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x_librarian's review
3.0
The book was ok, but the narrator, Nancy, was too timid without enough internal dialogue too make her more interesting. To some extent I would compare her to Bella from the Twilight series. She's not a bad person, she's just not interesting enough to carry a book on her own. Unlike Twilight, Pirates! didn't give enough excitement to ever get me wanting more. For girls looking for an adventure book on the high seas, I'd recommend skipping this in favor of the Jacky Faber series by L. A. Meyer.
jenny_hedberg's review
3.0
När jag började läsa den här boken trodde jag att den skulle vara jättetråkig och otroligt dålig. Tyvärr gjorde inte början något försök till att ändra mina fördomar. Men jag måste säga att den här boken överträffade mina förväntningar ganska ordentligt. Boken liknar Lene Kaaberbols böcker om Dina i sättet, även om de utspelar sig i olika världar och Lenes böcker är fantasy-böcker.
Rees skriver i boken ganska spretigt som jag antar ska spegla Nancys tankar. Man märker snabbt hur Nancys sätt att tänka börjar förändras i takt med att språket i boken ändras.
Jag gillar den här boken även om berättelsen i boken ganska ofta känns avlägsen och orealistisk. Allting är nästan lite för bra och för snällt.
Det är intressant hur olika böckerna Häxa och Pirater! är. Häxa är definitivt mer avancerad och jag kunde verkligen känna att Rees hade talang i Häxa. Det kommer inte riktigt fram i Pirater!
Rees skriver i boken ganska spretigt som jag antar ska spegla Nancys tankar. Man märker snabbt hur Nancys sätt att tänka börjar förändras i takt med att språket i boken ändras.
Jag gillar den här boken även om berättelsen i boken ganska ofta känns avlägsen och orealistisk. Allting är nästan lite för bra och för snällt.
Det är intressant hur olika böckerna Häxa och Pirater! är. Häxa är definitivt mer avancerad och jag kunde verkligen känna att Rees hade talang i Häxa. Det kommer inte riktigt fram i Pirater!
linaleigh's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
breakfastgrey's review
1.0
I'm particularly glad to be through with this one. Troubling stereotypes and tropes flood the first half of the book with clumsy plotting and cheap narrative tricks designed to create stakes that never actually materialize. The second half is mildly better, but still struggles to leave a positive impression.
kaydawn's review
3.0
It’s called pirates then takes almost half the book to be about pirates. I get setting up a background but nothing in the synopsis it title truly gives the notion that it would be that much setup.
missbookiverse's review against another edition
2.0
[2,5 Sterne]
Auch mein zweites Buch von Celia Rees war eher ein Schuss in den Ofen. Ich hatte wirklich Lust auf ein spannendes Piratenabenteuer, aber es dauert an die 150 Seiten bis Piraten überhaupt mal auftauchen. Danach kriegt man zwar noch eine Menge von ihnen geboten, aber richtig gepackt hat mich die Geschichte nie. Das lag vor allem am Schreibstil der Autorin. Umgebung und Atmosphäre beschreibt sie zwar wirklich lebendig, aber was das Erzählen einer Geschichte angeht, trifft sie überhaupt nicht meinen Geschmack. Ich hatte leider das Gefühl, dass die Handlung nie richtig in Fahrt kommt. Viele Stellen werden einfach nur in kurzen Absätzen zusammengefasst (z.B. die Zeit, die die Figuren gestrandet auf einer einsamen Insel verbringen) und die restlichen Szenen lässt der Erzählstil einfach nur vorbeiplätschern.
Nervig fand ich außerdem die ständigen Andeutungen auf eine negative Zukunft a la „Wenn wir gewusst hätten, worauf wir uns da einließen, wären wir auf der Stelle umgekehrt“. Zum einen kamen sie mir zu oft vor,.
Die deutsche Hardcover Ausgabe ist übrigens wirklich schön aufgemacht. Auf jeder Seite findet man eine Piratenflagge (so wie sie im Buch beschrieben wird) und hier und da gibt es rote Farbakzente.
