movement and “he drew his throwing knife and sent it spinning across the clearing. . .the knife hit him in the center of his chest.”
  • While searching the castle tower for the missing prince, “a burly figure” sees Maddie. When the man grabs her, “she suddenly stepped toward him. . .she grabbed a handful of tunic, bent her legs and shoved her backside into his body.” She then knees him in the groin and runs.

 Drugs and Alcohol

  • Will and Maddie pose as jongleurs and perform in local taverns. The customers often drink wine and ale. When they eat at the castle, ale and wine are also served.
  • A man who has been following Will and Maddie, goes into a tavern and is “nursing a tankard of ale.”
  • After the thieves rob the townspeople, they hide in the forest. The eight men were “sprawled around the camp. They stole some wine from the tavern last night and they’re all drinking.” The men turn into a “nosy, drunken group.”
  • Will and Maddie see a peddler who had “casks of ale and wine.”

Language

  • A man thinks that the Gallic king is a “pompous prat.”
  • Damn is used once.

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • None

 

Into the Storm

After their victory in Texas, the Pawtriots are en route back to their home in Washington, DC. But when a massive storm on the Atlantic Ocean rolls in, Sergeant Rico and his unit are forced to take shelter on a mysterious island in the Caribbean.

While on the island, the Pawtriots meet M—the leader of the island’s animals. M tells them the story of the thrice-cursed pirate Sea Wolf, his crew, and his ship, the Calico Jack. When Sea Wolf and his crew are brought back to life, it’s up to the Pawtriots to defeat the pirates and return peace to the island.

While aboard a Coast Guard Ship, Rico and the Pawtriots meet two brothers: Jet and Jag. While Jag is a “hard-liner” who follows all the rules, Jet breaks rules at every opportunity. The two dogs add interest to the story, but they also give mixed messages. At times rules are followed, but others believe “that some rules are meant to be broken.” Sometimes breaking the rules cause problems, but other times breaking the rules is the only solution.

Rico and the Pawtriots follow Army morals. For example, to save the Pawtriots, Rico agrees to serve Sea Wolf. Rico thinks, “When I was in the Army, there were times when sacrifices had to be made for the greater good and the sake of the mission. This is one of those times.” Because of Rico’s leadership and courage, the Pawtriots are successful in eventually defeating Sea Wolf.

Into the Storm begins by recapping the events from the previous book, Everything is Bigger in Texas. While chapter one is heavy on the military lingo, the sayings are explained. For example, Rico explains that “debrief you” is “Army-talk for ‘getting up to speed on the details of the mission. . . and quickly.’” Despite this, younger readers may struggle with the advanced vocabulary such as makeshift, flotilla, interceptor, and liaison.

Each chapter starts with the location, date, and military time, which makes the timeline easy to follow. Black and white illustrations appear every 1 to 6 pages and show the animals in action as well as some of the dangers they face—including Sea Wolf, the Kraken, and the various characters. The back of the book also includes the Soldier’s Creed, and a glossary of Army terms.

the Pawtriots fight and defeat supernatural pirates, and throughout the story, Rico leads his unit and reinforces the importance of duty, respect, courage, and helping others. As the Pawtriot Dogs Series progresses, readers will have to remember a large cast of characters whose personalities are not well developed. Readers will enjoy Into the Storm because it is a suspenseful story that follows a group of heroic dogs. Dog-loving readers who want more fun adventures should add the Puppy Pirates Series by Erin Soderberg to their reading list.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • Sea Wolf throws Jet off a tower. Rico says, “All I can do is watch as she crashes into a cluster of tall trees below, helplessly clawing at the branches in a desperate effort to slow her fall. She hits the ground hard. . .”
  • Sea Wolf commands his crew to attack the Pawtriots. The fight is not described, but Rico is captured and put in chains.
  • The Pawtriots must face a kraken that has “twelve long, slimy tentacles with suction cups that can pull your skin clean off and fangs that will rip you to shreds.” Rico describes how “a tentacle sweeps my legs out from under me. . .the wet rock presses up against my fur. I try to wrestle free from the Kraken’s grip on my tail, but it’s useless.”
  • Someone kills the Kraken to save Rico. Rico sees “Penny, who has Sea Wolf’s sword in her paw. It’s covered in Kraken blood.”
  • The Pawtriots are in a cavern that starts to collapse. Rico is the last to exit. “I am squeezed in between rocks. . . I wiggle my body and shimmy as fast as I can, falling out of the tunnel onto ground just as the tunnel caves in completely.”
  • Sea Wolf makes the Pawtriots walk the plank. As they struggle to remain afloat in the ocean, they are saved.
  • To defeat Sea Wolf, the “Pawtriots don’t hesitate, and in an instant, they’ve swarmed the Cutthroats, engaging them in fierce paw-to-paw combat.” No fighting is described.

 Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • Sea Wolf calls someone a “treacherous bilge rat.”
  • Sea Wolf calls his crew, “Yellow-bellied sapsuckers.”
  • Sea Wolf calls his former first mate a “backstabbing traitor.”

Supernatural

  • Rico and the Pawtriots end up on a cursed island. While there, a cat tells the story of the “Thrice-Cursed Pirate Sea Wolf” and his ship, the Calico Jack. Sea Wolf’s sword, ship, and crew were cursed. Sea Wolf’s “very soul was trapped inside the eternal flame. . . If the bell were ever to be run, then Sea Wolf would have until sunset to raise his crew, his ship, and retrieve his sword before the flame dies out and Sea Wolf with it.” Someone rings the bell and reawakens Sea Wolf and his crew.
  • When Sea Wolf reappears, “his eyes are bloodshot, and the moon paints his gray fur with an ominous glow.”
  • Sea Wolf’s “strength grows with each passing minute that his lungs draw breath.”
  • The Sea Wolf’s first mate was cured with immortality. She says, “Being alive forever gets old. I’m tired. Very, very tired. And the only way I can rest is if Sea Wolf rises and falls.”
  • In the end, Sea Wolf is defeated and “Sea Wolf vanishes.”

Spiritual Content

  • None

Tara and the Towering Wave: An Indian Ocean Tsunami Survival Story

When her mother announces a holiday vacation to Thailand, Tara isn’t thrilled. She’d rather stay home with her friends, but Mom is determined they use the girls’ trip to explore their Thai heritage. Tara is reluctant to travel so far from home, especially to a country she doesn’t feel connected to. But then disaster strikes. The day after Christmas, a massive tsunami sweeps through Phuket, Thailand. Tara’s resort vacation suddenly becomes a fight to survive – and find her mother in the wreckage. 

Tara and the Towering Wave explores themes of identity and heritage by focusing on Tara, who is Thai but has never been to Thailand. All of Tara’s information about her heritage comes from her mother, who also grew up in the United States. When people ask Tara about her identity, she is slightly confused about what to tell them because she knows very little about Thailand. The themes are not explored in detail because the focus is on surviving the tsunami. 

When the tsunami hits, Tara and her mother are separated but Tara eventually makes it to safety. Afterward, a man helps Tara out of the raging ocean, but her only focus is to find her mother. Often, she is so caught up in her own fears that she doesn’t take other people’s situations into consideration. While her behavior is understandable, it isn’t until she is safely reunited with her mother that she begins to think about others.  

The story’s events highlight how people helped each other through this difficult time. Fisherman went out to sea looking for survivors, businesses opened their doors as makeshift evacuations centers, and Tara and her mother helped at the hospital by passing out food and water. As Tara begins to realize the devastation that the tsunami caused, she wonders, “Why were we spared when so many others were not?” She never answers the question, however, she realizes that her and her mother were lucky to survive. 

In order to make the story easy to follow, each chapter begins with Tara’s location and the time. Every 10 to 17 pages there is a black-and-white illustration. The illustrations mostly focus on Tara and the events surrounding her. Some of the illustrations show the towering waves but no one’s injuries are included in them. The back of the book contains an author’s note that goes into more detail about the historical facts of the tsunami, a glossary, and three response questions to help readers connect to the reading material. 

The Girls Survive Series is similar to the I Survived Series by Lauren Tarshis because both books focus on young protagonists who survive a disaster. Anyone who is interested in survival stories will enjoy Tara and the Towering Wave. After Tara is saved, the action wanes but there is still enough suspense to keep readers engaged. However, the book doesn’t tie up all the loose ends, and readers are left wondering what happened to some of the characters—did they live, or did they die? Despite this, Tara and the Towering Wave will introduce readers to the devastating effects of a tsunami while using kid-friendly details of the destruction. Readers who want to learn about another historic tsunami should also read I Survived the Japanese Tsunami, 2011 by Lauren Tarshis. Readers who want a more in-depth look at historical survival stories should check out the Survival Tails Series by Katrina Charman; this series uses the unique premise of having animals tell the story. 

