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3.77 AVERAGE
3.77 AVERAGE
A fun, very silly, quick read. I laughed out loud a few times and especially enjoyed the anachronisms. It reminded me of the Series of Unfortunate Events, but is not for kids.
Completely ridiculous and oh so much fun, this book had me laughing out loud. The second half is particularly good fun :)
Like reading Blackadder At Sea. Funny, hairbrained adventure with bunch of less than perfect pirates with lots of clever jokes, stupid jokes and obvious jokes but for a tiny book it was worth the read. Very quick and easy and put a smile on my face.
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Amusing but somewhat pedestrian. Read Douglas Adams instead.
I bought this for a stupidly cheap price in a discount bookshop last weekend. I can only assume a film tie-in cover is now available...
The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists was extremely good fun from beginning to end. Genuinely funny, with charming nods to the Doctor Who novelisations of Terrance Dicks, the whole story is very silly and glorious fun.
The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists was extremely good fun from beginning to end. Genuinely funny, with charming nods to the Doctor Who novelisations of Terrance Dicks, the whole story is very silly and glorious fun.
Reading this: 1 star
Listening to this as an audiobook: 2 stars
Reading this as a 12-year-old: 3 stars
Listening to this as an audiobook as a 12-year-old: 4 stars
I had to stop reading and check online twice to make sure this was *not* a children's book. I get the feeling the author wrote the Wikipedia page for it (really). A young reader old enough to understand some adult entendre and irony (middle school up through high school) would probably really enjoy this book. I will not review the plot, writing, or structure as I believe it does not matter as much for the more "for fun" reading that this age range of children engage in. I am treating this as a children's audiobook that I checked out by mistake. Supposedly, the author wrote it for an adult audience.
It got two stars as an audiobook because the man reading it has *clearly* done voice work, and I would bet radio work specifically. The voices were close to amazing. This would be a great book for a road trip with older kids, no sarcasm intended.
Listening to this as an audiobook: 2 stars
Reading this as a 12-year-old: 3 stars
Listening to this as an audiobook as a 12-year-old: 4 stars
I had to stop reading and check online twice to make sure this was *not* a children's book. I get the feeling the author wrote the Wikipedia page for it (really). A young reader old enough to understand some adult entendre and irony (middle school up through high school) would probably really enjoy this book. I will not review the plot, writing, or structure as I believe it does not matter as much for the more "for fun" reading that this age range of children engage in. I am treating this as a children's audiobook that I checked out by mistake. Supposedly, the author wrote it for an adult audience.
It got two stars as an audiobook because the man reading it has *clearly* done voice work, and I would bet radio work specifically. The voices were close to amazing. This would be a great book for a road trip with older kids, no sarcasm intended.
Hands down, the most hilarious thing I've read in the past year. (... Then again I haven't read that much in the past year BUT THAT'S NOT THE POINT.) Ahem, where was I? Oh yes--Gideon Defoe really has a way of making his pirates come alive in this book. Their unmistakable genius, clever wit, and genuine maturity when handling all the situations really makes your heart feel warm... Okay, yeah, I really don't know what I'm talking about right now. It's probably the book speaking. Er, I'll just stop now. Sorry. Uh, just read the book. Yeah. Read it. It's good.
Can someone tell me who this book is for? From the title, quotes, and size, I went in expecting a fun elementary-to-middle grade pirate adventure story. Hopefully something I could pass on to all the pirate-crazy kids and teens I know. But it kept getting weirdly uncomfortable whenever a woman appeared, or was even mentioned, and kind of ended up being a mess that's not totally appropriate for anyone. (That I know, at least.)
All of the above features, plus some accurate footnotes on history, science, and general piracy, had me thinking fun kids' book right up until Charles Darwin and the captain of the Beagle set out to duel over Darwin's wife. I'm not saying every book always has to contain a perfect gender balance and represent everyone fairly and equally, but there was way too much casual misogyny going on here for a kid's book. Every woman is a sex object, evil, and/or dead within a page of being introduced. Women pirates get a mention for existing and being fairly bad ass, in a footnote. It used to be common and highly popular for women to exist in books purely as punchlines and punching bags, but this book is too new and too advanced in literally every other way for it to not be weirdly obvious.
It's also more overtly sexual than I expected, since I didn't read the back cover. More's the pity, too, since if I had, I wouldn't have read it in the first place. The, for want of a better word, teaser is written in the form of a letter from The Pirate Captain and begins:
Dear Reader,
I am choosing to picture you as an attractive young woman, about nineteen, perhaps reading this 150 years from now, while in bed wearing just a daring negligee, tanned thighs stretched out on those silk sheets of yours.
So, yeah, maybe not a little kid's book? But at the same time, the writing style, jokes, plot, footnote facts, etc., are all way too banal and simplistic for an adult. My best guess at the target audience would be boys aged 9 to 14 who read below grade level and already hate women. I hope that's not what the author was aiming for, but dog knows it's a big market.
All of the above features, plus some accurate footnotes on history, science, and general piracy, had me thinking fun kids' book right up until Charles Darwin and the captain of the Beagle set out to duel over Darwin's wife
Spoiler
when she's conveniently killed by a pirate cannonball, much to the men's relief, so they toss her overboard and join the pirates for an adventureIt's also more overtly sexual than I expected, since I didn't read the back cover. More's the pity, too, since if I had, I wouldn't have read it in the first place. The, for want of a better word, teaser is written in the form of a letter from The Pirate Captain and begins:
Dear Reader,
I am choosing to picture you as an attractive young woman, about nineteen, perhaps reading this 150 years from now, while in bed wearing just a daring negligee, tanned thighs stretched out on those silk sheets of yours.
So, yeah, maybe not a little kid's book? But at the same time, the writing style, jokes, plot, footnote facts, etc., are all way too banal and simplistic for an adult. My best guess at the target audience would be boys aged 9 to 14 who read below grade level and already hate women. I hope that's not what the author was aiming for, but dog knows it's a big market.
Checked this out at the library on a whim. Now it’s one of my favorite books ever! Hilarious and insightful. Highly recommend if you’re looking for a light quick read.