Auch mein zweites Buch von Celia Rees war eher ein Schuss in den Ofen. Ich hatte wirklich Lust auf ein spannendes Piratenabenteuer, aber es dauert an die 150 Seiten bis Piraten überhaupt mal auftauchen. Danach kriegt man zwar noch eine Menge von ihnen geboten, aber richtig gepackt hat mich die Geschichte nie. Das lag vor allem am Schreibstil der Autorin. Umgebung und Atmosphäre beschreibt sie zwar wirklich lebendig, aber was das Erzählen einer Geschichte angeht, trifft sie überhaupt nicht meinen Geschmack. Ich hatte leider das Gefühl, dass die Handlung nie richtig in Fahrt kommt. Viele Stellen werden einfach nur in kurzen Absätzen zusammengefasst (z.B. die Zeit, die die Figuren gestrandet auf einer einsamen Insel verbringen) und die restlichen Szenen lässt der Erzählstil einfach nur vorbeiplätschern.
Nervig fand ich außerdem die ständigen Andeutungen auf eine negative Zukunft a la „Wenn wir gewusst hätten, worauf wir uns da einließen, wären wir auf der Stelle umgekehrt“. Zum einen kamen sie mir zu oft vor,
Spoiler
zum anderen fand ich sie unangebracht, weil am Ende ja doch alles gut ausgeht und niemand Wichtiges stirbtDie deutsche Hardcover Ausgabe ist übrigens wirklich schön aufgemacht. Auf jeder Seite findet man eine Piratenflagge (so wie sie im Buch beschrieben wird) und hier und da gibt es rote Farbakzente.
verydazedragon's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
The main characters, love interest was incredibly one-dimensional, and disappointed me in nearly every scene that he was in. The relationship between Minerva and Nancy was unfounded, at first, but I like the way that they were two distinct personalities. This is the first pirate book that I have ever read that has addressed the issue of slavery. Most pirate books don’t show that side of history, or if they do show it they do not focus on it. I also liked the way the book showed how horribly sailors were treated by “high Society “. My only issues with the book was of course, the romance angle, and the fact that Nancy was a little underwhelming as a main character. It just seemed like without Minerva she was incapable. Otherwise, this was a lovely book to read. Very reminiscent of the sort of adventure books I loved to read as a child.
matt_viner's review
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
annepw's review
3.0
In my experience, the vast majority of YA historical fiction heroines are defined by their rejection by the prevailing norms of femininity. They're spunky tomboys all. Solidly half have learned to fence during their supposed dancing lessons. There's nothing wrong with this on a case-by-case basis but I do wish there was more room in the genre for heroines who love dresses and dancing as well as self-realization. "Pirates!" is not even a particularly egregious example, but considering that on the whole it's a good YA novel, it's disappointing when it falls back on this old trope.
The novel's treatment of race is more troubling. While the book is refreshingly straightforward (if unsubtle) about rape of enslaved women, Rees also makes the bizarre decision to have disgusting, racist characters refer derisively to slaves as "blacks," essentially using the word anywhere that the n-word would have obviously been used instead. This selective censorship is just weird. What age group are we aiming for, that is mature enough to witness the graphic rape of a main character but not mature enough to handle that rapist's racial epithets?
The white people in Nancy's world seem to be split down the middle between virulent, evil racists and good white people who, despite being raised in a racist environment, are infallibly anti-racist. How did Nancy, whose family owns slaves, come to be so enlightened? Throughout the book, one's racism is virtually a litmus test of how good a certain character is; all the racists are nasty or cruel and all the anti-racists are broad-minded humanists.
I'm also extremely skeptical of any book dealing with slavery that employs some variation on "we ceased to be slave and master and became friends," always said by the master in the relationship. I'm sure that's easy for the master to say; I doubt the slave feels the same. The same with the claim, made by a slave, that a certain white man was a "good master." It's an oxymoron.
Obviously Rees meant well, in dealing with the complexity of slavery. I appreciate that the characters who were born in Africa were not just generically "African" but had tribes and backstories, unlike many books that treat Africa as a monolith. I also appreciated the combination of slavery and piracy narratives, which I've never seen before. It added a new dimension to both sides.
"Pirates!" is a good deal better than a lot of YA. The writing is generally good, somewhat poetic, and compared to most of the genre it's practically Shakespeare. It's also clearly well-researched. The plot is packed with tropes and stereotypical characters, but that's almost par for the course with a pirate novel (although after a certain number of ludicrous coincidences they begin to become distracting). Nancy's romance with William veers into the sickeningly cheesy category, and much of the piratical adventuring seems more like padding for length than anything else, which becomes especially disappointing when the climax of the book is only about two pages long. And jeez that title is stupid.