Sexual Content  

  • None 

Violence  

  • Tara and her mother were strolling through an open-air market when the tsunami hit. “Everyone and everything in the market was washed away. The powerful currents knocked my feet out from under me. . . In seconds, the street I had been standing on was gone, turned into a churning river.” 
  • The water tore Tara and her mother apart. Tara “quickly clamped my eyes closed, but salty water filled my nose and mouth. I was tossed and tumbled around in the water like a pile of clothes in a washing machine.” Tara finds a tree trunk to hold on to. 
  • While holding on to a telephone pole, a wave crashes into Tara. “It felt almost stronger than the first. Like the ocean was angry it hadn’t washed me away on its first attempt. . .The water gushed over and around me. . . This was a thick curtain, determined to suffocate and bury me.” Tara eventually makes it to safety.  
  • Tara’s mom broke her foot when the ocean pulled her under. She says, “I slammed into something—I don’t know what. But it was like running into a brick wall.” 
  • Later, Tara learns that “the death toll was unimaginable. In Thailand alone, the number of dead and missing was in the thousands. . . The waters had receded, revealing more bodies.” The death toll appears at the end of the book. 

Drugs and Alcohol  

  • None 

Language    

  • None 

Supernatural 

  • None 

Spiritual Content  

  • When Tara is in the ocean, she sees another wave heading in her direction. She grabs onto a telephone pole. She prays that “this pole will stand up against this next wave.” 
  • After Tara and her mother are reunited, they say a prayer. They “prayed for Malee, Yuk, and Noo, for Nolan and his missing family, for everyone else who had been working and staying at the resort.”  

Ice Wreck

In 1914, Ernest Shackleton and his crew set out for the South Pole. They never made it. Within sight of land, the ship ran into dangerous waters filled with chunks of ice. Then the sea froze around them! There was no hope of rescue. Could Shackleton find a way to save himself and his men?

Ernest Shackleton is an admirable explorer who demonstrates bravery and quick thinking. Even though the expedition to the South Pole was not a success, Shackleton and all of his men survived the brutal cold after their ship sank below the ocean. Ice Wreck explains Shackleton’s experiences through nonfiction text. Unlike a story, Ice Wreck only focuses on Shackleton and contains no dialogue or suspense.

Ice Wreck’s format will appeal to readers because of the short chapters, large font, and illustrations. The book contains photographs of the expedition as well as full-color drawings that appear every 1 to 2 pages. The Stepping Stones Series is specifically written for young readers and allows readers to explore different genres such as history, humor, mysteries, and classics.

Ice Wreck is an excellent choice for parents and teachers who want to introduce non-fiction reading to their children. Ernest Shackleton’s quick thinking and dedication to his men highlight the qualities of a great leader. To learn more about Shackleton’s expedition, Ice Wreck can be paired with Race to the South Pole.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • While stranded on an ice flow, the men were running out of food. “One sad day, there wasn’t enough left to feed the dogs. Soon they would starve. The men had to shoot them.”

 Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • None

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • None

The Duel at Araluen

King Duncan and Princess Cassandra are trapped in the south tower of Castle Araluen and under near-constant attack from the Red Fox Clan. Sir Horace and Ranger Commandant Gilan are holed up in an old hill fort, surrounded by the enemy. And Ranger’s apprentice, Maddie, is the only one who can save them all.

With the help of Hal, Thorn, and the rest of the Heron brotherband, Maddie will have to break her father and his men out of the hill fort, but will they reach Castle Araluen in time?

As the third installment of the Royal Ranger Series, Duel at Araluen continues the story of the Red Fox Clan who plan to kill King Duncan, Princess Cassandra, and Maddie. Unlike the previous two books in the series, Duel at Araluen describes many skirmishes between the rebels and the Araluens. While the book has less adventure, there is non-stop action as three groups—the Scandians, Horace and his soldiers, and Cassandra and her loyal army—prepare to defeat the Red Fox Clan.

While the book revolves around war, there is never senseless killing. Even though the Red Fox Clan planned to kill Horace and his men, when the rebels are defeated, Horace doesn’t execute the traitors. Instead, Horace orders his men to “leave the tents there for them so they won’t die of exposure. . . We’ll leave them what medical supplies and bandages we can spare and they can take care of one another.” Like the previous books, many people die, but all of the killings are in self-defense.

Duel at Araluen highlights the importance of loyalty, friendship, and bravery. For example, Jesper, one of the Scandians, makes several mean comments to one of his shipmates. Afterwards, Jesper claimed he was just joking. Hal scolds Jasper, saying, “A joke is when everyone can have a good laugh together. But when you do something that’s spiteful and hurtful and causes misery to someone else, that’s not a joke. That’s cruelty.”

Duel at Araluen uses the same format of all The Ranger’s Apprentice books. Even though the format is familiar, readers will be happy to see returning characters such as the Scandians from the Brotherband Series. Seeing the world from Maddie’s point of view gives the setting a fresh outlook. Plus, both Cassandra and Maddie have strong roles that involve leadership, planning, and fighting. Instead of being portrayed as stereotypical damsels in distress, Cassandra and Maddie are well-developed, capable characters who have many admirable traits. Readers who want to explore books with a strong female character and plenty of action should also add the League of Archers Series by Eva Howard to their reading list.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • After the Red Fox Clan took over the castle, the King, Cassandra and a group of loyal soldiers lock themselves in a tower. The Red Fox Clan started throwing projectiles at the tower. In response, Cassandra’s archers shoot arrows at the invading army. “Two of the first three shots found their targets. One man fell away from the windlass, an arrow in his upper body. Another. . . went down with a shaft in his thigh.”
  • The Red Fox Clan builds a trebuchet and uses it to throw rocks at the castle tower. Cassandra’s archers shoot fire arrows at the trebuchet and the invading army. “Two men went down. One of them stayed down. The other one hauled himself to his feet. . . an arrow through his lower leg. . . All the while, the tree archers peppered the trebuchet with arrows, but to no real effect. The only reward for their efforts was a sole figure lying unmoving on the flagstones.”
  • The Red Fox Clan begins throwing fire bladders at the tower. “Cassandra started in fear as the bladder struck the tower. . . Almost instantly, there was a roar of flame as the oil and pitch ignited, and a flood of fire erupted over the balcony, some of it clinging to the walls, while the rest dripped down and spread tendrils of flame over the floor.” No one is injured by the fire bladders.
  • The Red Fox Clan plan to swarm the fort that Horace, Gilan, and their army are hiding. “The light flared up, revealing a mass of some twenty men on the walkway. Instantly, the archers on the east and west walls drew, aimed and shot. A storm of arrows slammed into the attackers as they bunched together. . . more arrows slammed into them as they hesitated.”
  • During the attack, the rebels use ladders to scale the fort’s walls. “Their leader ran to be the first down one of the ladders. But, five spaces short of it, he was struck by an arrow and hurled back against the rough timbers of the palisade.”
  • One of the rebels lunges at Gilan with a sword. “Gilan’s sword, gleaming blood-red in the smoky firelight, struck like a viper, driving the man’s upper body, piercing the chain metal there. The swordsman gasped and stepped back. . . [Gilan] swung in a diagonal overhead cut at the man on his left. The stroke went home and the man fell to his knees, crying out in pain and shock. Then he toppled sideways.” The battle is described over nine pages.
  • After the battle, a man gives a casualty report. The Araluen’s lost two men and three others were injured. The rebels lost at least a dozen men and eight are wounded and cannot flee.
  • Along with the Scandians, the Araluens attack the rebel army. The Araluens use their lances to try to break up the enemy’s shield wall. “Some of the lances penetrated, forcing their way between the shields, hitting bodies, legs, and arms.” The battle is described over eight pages.
  • During the battle, one of the rebels “reared up in agony, clutching vainly at an arrow that had magically appeared between his shoulder blades.”
  • One of the leaders of the rebel army, Trask, steals his own soldier’s horse and tries to flee. But Maddie sees Trask and uses her sling as a weapon. Trask “felt a thundering impact on his helmet, right in the center of his forehead. . . Vaguely, he felt himself topple backward from the saddle and crash onto the soft grass. Then everything went black.”
  • The rebels set a door on fire, trying to chase Cassandra and her army to flee. One of Cassandra’s sergeants goes around the wall and a crossbowman “raised his weapon and shot. . . Then the crossbow bolt hit him and he reared back, falling dead at Cassandra’s feet.”
  • The book ends with a multi-chapter battle between the Araluens and the Red Fox Clan, where many people die. During the battle, one of Cassandra’s archers is stabbed and “with a startled cry of pain, the archer fell back on the steps, his spear clattering on the stonework as he dropped it.” Many men are killed in a similar manner.
  • During the attack, one of the rebels “felt a chill of fear clutch his heart as he realized he was seriously outmatched. . . In total panic, he turned to run, but Hal leaped forward and, reversing his sword, brought the heavy hilt down on the back of the man’s head, sending him sprawling unconscious on the boards of the walkway.”
  • Cassandra and the rebel leader, Dimon, fight. Cassandra injures him. “Blood dripped slowly from Dimon’s left arm, but not in sufficient quantities to weaken him.” At one point, Cassandra “twisted desperately to the right. The blade scored across her ribs, opening a long, shallow slash in her side. Blood welled out instantly, staining her jerkin.” Cassandra kills Dimon. The sword fight is described over five pages.

