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Thunder From the Sea

The Adventures of Jack Hoyton and the H.M.S. Defender
by Jeff Weigel
48p. 978-0-39925-089-7.
COPY ISBN
Gr 3—6—Written in a comic-book format, this picture book tells the story of life aboard a British naval ship in 1805, the height of the Napoleonic War. Young Jack Hoyton was ship's boy on the frigate HMS Defender. While the story of the 12-year-old and his life aboard the midsize ship is fiction, sidebars provide an enormous amount of supporting information about ships, the British Navy, and the conflict with France, and define words and phrases having to do with ships and sailors, such as "press gangs," "powder monkeys," and "heaving on a reef." This hybrid will lure in young readers with exciting seafaring adventure (and conflict) and fascinating factual tidbits. It offers a well-rounded, if brief, picture of the period. The illustrations, maps, and diagrams are chock-full of details. A rich reading and visual experience.—Jody Kopple, Shady Hill School, Cambridge, MA
Young Jack Hoyton has joined the British Royal Navy and is assigned to the frigate HMS Defender. Aboard the ship, he's surrounded by intrigue. The sophisticated story revolves around the Defender's task blockading a French town during the Napoleonic Wars. The cartoon-panel illustrations are too tightly packed with dialogue bubbles, but sidebars on each page help explain life in the navy. Reading list. Bib.
Jack’s introduction to the HMS Defender helps readers quickly learn about the setting and get involved in the story. Nonfiction sidebars add depth to the narrative by providing an introduction to the Napoleonic wars, definitions of terms like oilskin and powder monkey, and other useful information. The endpapers also label the various parts of a ship. The realistic, ink-drawn illustrations and complex characters make for an engaging and exciting story. The plot twists will keep readers guessing until the last page.

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