It reads like the work of a talented amateur who might go on to write great things, which might be true as I've not read any of Rees's other work. Clearly it's not a perfect book, but it's good enough to be worth criticizing.
The novel's treatment of race is more troubling. While the book is refreshingly straightforward (if unsubtle) about rape of enslaved women, Rees also makes the bizarre decision to have disgusting, racist characters refer derisively to slaves as "blacks," essentially using the word anywhere that the n-word would have obviously been used instead. This selective censorship is just weird. What age group are we aiming for, that is mature enough to witness the graphic rape of a main character but not mature enough to handle that rapist's racial epithets?
The white people in Nancy's world seem to be split down the middle between virulent, evil racists and good white people who, despite being raised in a racist environment, are infallibly anti-racist. How did Nancy, whose family owns slaves, come to be so enlightened? Throughout the book, one's racism is virtually a litmus test of how good a certain character is; all the racists are nasty or cruel and all the anti-racists are broad-minded humanists.
I'm also extremely skeptical of any book dealing with slavery that employs some variation on "we ceased to be slave and master and became friends," always said by the master in the relationship. I'm sure that's easy for the master to say; I doubt the slave feels the same. The same with the claim, made by a slave, that a certain white man was a "good master." It's an oxymoron.
Obviously Rees meant well, in dealing with the complexity of slavery. I appreciate that the characters who were born in Africa were not just generically "African" but had tribes and backstories, unlike many books that treat Africa as a monolith. I also appreciated the combination of slavery and piracy narratives, which I've never seen before. It added a new dimension to both sides.
"Pirates!" is a good deal better than a lot of YA. The writing is generally good, somewhat poetic, and compared to most of the genre it's practically Shakespeare. It's also clearly well-researched. The plot is packed with tropes and stereotypical characters, but that's almost par for the course with a pirate novel (although after a certain number of ludicrous coincidences they begin to become distracting). Nancy's romance with William veers into the sickeningly cheesy category, and much of the piratical adventuring seems more like padding for length than anything else, which becomes especially disappointing when the climax of the book is only about two pages long. And jeez that title is stupid.
It reads like the work of a talented amateur who might go on to write great things, which might be true as I've not read any of Rees's other work. Clearly it's not a perfect book, but it's good enough to be worth criticizing.
sarahreffstrup's review against another edition
3.0
Hmm.
Den her bog er skrevet til teenagere, og jeg læste den nok 80 gange fra jeg begyndte at læse bøger som 10-11 årig og til jeg blev 16, og dette er første gang jeg læser den i over 10 år. Og det var en spøjs oplevelse.
Min smag har ændret sig meget, og der var så mange ting jeg savnede; bedre karakterskildringer, konsekvenser af deres handlinger, mere kød på historien (pun inteded?) eller rettere, mere kød på de dele af historien, hvor der er action.
Af nostalgiske grunde var det stadig mega hyggeligt at læse den igen, og jeg bliver aldrig, ALDRIG træt af historier om kvindelige pirater, men historien forekom mig mere overfladisk end jeg huskede. Det er sjovt at tænke på, at det her var mit jam da jeg var 12, og hvordan jeg har ændret mig som læser. Men man lærer meget om sig selv og ens egen stil af at læse bøger man tidligere har kunne lide, så det har bestemt ikke været spildt tid :)
Den her bog er skrevet til teenagere, og jeg læste den nok 80 gange fra jeg begyndte at læse bøger som 10-11 årig og til jeg blev 16, og dette er første gang jeg læser den i over 10 år. Og det var en spøjs oplevelse.
Min smag har ændret sig meget, og der var så mange ting jeg savnede; bedre karakterskildringer, konsekvenser af deres handlinger, mere kød på historien (pun inteded?) eller rettere, mere kød på de dele af historien, hvor der er action.
Af nostalgiske grunde var det stadig mega hyggeligt at læse den igen, og jeg bliver aldrig, ALDRIG træt af historier om kvindelige pirater, men historien forekom mig mere overfladisk end jeg huskede. Det er sjovt at tænke på, at det her var mit jam da jeg var 12, og hvordan jeg har ændret mig som læser. Men man lærer meget om sig selv og ens egen stil af at læse bøger man tidligere har kunne lide, så det har bestemt ikke været spildt tid :)