 Drugs and Alcohol

  • One of Cassandra’s sergeants was “nursing a mug of ale—a small mug, in view of their limited supply.”

Language

  • Damn is used three times. For example, Dimon says, “I should have thought of this damned tower, should have remembered how impregnable it can be.”
  • Maddie’s horse says, “By Blarney’s perpetual beard, when you sleep, you really sleep, don’t you?”
  • Maddie calls her horse a know-all and a blowhard.
  • Twice a Scandian uses “Orlog’s ears” as an exclamation.
  • The king calls the rebel’s leader scum.

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • Maddie’s horse makes a comment about Blarney, “a minor Hibernian deity. . .His beard grew constantly down to his feet, no matter how often he cut or shaved it.”

The Secret of the Magic Pearl

Hector lives with his family in an Italian coastal town where they organize tourist expeditions to explore the many wonders of the sea. Hector’s dream is to become a deep-sea diver, just like his father. Then, one day, an unscrupulous entrepreneur opens a much newer tourist center next door, forcing them to close their business. This unscrupulous entrepreneur has a single purpose, to find the legendary Pearl in order to sell it and make money. Hector decides to find a way to thwart the man’s plan and save what matters most to him: the sea, his family, and his dream.   

Hector tells his own story, which allows the reader to understand his love of the sea. Readers may find the story dull since most of the action is told from Hector’s point of view. However, Hector does an amazing job describing the people in the story and often uses comical descriptions such as one character who had “hair that looks like it was licked by a cow.” Because everything is filtered through Hector, none of the characters have much depth. However, the villain does learn that family is more important than riches.  

The real gems of The Secret of the Magic Pearl are the beautiful, full-color illustrations that are whimsical and beautiful. Many of the pages have full-page illustrations and almost all the pages have at least one picture. The illustrations show the characters and often include fanciful details. For example, when Hector dreams about his grandfather, his grandfather is wearing a ship captain’s jacket, has a starfish attached to his coat, and instead of legs, he has octopus tentacles. In fact, many of the pages have ocean creatures as part of the illustrations; readers will have fun trying to identify all the fish and other creatures.  

While the story isn’t full of excitement, readers will enjoy studying the illustrations in The Secret of the Magic Pearl. Anyone who loves the sea will relate to Hector and will enjoy seeing him go on his first deep-sea dive where he learns that “beautiful things should be shared and there’s nothing more beautiful than our sea.” Any child who loves the ocean will enjoy The Secret of the Magic Pearl. Since the book mentions Jacques Cousteau, you may also want to grab a copy of Manfish: A Story of Jacques Cousteau by Jennifer Berne.   

 Sexual Content  

  • None 

 Violence  

  • None 

 Drugs and Alcohol  

  • None 

 Language    

  • Hector thinks that some men are dimwits. 
  • A man calls his employees “stupid, incompetent blobfish!” 

 Supernatural 

  • The sea is portrayed as a living entity.  

 Spiritual Content  

  • None

Be Brave Little Penguin

Little Penguin Pip-Pip would love to join in with all his friends swimming in the sea, but there’s just one problem . . . he’s scared of water. Can Pip-Pip overcome his fear and finally take the plunge? This irresistible story shows that sometimes all it takes is a little bit of encouragement – and a whole lot of heart – to finally make that leap and be brave!

At first, Pip-Pip watches the other penguins playing in the water. They tease him, calling him “Scaredy-Pip-Pip.” Little Pip-Pip is so sad that a single tear runs down his cheek. Pip-Pip’s mommy treats him lovingly as she reminds him, “we all have certain fears that might be hard to understand.”

Readers will relate to Pip-Pip, who worries about all the what-ifs. “What if the water’s freezing? And what if there are monsters who smell me from their den, and they slither up and eat me and I’m never seen again?” Mommy penguin asks Pip-Pip to turn his what-ifs into something positive. “What if in that water there are friends for you to meet? And what if it is light and warm and full of treats to eat?”

Pip-Pip finally takes the jump and discovers that swimming is so much fun. The cute story uses a beautiful blue color pallet that contrasts with the black-and-white penguins. The full-page illustrations are adorable and have fun elements, like the penguins playing with fish. Plus, the illustrations help readers visualize Pip-Pip’s fears. For example, one illustration shows a large, scary octopus deep underwater.

Be Brave, Little Penguin is a fantastic, fun story that uses rhymes to help young readers face their fears. Because Mommy penguin is loving and encouraging, she is able to help Pip-Pip learn that “sometimes all you have to do is just be brave and jump.” By the end of the story, Pip-Pip is smiling and laughing, which will leave readers with a big grin as well.

Readers will fall in love with Pip-Pip and the other penguins because of the adorably cute illustrations, but the story will become one of your child’s favorite picture books because of the relatable conflict. Each page has one to four sentences that are easy to understand. Plus, some of the words are in bold and some of the sentences are curved to add even more emphasis.

Be Brave, Little Penguin is a must-read because of the entertaining storyline as well as the positive message that will help readers overcome their fears and gain confidence. If you’d like to explore more books that will help young children face their fears, check out Otis and the Puppy by Loren Long and The Pout-Pout Fish in the Big-Big Dark by Deborah Diesen.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • None

 Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • The other penguins tease Pip-Pip, calling him “Scaredy-Pip-Pip.”

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • None

 

32    3.3    5 worms   AR    picture book, must read

 

Daughter of the Siren Queen

Alosa’s mission is finally complete. Not only has she recovered all three pieces of the map to a legendary hidden treasure, but the pirates who originally took her captive are now prisoners on her ship. Still unfairly attractive and unexpectedly loyal, first mate Riden is a constant distraction, but now he’s under her orders. And she takes great comfort in knowing that the villainous Vordan will soon be facing her father’s justice.

When Vordan exposes a secret her father has kept for years, Alosa and her crew find themselves in a deadly race with the feared Pirate King. Despite the danger, Alosa knows they will recover the treasure first . . . after all, she is the daughter of the Siren Queen.

In Daughter of the Siren Queen, Alosa and her crew are only days away from being caught by the Pirate King. Both the Pirate King and Alosa hope to reach a legendary treasure that will allow them to rule the seas. However, Alosa’s crew faces many dangers, including an island of cannibals and the lack of drinking water. During this time, Riden helps Alosa try to understand her siren abilities. Unfortunately, once Riden and Alosa begin to work together, most of their fun banter ends. Instead, Riden becomes a submissive man, who stays mostly in the background.

When Riden fades into the background, Alosa’s crew of fierce, capable women are given center stage. Even though they are ruthless pirates, the crew respects and cares for each other. While Alosa is the captain of the ship, she still has enough confidence to leave others in command when necessary. One of the crew members has a six-year-old daughter, who adds humor and heart to the story. Unlike most pirates who are loyal to whomever has the most gold, Alosa’s crew are loyal to each other because of their friendship. The unique perspective of the women pirates makes Daughter of the Siren Queen interesting and enjoyable.

Readers will also get a look into the siren’s world. Alosa worries that her siren half turns her into a monster. However, when she is introduced to her mother’s world, Alosa realizes that the women are not heartless monsters. Instead, their world is full of beauty and love. Despite this, Alosa never loses her desire to remain in the human world. Alosa loves being a pirate, loves her crew, and loves the human world.

