Author: L.A. Meyer
Publisher: Harcourt Paperbacks
Paperback: 320 pages
Audiobook: narrated by Katherine Kellgren
Rating: 4 of 5 stars
From Goodreads:
Reduced to begging and thievery in the streets of London, a thirteen-year-old orphan disguises herself as a boy and connives her way onto a British warship set for high sea adventure in search of pirates.
My thoughts:
Mary "Jacky" Faber, the young 18th-century narrator, has two endearing qualities. First, she is a survivor. Resiliency in a main character is very important. After all, who wants to start rooting for a character in a series if they are prone to death or cause irritation to the reader? Jacky watches the horrid Mr. Muck take away her baby sister and parents, victims of the plague, and on his way out tells her he'll be back to collect her body in a week. She survives the plague, survives on the streets with a gang of thieves, and not only survives as a ship boy in the Royal Navy, but fools all her mates by figuring out how to use the bathroom and bathe without a whole ship of men figuring out that she's a girl.
Her second endearing quality is that she's a cheeky monkey. She's innocent but naughty. She can't help it. She tries, but falls short. I know that whenever things start going good for her, she's going to mess up. That's what makes this series so fun!
2 comments:
Jacky sounds like my kind of character. Your description definitely helped bring her into focus for me. I think I would really enjoy this book. It reminds me a little of The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi, but Jacky sound twice as interesting.
I loved this book! Jacky is a wonderful character. I am currently reading the second book in the series called The Curse of the Blue Tattoo.
Have a great weekend!
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