The Pirate Hunter

Zacks takes the thrilling historical figure of Captain Kidd and makes his story even more dazzling by presenting the realities of buccaneer life, warts and all. Michael Prichard's expert delivery enhances these details, as does his spirited delivery of a pirate ditty. It's interesting to learn that Kidd was not the cutthroat he is often portrayed to be but rather a kind of bounty hunter. Zacks has a knack for presenting information that is fascinating--whether or not you're interested in pirate lore. Prichard maintains a sense of irony as the story moves to its conclusion. This is a perfect choice for anyone who enjoys armchair adventure. S.G.B. (c) AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine

Starred review from May 6, 2002
Entertaining, richly detailed and authoritatively narrated, Zacks's account of the life of legendary seaman William Kidd delivers a first-rate story. Though Kidd, better known as Captain Kidd, was inextricably bound with piracy and has popularly gone down as a marauding buccaneer himself, Zacks (An Underground Education) argues that he was actually a mercenary backed by the English government and several New World investors to track down pirates and reclaim their stolen wares. The book is cogent and replete with supporting evidence without the heavy-handed feel of some scholarly work. What really sets the book apart is Zacks's gift as researcher and storyteller. He highlights the role of an undeniable pirate, Robert Culliford, in Kidd's tale and pits the two men against each other from the outset, constructing his book as an intriguing duel. Aside from the tightly constructed plot, Zacks also wonderfully evokes the social and political life of the 17th century at land and at sea, and he takes turns at debunking and validating pirate folklore: while it appears the dead giveaway of a skull and crossbones made it a rare flag choice, Zacks contends that pirates did often wear extravagant clothing and were as "drunk, cursing, hungry, horny... and violent" as myth would have them. Augmented by such details and driven by a conflict between Kidd and Culliford that keeps the pages flying, Zacks's book is a treasure, indeed.