Full of friendship, battles, and complicated relationships, Daughter of the Siren Queen is a fast-paced story that takes readers on an exciting ocean adventure. Bloody battles keep the tension high, but Alosa’s crew balances out the action with friendship and humor. If you’re up for non-stop action, and high-stakes sword fights, then Daughter of the Siren Queen is a must-read. However, if you’re looking to set sail on a pirate ship without bloody fights, jump aboard Lintang and the Pirate Queen by Tamara Moss.

Sexual Content

  • Two of Alosa’s crew see her staring at Riden. A girl says, “he looks delicious.” Her sister replies, “From behind, anyways. Can’t judge the man properly until we see the front.”
  • Two of Alosa’s crew members were “whores.” She explains, “They were forced into that life. I broke them out when I witnessed them fighting off a couple of men who tried to take their services for free after hours.”
  • The Pirate King’s keep has a “brothel.”
  • To distract a pirate, Alosa slides “my hands up his arms to his shoulders. . .He crushes his mouth to mine. All intensity and passion.” As she kisses the pirate, she thinks about Riden, who will “pin me against some hard surface, place his hands on either side of my waist, and lean down until all the air between us is gone.”
  • Alosa gets upset at Riden. When he tries to comfort her, she “lunge[s] at him. . . I place my lips over his so quickly, I think his eyes are still open when I reach him. . . My fingers slide into his hair, silky smooth and wonderful. . .” Riden welcomes Alosa’s touch. “His tongue slides in, completely bathing me in sensations.” The scene is described over one page.
  • Alosa and Riden kiss several times. For example, Riden’s “lips brush my neck as he starts kissing his way up to my hairline. My body shudders, an uncontrollable reaction to him. . . His free hand slides around my waist, pressing me into him.” They stop kissing when they are interrupted.
  • After professing their love, Riden and Alosa kiss. “He kisses me softly, languorously, savoring every time our lips connect. I melt under the pressure but manage to yank at his still damp shirt. He helps me take it off. . .Without breaking the kiss, I start to pull him backward with me, toward my bed.” Riden hears a siren’s song and walks away from Alosa. The scene is described over three pages.

Violence

  • There is an overabundance of violence and not all scenes are described below.
  • Alosa and her crew begin killing the lookouts who are watching over Vordan’s crew. “The sound of [Alosa’s] knife slitting across a throat feels much too loud in the darkness. I catch the pirate before his corpse hits the ground.”
  • Alosa and her crew get into the inn where the pirates are sleeping. Alosa puts three men under her spell so they will fight on her side. Then Alosa rams her “shoulder into the pirate who dared to call me ‘the siren bitch,’ sending him over the railing. He screams until he’s cut off with a loud crunch. . .I’m already thrusting my sword through the belly of the next pirate. He collapses to the floor, and I walk over his twitching body to the next man.”
  • During the battle, Alosa sends her “elbow into the underside of [a pirate’s] chin. His head snaps back, and I cut off his grunt by raking my cutlass across his throat.”
  • Alosa and her girls blow up the inn. “The inn still stands, but it’s burning apart from the inside. . . The pirates still inside are burning husks on the ground.”
  • Alosa has Vordan put in a cage. When he protests, “he’s cut off by Sorinda’s fist slamming into his gut. She gags him and ties his hands behind his back.” The fight scene is described over 10 pages.
  • To get Vordan to talk, Alosa puts him under her siren’s spell and makes him hallucinate. “Vordan holds a knife in his hand. He glances at it in fear before thrusting it down into his own leg, the one that isn’t broken. He screams before changing the sound into an angry grunt.”
  • Alosa gets to her father’s keep, where “dead men dangle by ropes from the top of the tunnel… hooks that have been inserted into the mouths of traitors. They are hung up like captured fish for all to see. . .”
  • When Praxer upsets the Pirate King, the king cuts off Praxer’s hand. “Praxer screams as red sprays the nearby men and tables. . .Praxer has sunk to the floor. He muffles his screams long enough to meet my father’s eyes.”
  • Alosa and some of her crew go to an island where they find cannibals. “Deschel runs towards her sister’s remains. Lotiya’s throat has been ripped out. She’s missing a leg and an arm and so much blood. It’s all over the cave. . . Animal-like shouts and growls sound down the cave and grow closer, alerted to our presence by the gunshots.”
  • The cannibals chase Alosa and her crew. “Riden pours more gunpowder into his pistol, takes aim, and fires. The first cannibal in line falls, tripping those immediately behind. . .Riden is busy blocking the tunnel by himself now while I grasp around frantically for my sword. Eventually, my hand finds something hard and heavy. A human femur, I think. I bring it down on the cannibal’s head, which knocks him out instantly.”
  • When the Pirate King tries to take over Alosa’s ship, cannons are fired and “one blow[s] apart a group of men huddled together while the other nicked the mizzenmast. . . Gunfire ripples through the air on both sides. My girls are well protected behind their barrels, crates, rowboats, and other hiding places.”
  • During the fight, Alosa puts men under her spell and causes them to jump overboard. “Men shriek as the eels circle them. The eels like to toy with their food first.” When several of Alosa’s girls fall into the water, she goes in after them. “I reach for the dagger in my boot, launching myself at the eel from the side. Dagger connects first, then my legs wrap around the creature’s body, just long enough for my feet to connect on the other side of the massive water beast.” Alosa kills the creature and save her friends. The battle is described over eight pages.
  • During the fighting, one of Alosa’s crew dies. “Haeli. She took a bullet to the back.”
  • The book ends in a multi-chapter battle between Alosa’s crew and the Pirate King’s crew. Alosa’s father punishes her by shooting three members of her crew. The Pirate King “pulls the trigger. Niridia’s leg buckles, forcing her to the ground. Blood seeping through a hole in the leggings over her knee. . . Another shot fires. . . He has a new pistol, smoke coalescing from it. Reona, one of my riggers, jerks to the right and falls.”
  • The siren’s sing to the Pirate King’s men. However, the men have wax in their ears, so they remain safe. “Many of the men hold harpoons, waiting until the right moment to fling them into the sea at targets. . . Luminescent bodies float on the surface of the water in a tangle of rich hair and blood-stained skin. . . One siren flings herself out of the water, leaping over the boat as a dolphin might, and plummets into an unsuspecting pirate, knocking him into the sea below her.” Many men and sirens die.
  • Roslyn, a six-year-old, is part of Alosa’s crew. When Alosa and her crew are locked in cells, Roslyn is able to get the key. As she is letting the crew out, “A gunshot explodes through the mostly quiet brig. . . Blood spurts wildly from [Roslyn’s] head. And she falls. . . a pool of blood forms near Roslyn.”
  • Sorinda attacks a pirate who has Alosa cornered. “A sword point rips through his stomach. A labored sigh escapes him as he stares down at the metal. Sorinda doesn’t wait for him to drop before yanking her cutlass back through his gut and moving to the next target.”
  • Roslyn’s father attacks the man who shot her. Roslyn’s father has “got Tylon by the shoulders, and he slams his head into the ground over and over. I don’t know how long Tylon has been dead, but Wallov doesn’t seem to notice anything at all.”
  • The Pirate King captures Alosa’s mother. “She is strapped to a chair with ropes. They bind her shoulders to the chair’s back, her thighs to the seat, her ankles to the chair’s leg. Her wrists are bound together behind her back… her face is lightly swollen, starting to show the signs of the beating Kalligan no doubt gave her.” After capturing the Siren Queen, the sirens join the battle and manage to defeat the Pirate King’s men.

 Drugs and Alcohol

  • One of Alosa’s crew members is “a useless drunk most of the time.” When he realizes a girl cares about him, he goes through withdrawals and then stays sober.

Language

  • Profanity is used often. Profanity includes bastard, damn, hell, and piss.
  • A pirate calls Alosa a “siren bitch.”
  • Riden is upset that Alosa used her siren abilities on him. When he yells at her, she says, “You’re being a prick. I did nothing wrong.”

Supernatural

  • Alosa’s siren half gives her magical abilities. “I can sing to men and make them do whatever I wish… I can read the emotions of men… I can tell what any man wants in a woman, become it, and use it to manipulate him.”
  • Alosa tries to learn how to control her siren abilities. “When I take in the water, I become a creature with no knowledge of my human existence, no knowledge of those I care about or my human aspirations. I become what I would have been if I’d never known life above the sea.”
  • Alosa meets a charm of sirens, who show her the siren’s treasure. Alosa’s mother explains, “As soon as we knew there was treasure aboard, we sang to the rest of the men, demanding they throw everything valuable overboard. When they were done, we had them toss themselves in afterward. So we could enjoy them.”

