Pirateology: The Pirate Hunter's Companion (Ologies) [Tapa dura]

Having a grandson that has been become enamored with pirates after viewing Hollywood's latest pirate blockbuster, PIRATEOLOGY seemed a logical birthday gift that exceeded my expectations. In all fairness, I did not read this book cover to cover, but did skim it fairly thoroughly before giving it my 11 year old grandson. He was elated!

To my fascination and amusement, while having him at my house for the weekend, he came running out of his bedroom every few minutes to describe to me, in graphic detail, some newfound lore that sparked his interest. Surprisingly, he even learned a great deal about such things as navigation, knot making and flags.

The book is laden with extraordinary pictures sure to catch the eye of every young pirate enthusiast. The front cover has an inset compass and the back cover, an inset faux ruby. Along the way, the pages contain envelopes of other hidden treasures. And, oh yeah, the story is pretty entertaining too. This is all presented on a heavy parchment type paper to lend even further pirate authenticity to this fine work.

I highly recommend this gift for young pirate enthusiasts. This is also a book parents will enjoy sharing with their kids.

Technically, this is a fictional work; however, I feel more comfortable lumping it in with the family of pre-teen picture books that cover the history of pirates during the late 17th and early 18th centuries, a period more commonly referred to as the Golden Age of Piracy. The author uses the story of a fictional pirate hunter chasing an equally fictional female pirate to provide a framework on which to hang tidbits of pirate history.

Like the Eyewitness, Discovery and Kingfisher family of youth picture books, this one is crowded with illustrations and brief passages of historical prose that provide a basic background on piracy suitable for children and those with limited attention spans. There the comparison stops, Pirateology goes well beyond by providing an interactive element with the numerous foldouts, mock notebooks, sealed envelopes with inserted maps and notes, and variety of other interactive items sure to keep the reader engaged.

The prose is not difficult, but does include enough vocabulary to stretch young minds. The artwork varies from a vintage sepia look to colorful original artwork. The overall presentation is excellent and looks reasonably durable. I would recommend that use of the book by those under 9 years of age be supervised to preserve the various ties and foldouts as well as to prevent misplacing the inserts and notes. Bottom line is that this is a fun introduction to the history of piracy during the Golden Age. For those beyond the level of such a children's book I might suggest the various Osprey books on buccaneers and pirates by Angus Konstam.
P-)

This book is said to be suitable for ages 8 (3rd Grade) and up. It's also extremely suited for grandparents. It combines an interesting story line, Captain Lubber is sailing the world searching for the vicious female pirate Arabella Drummond. The book purports to be his journal or log of the trip and what he learned along the way. It is printed on a heavy parchment paper, and filled with activities requiring that you look at a little book glued onto a page, or tie knots with the strings on another page.

It is a heavy well made book with a compass inset into the front cover - you have to have a compass to go looking for pirates - jewels set into the East and West position, and a large jewel in the back cover - pirates like jewels.

I hate to be overly picky, but there is one error in the book. At one point it says that pirates liked this kind of ship called a sloop. But the picture shows a topsail schooner instead. Oh well, maybe this was put in intentionally so you can demonstrate your knowledge to your grandkid. Then again, maybe he'll just think you're weird.