Rent Lives of the Pirates: Swashbucklers, Scoundrels (Neighbors Beware!)

Synopsis

If you think pirates are just colorful, swashbuckling fantasy characters--like Melinda Long's Captain Braid Beard or Johnny Depp's Jack Sparrow--think again! The real pirates of history were certainly swashbuckling, but also much more. some were true criminals, some were simply misunderstood, and all contributed to the image of pirates that remains fascinating to us to this day. What was the real story behind Blackbeard, Sir Francis Drake, Madame Cheng, and other men and women of the high seas? In the lively, conversational style she established in the popular Lives of series, Kathleen Krull tells true stories, debunks myths, and acknowledges some lingering mysteries. Kathryn Hewitt's distinctive caricatures capture all the color and personality of this pirate crew.

Accompanied by 48 illustrations in glorious full color, nineteen profiles tell the stories of Alvida, the Barbarossa Brothers, Lady Mary Killigrew, Grace O'Malley, Sir Francis Drake, Sir Henry Morgan, Captian William Kidd, Captain William Dampier, Blackbeard, Black Bart Roberts, Mary Read and Anne Bonny, Stede Bonnet, Black Sam Bellamy, Conajee Angria and sons, Rachel Wall, Madame Cheng, Jean Lafitte, Benito de Soto, and the legendary Long John Silver. Also includes an introduction by the author and a list of further reading suggestions.

After a ten-year hiatus, Lives of the Pirates marks the return of Krull and Hewitt's very popular Lives of series of collective biographies (known by kids and teachers nationwide as the "Big Head books"). Look for several more new titles and a reinvigoration of the backlist books in the seasons to come.

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