Spiritual Content

  • When the mast breaks, Alosa says, “Let’s pray to the stars we can find a suitable trunk ashore.”
  • Pirates believe that “to not be buried at sea is to be damned for eternity, never finding rest with the stars.”
  • When a pirate dies, the crew “let the remains of Lotiya’s body drift off to sea, buried with the fallen pirates before her. When her soul departs from her body, it will follow the lantern light and find the water’s surface. From there, it will be able to see the stars and fly up to the heavens. Every soul parted from this world is a star in the sky.”

 

Dawn Patrol

Luca and Esme have more than monster waves to worry about.

When Kevin disappears, leaving only a cryptic note, his best friends Luca and Esme have no choice but to try and find him. Their journey takes them to the coast of Panama, where they confront monster waves, unfriendly locals and a surfer who seems bent on destroying them. As their hope dwindles and time runs out, Luca and Esme realize they may be in over their heads.

Because of the short length of the book, none of the characters are well-developed. However, the fast-paced mystery will still capture readers’ interest. The main plot focuses on Luca and Esme’s search for their missing friend. As the two friends search for clues, they meet Jose, whose strange behavior puts Luca and Esme on high alert. Between surfing monster waves, looking for clues, and trying to track down Jose, Dawn Patrol keeps the action and mystery high.

The story is told from Luca’s point of view. Readers will connect with Luca because he is an admirable character who is willing to go to great lengths to find his friend. The conclusion ends on a hopeful note but doesn’t wrap up all the story threads. Despite this, Dawn Patrol is a quick and easy read that will engage readers. As part of the Orca Sports collection, Dawn Patrol is perfect for reluctant readers because it uses a high-interest topic that will entertain teens and help them improve their reading skills.

Sexual Content

  • When talking to a girl, Luca tells her that he’s not interested in Esme. “Nor would I be interested in getting together in, um, that way with this Jose guy.”
  • Luca meets Alana and a few days later, “she leaned over and kissed me on the mouth.” Alana and Luca kiss two more times, but the kisses are not described.

Violence

  • While trying to chase down Jose, “a big guy in dark sunglasses ran out of a hut and barreled into us. . .I slipped and fell headfirst into the water. I popped up just in time to see Esme hit the water.”
  • Esme is kidnapped. When Luca finds the hut Esme is being held at, he tries to sneak up to it, but “Jose came out of the trees and tackled me to the ground. . . I was face-first in the dirt. I struggled to get away. Jose had his hand on the back of my head, pushing my face into the sand.” Luca gets away.
  • Kevin, Esme’s boyfriend, holds a knife toward Delgado, the man that kidnapped Esme. “Kevin hit Delgado’s throat with his forearm, dragged him to the ground, and smacked his head. There were tears on his cheeks.” Delgado lets Esme go.

 Drugs and Alcohol

  • While in the village, Esme and Luca pass a group of people who are drinking beer.

Language

  • Profanity is used frequently. Profanity includes ass, crap, damn, and hell.

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • None

The Three Little Fish and the Big Bad Shark

“Little fish, little fish, let me come in.” “Not by the skin of my finny fin fin!” “Then I’ll munch, and I’ll crunch, and I’ll smash your house in!” Mama tells her three little fish that it’s time to make their own homes. Jim builds his house of seaweed, but the big bad shark munches it up. Tim builds his house of sand, but the shark crunches it up. It’s smart Kim who sets up house in an old sunken ship!

This reimagined version of the Three Little Pigs has no fear factor and is silly enough to entertain squirmy readers. Young readers will love watching the big bad shark break into the little fish’s house. But Jim, Tim, and Kim all know the importance of sticking together. In the end, “The big bad shark munched, and he crunched but he would not smash the house in and all his teeth fell out!” After losing all his teeth, the shark is seen eating a salad, and “the three little fish were safe at last.”

The Three Little Fish and the Big Bad Shark has plenty of visual appeal. The ocean world comes to life in bright colors. Jim, Tim, and Kim are orange fish that pop out of the blue ocean. Plus, readers will have fun finding the other ocean creatures, such as a crab and a turtle. The giant-sized shark shows all his sharp teeth as he narrowly misses chomping the fish.

Even though The Three Little Fish and the Big Bad Shark is a picture book, the story is intended to be read aloud to a child, rather than for the child to read it for the first time independently. Each page has 1 to 3 sentences that appear in oversized text. Since there is little text on each page, the story is a quick read, making it an excellent bedtime story. The Three Little Fish and the Big Bad Shark is a wonderfully creative fairytale retelling that will entertain readers over and over. Shark-loving readers should also read Clark the Shark by Bruce Hale.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • None

 Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • None

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • None

The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle

 

Thirteen-year-old Charlotte Doyle leaves her boarding school in England to reunite with her family in America. She leaves England a prim and proper lady with a notebook from her father to detail her travels. However, Charlotte quickly discovers that her voyage home is not going to be smooth sailing.

On board The Seahawk, Charlotte fears the majority of the ship’s male crew, including the lone black man Zachariah, who gives her a knife the first time they meet. He warns Charlotte to keep the knife for protection, as “she might need it.” This is the first hint that things aboard The Seahawk aren’t all they seem, but Charlotte’s determined to keep her ladylike composure, especially in front of Captain Jaggery. Jaggery is a refined and educated man, unlike his crew, which prompts a friendship between him and Charlotte. Yet, Charlotte wonders if something more is awry when Jaggery asks that Charlotte become his “informant” and report any talk of rebellion to him.

After her promise, Charlotte discovers that the crew intends to mutiny. When Charlotte reports the threat, Jaggery responds with violence, killing some of the sailors including Zachariah. Suddenly, Charlotte’s journey turns into one of atonement. To fill the gap left by the now dead sailors, Charlotte joins the crew. Then, during a hurricane, the first mate is found with Charlotte’s knife in his chest. After a trial by Jaggery (who now scorns Charlotte because she has sided with the crew), Charlotte is proclaimed guilty, even though she didn’t commit the crime.

In the end, it’s discovered that Zachariah lived through his beating. He helps Charlotte create a plan to rid the ship of Jaggery and prove her innocence. They discover that it was Jaggery who murdered the first mate as a ploy to get rid of Charlotte, whom he hates for being an “unnatural” girl. Charlotte is able to dispatch Jaggery and sail home as a young captain with Zachariah by her side. However, her greatest conflict is the one she faces back on American soil, when her father burns her journal and forces her to be a “lady” again. Charlotte runs away from home when she remembers the words Zachariah once told her: “A sailor chooses the wind that takes the ship from a safe port. . . but winds have a mind of their own.”

The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle is a thrilling and detailed story for young adults. The book is told from Charlotte’s perspective, and she is a compelling narrator. At first, she’s somewhat difficult to like because she’s stuck in her ways, but the reader will sympathize with her desire to do what is right despite the criticism she faces as a woman. While it is unlikely something like Charlotte’s story ever happened at the time, the story is realistic in the context of the era – such as the behavior of the characters, the dialogue, and the use of religion. The end of the book also includes a glossary of ship terms which the author uses for the reader to feel as if they’re on board a ship just like Charlotte is. The overarching message of this story is to follow one’s own path, even in the face of adversity, and Charlotte is a character that embodies that until the end.

Sexual Content

  • Ewing, one of the crew, kisses Charlotte on the cheeks to say goodbye.

