How I Became a Pirate

How I Became a Pirate
by Melinda Long

Synopsis:

A day at the beach becomes the adventure of a life time for young Jeremy Jacob once he signs on as the newest crew mate of Captain Braid Beard the pirate. In need of a talented digger to help bury their booty, the crew "convinces" Jeremy to come join their group as long as he's back for soccer practice the next day. But while Jeremy likes the idea of no one telling him to eat his vegetables or brush his teeth, he soon misses the comforts of home. So he devises a plan to get back home...but will he make it back in time for soccer practice?!

Review:

Melinda Long’s How I Became a Pirate is filled with high adventure told through the wild imagination of the main character Jeremy Jacob. The engaging story telling of Long is complimented perfectly by the vibrant illustrations of David Shannon. The pictures of the book bring to life adventure on the high seas for young Jeremy.

Through the use of descriptive language and beautifully detailed illustrations, How I Became a Pirate allows readers to step into the world of pirates, if only while reading the book. It was a fun read that drew striking similarities to Where The Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak. Jeremy, like Max from Wild Things, offers young readers a character to relate to their own yearnings for adventure, not to mention freedom from everyday chores and responsibilities. But what I really liked, was how Jeremy didn't loose his sense of family during his pirating adventure.

Once he realized that the pirate "family" wasn't quite the same as his real one, he longed to return home for bedtime tucking and comfort during bad times. The feelings of Jeremy in the story are another aspect young readers can relate to, making this an appropriate story for an elementary classroom with many different applications.

Activity:

As stated, How I became A Pirate holds a lot similarities to Where The Wild Things Are. To link the two books together I would conduct a Grand Conversation with students, using the two stories. The focus questions for the discussion would be:

• How do the characters in How I became A Pirate and Where The Wild Things Are resemble one another? In what ways are they different?
• Do you ever wish you could get away like Max and Jeremy? Where would you go? What about home would you miss?

I would record student responses during the Grand Conversation either using an audio/video recorder and notes. After it was finished I would have students do a follow-up activity. Students would be asked to create a short story about getting away from home/family and going to an exotic land. Casting themselves as the central character, students could draw from the two stories and their experiences during the Grand Conversation to create the piece. Students would be given the option to tell their stories through writing or by creating illustrations.