I love the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, so when I realised my brother owned this book, I thought it would be worth a read. I liked this novel, it was really short, and I got through it in about a day, but it was an enjoyable read none the less. The plot basically revolves around a young Jack Sparrow and his crew, who are searching for a sword, which they believe holds magical powers. Although I thought this was a tad predictable for a plot, it still made an enjoyable read. The part with Arabella, the first mate, who has an unexpected score to settle with our baddie, was good. I felt at this point in the story (about 2 thirds through) the story was running a little too smoothly, and it felt a bit cliched (happily ever after, anyone?). This part was written well, you could sense the tension, and hurt through the way Kidd wrote it. I also enjoyed the cliff hanger ending, as this would really entice children to pick up another edition. Our main character is, of course, Jack Sparrow. I loved him just as much in this novel as I did in the film. He was written so well that it was just like the Jack Sparow we are used to in the films. Some of my favourite quotes are: • "I'm a mite unclear on that point myself, mate. But let's burn that bridge when we get to it, shall we?" •"Well, hello there, mate," he said. "Captain Jack Sparrow. How very nice to meet you." He sounded and felt just like Johnny Depp portrays him in the movies, which I thought was a crucial part to get right. Jack's sarcasm, even at this young age, added humour to the story, and added to my enjoyment. The "bad guy" of this novel is Left Foot Louis (called this because, funnily enough, he has two left feet), and I thought he was a pretty good villain. He was quite frightening, threatening to kill our heroes to get the sword, but not too frightning to scare children. The thing I didn't like about him was how stereotypically evil he was, he was all show and very piratey, whereas normally I like my villain with some flaw, something eerie or chilling. But considering this is a children's novel, that would have been a pretty big ask. The rest of Jack's crew, consisted of; Arabella (first mate and a female!!), Fitzwilliam (posh,very proud boy), Jean (French) and Tumen (Jean's best friend and a bit of a mystery). I loved the diversity of these characters, and the way they made a great bunch of kids, but also grated with each other just a little bit. Another member of the crew is Constance, who is a cat. Jean is convinced that this is his sister, who was cursed into being a cat. There was a lot of witty dialogue concerning this cat, along with a lot of typical Jack sarcasm. As you can see, this is number 3 in the series, and I haven't read 1 or 2. I don't think this made much difference to the story, as I managed to follow the story without the need of any knowledge of the previous. Although I thought this book was ok, I am undecided as to whether I will read the other book from this series that I own, because I'm just not sure if I want to.
Its a fast read for upper elementary students because the vocabulary at the beginning is a little more advanced. I found this book in the basement of the school when I was looking for other things so I have not read the first two books. However the story is easy to pick up and any references to previous books have an footnote with it. There is not really any great lesson to the book but its a quick adventure read. From what I can gather, really the whole series could probably been put together in one book. There is a reference to a father getting drunk too often and some magic but other than that very suitable for students.
What do You think about The Pirate Chase (2006)?
I read this entire series when I was a preteen or young teenager. I LOVED each and every one of these and I waited impatiently for each new installment.Being an avid Disney fan and the POTC ride in Disney World is my favorite, and the POTC movies were among my most-watched movies, I could not contain myself when my dad found these for me in the book store.Although I have not read them in years, I remember them fondly and I strongly recommend them to anyone who likes pirates, tie-in novels, or just exciting adventuress. I think these would be a hit for reluctant readers as well (even though I did not classify as a reluctant reader, these grab you quickly and are pretty easy to get into).
—Jessica
I bought the first to volumes in this series a few years ago. We were going on vacation to a southern beach and I thought that the kids would enjoy a pirate story (especially since they liked PotC).I walked into the local library yesterday and found that they had a whole series of these (11). I checked out the ones that I had not yet read and will read my way through.These are not bad for the childrens' books that they are. So far the Jack Sparrow of the story does not jibe with the Jack Sparrow of the movie. Going to wait until the end of the series to see if they sync up more.
—Richard Gombert