Violence

  • Zachariah gives Charlotte a knife for protection.
  • Charlotte uses the knife to scare an animal. “I heard a sound. I looked across the cabin. A rat was sitting on my journal, nibbling at its spine. Horrified, I flung the dirk at it.” The rat runs off.
  • Zachariah describes a past incident where Captain Jaggery punished one of the crew for not tying a knot properly. “Captain Jaggery said Mr. Cranick’s laboring arm was his by rights. Miss Doyle, Mr. Cranick has but one arm now. He was that much beaten by Captain Jaggery, who, as he said himself, took the arm.”
  • Captain Jaggery shows Charlotte that he keeps guns in his cabin.
  • Charlotte describes Jaggery’s violent behavior. “If provoked sufficiently, the captain might resort to a push or a slap with his own open hand. . . I saw him strike Morgan with a belaying pin, one of the heavy wood dowels used to secure a rigging rope to the pin rail. In dismay, I averted my eyes. The fellow was tardy about reefing a sail, the captain said and went on to catalog further likely threats. Confinement in the brig. Salary docking. No meals. Lashing. Dunking in the cold sea or even keelhauling, which, as I learned, meant pulling a man from one side of the ship to the other – under water.”
  • Charlotte finds a gun in one of the crew member’s chests. Another man, Morgan, who catches her, threatens her so she won’t tell the captain. “He lifted a hand, extended a stiletto like a forefinger, and drew it across his own neck as if cutting A spasm of horror shot through me. He was – in the crudest way – warning me about what might happen to me if I took my discovery to the captain.”
  • Captain Jaggery kills a crew member, who tries to start a mutiny. “Captain Jaggery fired his musket. The roar was stupendous. The ball struck Cranick square in the chest. With a cry of pain and mortal shock he dropped his sword and stumbled backward into the crowd. They were too stunned to catch him, but instead leaped back so that Cranick fell to the deck with a sickening thud. He began to groan and thrash about in dreadful agony, blood pulsing from his chest and mouth in ghastly gushes.”
  • Captain Jaggery has Zachariah whipped for starting the unsuccessful mutiny. The first mate “turned Zachariah so that he faced into the shrouds, then climbed up into these shrouds and with a piece of rope bound his hands, pulling him so that the old man was all but hanging from his wrists, just supporting himself on the tips of his bare toes. . . I turned to look at Captain Jaggery. Only then did I see that he had a whip in his hands.”
  • Jaggery says that the first mate, Mr. Hollybrass, will give Zachariah 50 lashes. “Hollybrass lifted his arm and cocked it . . .with what appeared to be the merest flick of his wrist, the whip shot forward; its tails hissed through the air and spat against Zachariah’s back. The moment they touched the old man’s skin, four red welts appeared. . .” Hollybrass continues to whip Zachariah.
  • Charlotte begs the Captain to make it stop. When Captain Jaggery refuses, Charlotte whips him. “He took another step toward me. In a gesture of defense, I pulled up my arm, and so doing flicked the whip through the air, inflicting a cut across the captain’s face. For an instant a red welt marked him from his left cheek to his right ear. Blood began to ooze. . . When [Captain Jaggery] saw they were bloody he swore a savage oath, jumped forward and tore the whip from my hand, whirled about and began beating Zachariah with such fury as I had never seen.” Later, Charlotte sees the sailors dump a hammock overboard, which is said to contain Zachariah’s dead body.
  • After Charlotte joins the crew, Captain Jaggery punishes her. “He struck me across the face with the back of his hand, then turned and walked away.”
  • Charlotte finds Mr. Hollybrass’s body after he’s been killed. “A knife was stuck in his back, plunged so deeply only the scrimshaw handle could be seen. I recognized the design. . .This was the dirk Zachariah had given me.”
  • Charlotte is accused of murdering Mr. Hollybrass since the knife belongs to her. Captain Jaggery threatens to hang her if she can’t prove who killed him.
  • After Charlotte realizes that Captain Jaggery has killed Mr. Hollybrass, he chased her with a pistol to kill her. Jaggery chases Charlotte out to the bow, where he falls into the sea and drowns.

Drugs and Alcohol

  • One of the sailors, Morgan, has a tobacco pouch.

Language

  • Charlotte describes the sailors as “men recruited from the doormat of Hell.”
  • Captain Jaggery says that the men on the ship are unable to understand kindness. He says, “they demand a strong hand, a touch of the whip, like dumb beasts who require a little bullying.” He also calls the crew, “the dirtiest, laziest dogs” and “a poor set of curs.”
  • When Charlotte tells Jaggery that she suspects a mutiny, Jaggery says, “why the devil did you not tell me before?”
  • Captain Jaggery shouts, “damn you!” once.

Supernatural

  • Charlotte considers that Zachariah might’ve appeared to her as a ghost or an angel.

Spiritual Content

  • References to God, the Bible, and Heaven occur occasionally throughout the text. Captain Jaggery occasionally has a Bible with him, and a church service is held on the ship on Sundays, where Charlotte reads passages from the Bible to the crew. Captain Jaggery sometimes refers to himself as a Christian. “And was ever a Christian more provoked than I?”
  • Zachariah compares God to a ship’s captain. “When a ship is upon the sea, there’s but one who rules. As God is to his people, as king is to his nation, as father to his family, so is captain to his crew.”
  • After Cranick’s death, Zachariah wishes to give him a funeral, but Captain Jaggery wants him thrown overboard. Zachariah says, “Even a poor sinner such as he should have his Christian service.” Captain Jaggery replies, “I want that dog’s carcass thrown over.”
  • Charlotte feels responsible for what happened to the crew and Zachariah since she revealed their plot. She prays to God for forgiveness.
  • During Charlotte’s trial, each man swears on the Bible to tell the truth.
  • Zachariah tells Charlotte an old saying, “the Devil will tie any knot, save the hangman’s noose. That Jack does for himself.”

by Madison Shooter

Daughter of the Deep

Ana Dakkar is a freshman at Harding-Pencroft Academy, a five-year high school that graduates the best marine scientists, naval warriors, navigators, and underwater explorers in the world. Ana’s parents died while on a scientific expedition two years ago, and the only family she’s got left is her older brother, Dev, also a student at HP.

Ana’s freshman year culminates with the class’s weekend trial at sea, the details of which have been kept secret. She only hopes she has what it’ll take to succeed. All her worries are blown out of the water when, on the bus ride to the ship, Ana and her schoolmates witness a terrible tragedy that will change the trajectory of their lives.

But wait, there’s more. The professor accompanying them informs Ana that their rival school, Land Institute, and Harding-Pencroft have been fighting a cold war for a hundred and fifty years. Now, that cold war has been turned up to a full boil, and the freshman are in danger of becoming fish food.

In a race against deadly enemies, Ana will make amazing friends and astounding discoveries about her heritage as she puts her leadership skills to the test for the first time.

In Daughter of the Deep, the books 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and The Mysterious Island written by Jules Verne are more factual than fictional. One of the teachers explains who the book’s characters are and where they fit into modern society. Ana also discovers that she is a descendant of Captain Nemo who “hated the great colonial powers. . . and had personal reasons to hate imperialism.” While introducing the above topic, both the Land Institute and Harding agree that “turning Nemo’s technology over to the world’s governments, or worse, the world’s corporations, would be disastrous.” Riordan repeatedly reminds readers of the danger of the world’s governments and corporations, who are more concerned with keeping their monopolies than helping citizens. This theme is not well-developed, and most teens will quickly forget these passages.

The story is told from Ana’s point of view. Even though she is the heroine, Ana is not portrayed as a perfect person. After her parents died, Ana dissociates; the narrative explains that Ana has talked to the school counselor regarding her grief. While Ana’s talk of her painful menstrual cycle makes her more relatable, the topic will make some younger readers uncomfortable. After the hostiles destroy Harding-Pencroft Academy, killing anyone on campus, Ana decides that the hostiles will be let free without any consequences. In the story’s conclusion, Ana unrealistically forgives the people who destroyed the school and then tried to kill her and her friends.

