Finnigan & the Pirates

by Sherryl Jordan

A humorous novella about a pirate boy who really would rather be a dancer, written with Sherryl Jordan’s characteristic flair for language and stunningly illustrated in full colour by the author herself.

80 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Award-winning New Zealand author Sherryl Rose Jordan (née Brogden) (1949-2023) began her writing career with picture books, but soon moved on to novels for older readers. Her breakthrough came with Rocco, published in the United States as A Time of Darkness, and since that time she has gone on to pen many more titles for young adult and juvenile readers that have been published both in her native New Zealand and throughout the world.

The recipient of a 1993 fellowship to the prestigious writing program at the University of Iowa, Jordan used her time in the United States to speak widely at schools and conferences about her books, which blend fantasy with bits of science fiction and romantic realism. "All my young adult novels have been gifts," she noted in the St. James Guide to Children's Writers. "I don't think them up. They hit me over the head when I least expect them; overwhelm me with impressions, sights, and sounds of their new worlds; enchant me with their characters; and dare me to write them."

Reviews

[Bookrapt (Est. 1983) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written and illustrated by Tauranga author Sherryl Jordan, this story is about a pirate boy who would prefer to be a dancer. Finnigan was sent to live with his fierce aunt, Wildbloode the Wicked, after his mother died. As well as being wicked, his aunt is captain of the pirate ship and expects Finnigan to follow in her footsteps. Finnigan, however, dreams of attending ballet school. One day they are shipwrecked and end up being put into a pot by a tribe of cannibals. Can Finnigan’s dancing save them now? At the end of the book is a detailed cross-sectional diagram of a Galleon which adds authenticity to the tale. This is a humorous and wonderfully told story appropriate for 7 to 10 year olds.

Reviewed by Debbie McCauley for Bookrapt (8 June 2011).

[Henry Grant · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cool must read good for 7-8 year olds