The Pirate Who's Afraid of Everything

November 15, 2014
Get ready for a breathlessly paced pirate adventure starring Shivers, who is terrified of just about everything. The fearful 11-year-old, the youngest in his family of pirates, begins the story with an overreaction to his beeping alarm clock. The liberal use of capitalized dialogue ("LOAD THE CANNONS! SWAB THE POOP DECK!") makes it clear that Shivers is easily freaked out. When a carrier pigeon delivers a plea for help from his parents, he goes to the police station for some help. Good thing spunky Margo, two years his junior and the police chief's daughter, is craving some true adventure. The unlikely duo sets sail and encounters colorful characters. Here the authors' language often impresses with its rich and humorous descriptions: "In a deep voice that sounded like pancake syrup dripping down a jagged rock, he bellowed, '...I am Captain Pokes-You-in-the-Eye!' " Man-eating sharks, a giant squid and a villain with a passion for mustard are all part of the over-the-top journey. Cartoonish illustrations in black and white by Holden further emphasize the crazy antics that rapidly move the characters on until their heroic climb of the Statue of Liberty and one final, colossal panic attack that brings the slapstick story to a tidy conclusion. While the premise is initially hard to accept given its pure ridiculousness, fans of Captain Underpants and the Wimpy Kid may find Shivers more hilarious than overwrought. (Fiction. 8-11)

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November 1, 2014

Gr 3-6-Shivers, 11, is a pirate who is afraid of everything, including the sea, so he spends his days in a parked ship next to a snack shop on a New Jersey beach. Meanwhile, his mother, Tilda the Tormentor; his father, Bob; and his brave brother, Brock, set sail on missions on the Eastern seas. When Shivers gets the news that they have been captured, he realizes that he alone can rescue them. The young pirate finds courage in his new best friend, Margo, and his first mate Albee (a fish). Together, they battle evil to save his family and find the elusive Treasure Torch ("the most famous booty this side of Neptune's nostrils"). This is a quick read with black-and-white cartoons appearing throughout the story. A witty novel with important messages about courage.-Gwen Collier, Buffalo and Erie County Public Library, NY

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