The story has a large group of characters who are both racially and religiously diverse. Plus, one character, Ester, has autism and needs an emotional support animal. However, even with readers paying close attention, the large cast of characters is difficult to keep track of. Daughter of the Deep has a unique premise, interesting characters, and fun technology; however, the story leaves the reader wondering if justice was served or if Ana’s opponents will just regroup and come back to continue their killing spree. Before jumping into Daughter of the Deep, readers who are intrigued by Jules Verne’s books should read the Max Tilt Series by Peter Lerangis.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • In order to demonstrate a Leyden, Dr. Hewett shoots a student. “The only sound is a high-pressure hiss. For a millisecond, Gem is wrapped in flickering white tendrils of electricity. Then his eyes crossed, and he collapsed in a heap.” Gem recovers quickly.
  • Students from the Land Institute attack the Harding-Pencroft Academy’s yacht. When they board the vessel, they use grenade launchers. “Two fist-size canisters plunk onto our gangway and roll hissing. . . the explosions still leave [Ana’s] head ringing.”
  • A student’s dog helps defend his person. The dog, Top, “joins the party, clamping his jaws around the guy’s throat . . . As it is, he [the attacker] crab-walks backward, screaming and trying to shake off the furious twenty-pound fluff demon attached to his windpipe.”
  • During the attack, “Two hostiles fire their silver weapons. Miniature harpoons impale Elois’s shoulder and Cooper’s leg. White arcs of electricity bloom from the projectiles, both [students] crumple.” When the hostiles continue to fire, “Drue Cardenas shoots another intruder. Unfortunately, the electricity also arcs to Nelinha, who had been in the process of pummeling said intruder with a socket wrench. Both of them go down.” No one is killed, but several are injured. The fight is described over six pages.
  • Caleb, a student from the Land Institute, attempts to kidnap Ana. They are in the ocean when Ana snaps her “head backward and hears the satisfying crunch of Caleb’s nose breaking.” As the two struggle, “help comes from an unexpected direction. Right next to us, a mass of sleek blue-gray flesh explodes out of the sea, and Caleb is body-slammed into oblivion under the weight of a six-hundred-pound bottlenose dolphin.” Ana is able to escape.
  • A huge octopus, Romeo, likes the submarine, the Nautilus. When Ana and Gem first see it, “Gem tackles me and jets me out of the way, but the creature isn’t interested in us. Eight tentacles the size of bridge cables wrap themselves around the Nautilus.” The group manages to safely detach the octopus from the sub.
  • Ana’s brother, Dev, who is captain of the Aronnax, attacks the Nautilus. “The Aronnax’s four torpedoes sail straight over our heads. . .” Before the Aronnax can cause any damage to the Nautilus, “Romeo’s enormous tentacles wrap around the Aronnax, pulling her into an embrace… Romeo snaps the Aronnax like gingerbread. Fire and sea churn together. Giant, silver air bubbles, some with people inside, billow toward the surface.” The Aronnax is destroyed, but everyone survives.
  • There is a multi-chapter confrontation between Dev’s group and Ana’s group. When Ana and Gem try to get back to base, they see “Dev’s skiff is waiting for us. . . a black wedge bristling with weapons like the spines of a porcupine fish. It faces us from only fifty feet away. . . and in the pilot’s seat is my brother. . . We sail over the Dev’s stern . . . Gem shoulders his Leyden rifle and fires two rounds straight into the submersible’s propulsion system.” Once the skiff is out of commission Ana and Gem go to free the hostages.
  • Back at the base, Ana and Gem are attacked before they can get out of the ocean. “The nearest diver jabs [Ana] with his knife. . . The razor-sharp edge rips the fabric and grazes my ribs. . . White spots swim in my eyes. Nevertheless, I use my boots to wrestle my attacker, pushing him backward into one of the pier’s pylons.”
  • In order to get away from her attacker, Ana unsheathes her “blade and stabs him in the BC vest. . . With his vest’s air bladder punctured, my opponent is blinded by bubbles. He starts to sink . . . On his way down, I kick him for good measure.” Socrates, Ana’s dolphin friend, helps in the fight. “While he headbutts the blue-eyed diver into submission, three of the local bottlenose dolphins descend on the other guy . . . The dolphins welcome him to the neighborhood with an extreme tail-fin smackdown.”
  • Gem shoots several of the opponents with non-lethal bullets. The bullets leave them with “nasty red welts in the middle of their foreheads.”
  • When Gem and Ana get to the base, they see their friends “are being held at gunpoint.” Gem uses an alt-tech flash-band and then enters the dining room “but there’s no one left to shoot at. Our friends are still alive, though they’ve looked better. . . All four hostiles are out cold, spread-eagled on the floor, goofy grins frozen onto their faces. . .”
  • Dev finds Ana and Gem. “My brother smacks [Gem] across the head with a ratchet. Gem collapses. . . My brother glares at me. . . He grabs my wrist, slapping the gun from my hand, then steps in and twists, attempting to throw me over his shoulder.” The brother and sister fight until, “[Ana] shoot[s] him three times. The last rubber bullet snaps his head back, raising an ugly red spot right between the eyes.” Dev is taken as prisoner and locked in a room. The casualties from the battle are minor. There were no deaths on either side.

 Drugs and Alcohol

  • Students from the Land Institute attempt to kidnap Ana. Ana describes, “Someone behind me locks his forearm across my throat. I feel a sharp pain like a wasp sting in the side of my neck.” Ana discovers that she has been injected with sea-snake venom.
  • Ana takes Midol for period pain.

Language

  • God, oh god and my god are all used as exclamations several times.

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • When Ana’s school is attacked and destroyed, she prays, “Three-Eyed One, Lord Shiva, who nourishes all beings, may He liberate us from death.”
  • While thinking about her ancestors, Ana thinks, “Ester and I were bound together before we were born. It makes me wonder about reincarnation and karma, and whether our souls might have met at another time.”
  • After Ana realizes that her brother destroyed their school, she said “a prayer for my brother, and for the future.”

Swashby and the Sea

No-nonsense Captain Swashby has lived his life on the sea, by the sea, and with the sea—his oldest friend. He loves his quiet life just as it is: sandy and serene. When new neighbors settle in next door and disrupt his solitude, Captain Swashby leaves notes in the sand: “Please go away!” But the sea “fiddled, just a little” and changed the message to read, “PL—AY.” Could it be that the sea knows exactly what he needs?

Captain Swashby is reluctant to spend time with his neighbors, but the sea “decided to meddle more than just a little” and soon Captain Swashby discovers that “it was easy for Swashby to have tea with the girl and her granny—and ice cream, and lobster, and s’mores on the beach. It was easy for him to share his special sea glasses.”

Captain Swashby’s story is beautifully illustrated in sandy browns and ocean blues. Sometimes, Captain Swashby scowls and looks like a grump, but that doesn’t stop his new neighbor from asking him to play. The new neighbors—a girl and her grandmother—are African American and they both are adorably cute. The illustrations do an excellent job of conveying the characters’ wide range of emotions. As readers explore the illustrations, they may want to look for the seagulls that are scattered throughout the pages.

Even though Swashby and the Sea is a picture book, the story is intended to be read aloud to a child, rather than for the child to read it for the first time independently. Parents may need to explain some of the more difficult language, such as serene, civilized, and commandeered. Even though each page only has 1 to 4 sentences, the complex sentence structure may be difficult for young readers.

Swashby and the Sea is a sweet story that little readers will love. Anyone who has met someone that appears a little bit grumpy and unfriendly will relate to the story. In addition, Swashby and the Sea shows the importance of making new friends. Shawn Loves Sharks by Curtis Manley is another book that ocean-loving readers will enjoy and it also teaches an important lesson about friendship!

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • None

 Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • When the sea changes his message, Captain Swashby says, “Barnacle bottoms.”

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • None

Fable #1

Seventeen-year-old Fable only wants one thing: to reunite with her father, Saint. Even though he abandoned her on an island four years ago after her mother’s death, Fable still wants to earn a place among her father’s crew. The first step is to escape from Jeval, the cutthroat island Fable refuses to call her home. She spends her days scavenging for rare minerals and trading with a helmsman named West in exchange for measly amounts of copper. Eventually, Fable has enough copper to escape Jeval on West’s ship, Marigold, and make her way across the sea—The Narrows—to the city of Ceros where her father’s trading empire has flourished. However, aboard the ship, Fable discovers that there’s more to her story and the ship’s crew than what meets the eye.

Fable learns that the Marigold isn’t West’s ship, rather it belongs to her father. While keeping her identify as Saint’s daughter a secret, she also discovers that West and the rest of the crew have secrets of their own. Willa, the crew’s only other female, is West’s sister. Plus, Paj and Austere are running from a dark past. But West is hiding the most: after Fable is scorned by her father once more, Saint reveals that he made an agreement with West to give Fable money and take care of her from afar. Saint claims this is the best thing he could’ve done for Fable because she would learn to survive the harsh world. Fable narrates that Saint “expected me to be grateful for the hell he’d put me through, so he could take credit for who I was. . . I’d crossed the Narrows for a man who’d probably never even loved me. For a dream that would never come true.”

Even after this disappointment, Fable still finds a reason to go on– she does have a family– but it isn’t one made by blood. Fable realizes that the crew of the Marigold are the ones who have protected and nurtured her. She hopes to use the inheritance given to her by her father to buy the Marigold, so West and the crew can be free from Saint, just like her. The book ends on a cliffhanger when Fable is kidnapped, so readers will be reaching for the next book, Namesake: A Novel, to discover if Fable achieves her goal.

Fable as a story is both entertaining and exciting. The reader is thrown directly into a world with new places, names, jobs, and nautical terminology that may take a while to grasp, but contribute to a fast-paced plot that is still understandable and full of unexpected twists. Sometimes, it can be hard to believe that these young kids are able to fend for themselves like experienced adults, but they also live in a world where they had to grow up fast or they wouldn’t get the chance to grow up at all.

