And pirate books! I love pirates, so when I was reminded that International Talk Like a Pirate Day is this Wednesday, I knew I had to do a story time in preparation. What kind of story time lady would I be if I didn’t keep the children informed of important cultural events?! So I dressed up like a pirate, grabbed the plastic treasure chest from the back room, piled it full of literary treasure and had a pirate-themed story time!
How I Became a Pirate by Melinda Long; illustrated by David Shannon
ISBN: 9780152018481
Do you have a wanna-be pirate in your household? They will LOVE this book. And, huzzah , it shows that pirate life isn’t all fun and games!
Most little boys and girls do dream of being a pirate every now a then, and the little boy in this book, Jeremy Jacobs, is no different. One day while he’s out with his family at the beach, building a sandcastle, a pirate ship lands. The captain, Braid Beard, admires his moat-digging skills and take Jeremy to be on his crew. At first, pirate life is awesome, hands down. There are no manners and no vegetables at dinner…but there also isn’t a bed time story. And no one is there to comfort Jeremy when a big storm rolls in and nearly sinks the ship. Although being a pirate is fun, Jeremy learns that it’s not something he wants to do for life. He’s more of a soccer guy, anyways.
This is a funny book, and one that you can use to encourage audience participation. The crew often echoes what the pirate captain says, so you can ask any kids reading along with you to act like the crew. The pictures are hilarious, and I love the grossness of the pirates. They look rough and tumble but a little lovable all the same, and instead of seeming menacing, they seem jovial and a little goofy. Overall, awesome pirate book that holds kids’ attentions very well.
Do Pirates Take Baths? by Kathy Tucker; illustrated by Nadine Westcott
ISBN: 978-0613925631
This is a book of short poems about what pirates do (or don’t do). The poems are cute, short and funny, and you don’t have to read them all at the same time, which was great for me since I didn’t exactly want to read a book of poems at story time. However, I think if I had read the whole book to my story time kids, they still would have enjoyed the whole thing. I personally liked the book; it was a whimsical take on pirates and the illustrations were neat. The colors could have been bolder, but the style was still nice. During story time, I flipped through the book and read a few of the poems to the kids. The parents seemed to like the one at the end where the pirates go to sleep, but the kids liked the one that talked about the pet of all pirates, the parrot.
Edward and the Pirates by David McPhail
ISBN: 978-0316563444
Edward is a little boy with a fantastic imagination. When he reads a book, he becomes a part of the story, which is fine when he’s reading about Joan of Arc and Robin Hood, but it becomes a bit of a problem when pirates are involved. The pirates want Edward’s book because they’re convinced it will show them where they buried their treasure, but Edward can’t let them have it: it’s a library book. I loved the story in this book, but I am not a huge fan of the illustrations. They are dark and blurry, and I don’t think they made the greatest impact with the kids during story time. However, I think the storyline is wonderful. Every kid should be encouraged to have an imagination like Edward!
During the story time, we did a pirate dance. It was supposed to be a game of Freeze Dance, but the fickle Internet decided we weren’t going to freeze dance. Instead, I ended up calling out pirate dance moves; we swam, rowed, buried treasure, swabbed decks, hid from the captain, you know, your normal pirate dances. For a craft, we made eye patches and colored parrots for our shoulders. Oh, yes, we were super awesome pirates!
Late again! Whoops! It’s super busy at the library. :)
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