The novel is told through Fable’s point of view and emphasizes the idea of “found family,” a group of individuals pulled together by similar circumstances or experiences that come to trust and care for each other like a blood family. This is especially meaningful because of how Fable’s father is against caring for other people and fails to realize that there is strength in having others around you.

While Fable’s life is vastly different than the lives teens lead today, it’s hard not to root for her because of how passionate she is to find her father. When this dream falls short of her expectations, Fable wins our hearts again when she uses this setback as a learning experience; it’s not a father she wants, it’s a family. Fable’s willingness to trust the crew of the Marigold shows that no matter one’s past, love and acceptance are waiting if we open our hearts.

Sexual Content

  • Fable describes what happens behind the closed doors of taverns. Fable had “seen enough of my father’s crew disappear into taverns with purses full of coin and leave with empty ones. There were only two things strictly forbidden on a ship because both could get you or your shipmates killed: love and drunkenness. Only on dry land could you find someone to warm your bed or empty a bottle of rye into your belly.”
  • The innkeeper thinks that West and Fable are going to have sex. West “dropped three coppers on the counter, and she tucked them into her apron, smiling up at me knowingly. I blushed when I realized what she was thinking. . . The woman winked at me, but West didn’t bother correcting her and I wondered if it was because I wasn’t the first girl he’d brought into the tavern and disappeared up the stairs with.”
  • Willa kisses West platonically on the cheek.
  • Paj and Auster, two male crew members, are in a relationship. They hold hands occasionally. “Auster wound his pale fingers into Paj’s before he brought his hand to his lips and kissed it.”
  • West and Fable kiss underwater while examining a sunken ship. “Before I could even think about what he was doing, his lips touched mine. . . I kissed him again, hooking my fingers into his belt and trying to pull him closer. . . I had wanted to touch West a thousand times.”
  • West and Fable have a long, intimate moment which implies that they have sex. Fable narrates, “I lifted onto my toes, pressing my mouth to his. . . His hand found my hips, and he walked me back until my legs hit the side of the bed. I opened his jacket and pushed it from his shoulders before he laid me down beneath him. His weight pressed down on top of me and I arched my back as his hands caught my legs and pulled them up around him. . . My head tipped back, and I pulled him closer so I could feel him against me. He groaned, his mouth pressed to my ear and I tugged at the length of my shirt until I was pulling it over my head. He sat up, his eyes running over every inch of me. . .”

Violence

  • Fable’s life on Jeval has been cutthroat. She’s had to hurt other people or been hurt by them. She says, “It had been four years since the day I was dumped on the blazing hot beach and left to fend for myself. Forced to scrape hulls in exchange for rotten fish when I was starving, and beaten for diving in another dredger’s claimed territory again and again.”
  • Fable often references a scar on her arm, which was given to her by her father. “He carved into my arm with the tip of his whalebone knife.” She also says, “I had watched in horror as he dragged the tip of his knife through my flesh without so much as a twitch of his hand.” Eventually, she describes the whole scene. “I didn’t know what he was going to do until the tip of the knife had already drawn blood. . . I buried my face into my knees and tried not to scream as he cut into me.”
  • Koy, a sailor who takes Fable out on his boat, attacks her for money. Fable had been diving. “Just as I reached the surface, something caught hold of my arm. . . Koy’s face was looking up at me, his hands clamped tightly around my wrist. I kicked, catching him in the shoulder with the heel of my foot and his fingers slipped from me. I swam as fast as I could toward the light, feeling the darkness creeping over my mind, and when I finally broke through to the air, I choked, my lungs twisting violently in my chest. . . Koy came up in the next breath, launching in my direction. I tried to swim from his reach, but he took hold of my hair and wrenched me back to him. . .I twisted, rearing my elbow back with a snap, and it caught him in the face. . . By the time I reached the [boat’s] hull, he had ahold of my foot. . . I slipped, hitting the side [of the boat] with my face so hard that the light exploded in my head. I found the edge with my fingers again before I pulled myself back up and reached inside, my hand frantically looking for the scull. When I had it, I threw my arm back, hitting Koy in the head with the flat end. He stilled suddenly, falling back into the water. . . Koy’s eyes rolled back into his head as he sank, a stream of red inklike blood spilling from his forehead.”
  • Fable pulls Koy back into the boat. “I stood over Koy, my hands shaking. He was still losing a steady stream of blood, and I hoped he wasn’t breathing. I hoped he was dead. . . I kicked him hard, screaming, before I fell back onto the deck beside him, trying to catch my breath.”
  • Koy says to Fable, “If I ever see your face on this island again, I’ll tie you to the east reef! I’ll watch the flesh rot from your bones!”
  • Willa, the only girl on board the Marigold besides Fable, has a burn on her face. Fable says, “I’d seen wounds like that before—a long knife held over a fire until the blade glowed and pressed to someone’s face to teach a lesson.”
  • In the past, Willa was hurt by a man named Crane. The crew find Crane, seal him in a crate, and toss him overboard. “The man screamed once more as he was raised up and over the side of the ship. At the same moment, every finger slipped from the crate and they let it go. . .” This makes Fable remember the punishments on her father’s ship. “Once, I’d crept onto the deck in the dead of night and saw him cut the hand off a thief with the same knife he used to cut his meat at supper. . . I’d forgotten what the sound of a grown man screaming sounded like.”
  • Fable gets jumped in an alley. A man “leaned in closer, stumbling forward as he reached clumsily for my belt. Before he could right himself, I swiped up in one clean motion, catching the edge of his ear with the knife. . . I lifted the blade, setting it at the hollow of his throat and pressing down just enough to draw a single drop of blood. . . I wanted a reason to hurt him. I wanted an excuse to lean forward until the edge of the steel sunk into his skin.”
  • Willa threatens a barkeep by saying, “I’ll stake your body to that counter.”
  • Someone tries to kill Fable as she’s getting on the “Below, a man had hold of the last rung [of the ladder]. He laughed himself up out of the water and grabbed my boot, pulling me back down. I kicked until the heel of my foot caught his jaw and he groaned, but he was already climbing.” West comes to save her. “He reached around my waist, taking the knife from my belt. He swung his arm out wide, bringing the blade from the side, and sank it into the man’s ribs. He screamed, his hands trying to grab ahold of me before he slipped, but West kicked him in the chest, sending him backward.”
  • Willa threatens Fable by saying, “If you get [West] killed, I don’t know if I’ll be able to keep myself from cutting your throat.”
  • West reveals his past to Fable. “The first helmsman I ever crewed for used to beat me in the hull of the ship. . . I’ve killed sixteen men protecting myself, or my family, or my crew.”
  • At the end of the story, Fable is kidnapped. “I reared my foot back and brought my knee up in a snap, driving it between [her attacker’s] legs and he fell forward, a choking sound strangling in his throat. . . As another man came over me, I swung [a knife] out, grazing his forearm. He looked at the blood seeping beneath his sleeve before he reached down, taking my jacket into his hands and the third man wrenched the knife from my grip. When I looked up again, his fist was in the air, and it came down with a crack across my face. Blood filled my mouth and I tried to scream, but before I could, he hit me again.” Fable is knocked unconscious.

Drugs and Alcohol

  • Speck, a man on Jeval, is known as a drunk. Fable says, “If Speck weren’t drunk half the time, I’d pay him for a ride to the reef instead of Koy.”
  • Hamish, a crew member, and Saint, smoke pipes.
  • People frequently go to taverns where people are drinking “rye.” One time, Fable has three glasses and gets drunk.
  • In celebration, the crew drinks rye on the ship together.

Language

  • Bastard is used occasionally to refer to other people. In the book’s opening line, Fable says, “That bastard was leaving me again” when Koy, a sailor, tries to leave on his boat without her.
  • Hell, and ass are used rarely, such as when West says, “Get your ass back on the ship.”

Supernatural

  • Some of the legends of the sea include sea demons and dragons, though none appear in the story. However, Fable references them sometimes. For example, “Only a few days after Saint left me, an old man named Fret started a rumor on the docks that I’d been cursed by sea demons.”
  • Fable’s father told her a legend about dead sailors turning into birds. “My father had always told me that seabirds were the souls of lost traders. To turn them away or not give them a place to land or nest was bad luck.”

Spiritual Content

  • None

by Maddie Shooter

 

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