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The Black Joke
The Black Joke is a rousing sea story in the tradition of the great classic pirate tales. The time is the 1930s. The loot is bootleg liquor, not pirate gold. The ship is the “Black Joke”, the speediest, nimblest craft on the Newfoundland coast – with Jonathon Spence owner and master. An unwelcome passenger enmeshes the boat and her crew (young Peter and Kye) in danger and involve the fiercely independent people of the island of Miquelon.
218 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1962
5 people are currently reading
160 people want to read
About the author
Farley Mowat
116 books646 followersFarley McGill Mowat was a conservationist and one of Canada's most widely-read authors.
Many of his most popular works have been memoirs of his childhood, his war service, and his work as a naturalist. His works have been translated into 52 languages and he has sold more than 14 million books.
Mowat studied biology at the University of Toronto. During a field trip to the Arctic, Mowat became outraged at the plight of the Ihalmiut, a Caribou Inuit band, which he attributed to misunderstanding by whites. His outrage led him to publish his first novel, People of the Deer (1952). This book made Mowat into a literary celebrity and was largely responsible for the shift in the Canadian government's Inuit policy: the government began shipping meat and dry goods to a people they previously denied existed.
The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society ship RV Farley Mowat was named in honour of him, and he frequently visited it to assist its mission.
Many of his most popular works have been memoirs of his childhood, his war service, and his work as a naturalist. His works have been translated into 52 languages and he has sold more than 14 million books.
Mowat studied biology at the University of Toronto. During a field trip to the Arctic, Mowat became outraged at the plight of the Ihalmiut, a Caribou Inuit band, which he attributed to misunderstanding by whites. His outrage led him to publish his first novel, People of the Deer (1952). This book made Mowat into a literary celebrity and was largely responsible for the shift in the Canadian government's Inuit policy: the government began shipping meat and dry goods to a people they previously denied existed.
The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society ship RV Farley Mowat was named in honour of him, and he frequently visited it to assist its mission.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
October 29, 2015
The tale of a fishing vessel, a Newfoundland family, and corruption, it kindled my interest in visiting Saint Pierre and Miquelon, two small islands off the coast of Canada.
August 26, 2019
This was a fun book, great dialogue and well-written. It makes me want to write a book just like it with the same sense of adventure, feeling for the landscape and camaraderie between friends and family. It's an innocent book - no terrible evil, just a couple of mean ne'er-do-wells, one of whom doesn't completely lack in character; and persevering good guys with entertaining accents and expressions.
August 19, 2015
I finished this book while standing in one of my favorite of all alpine lakes, and I was grinning for the last half of it.
[Four stars for a likable sea-faring tale that made me laugh and cheer and want to visit Newfoundland.]
[Four stars for a likable sea-faring tale that made me laugh and cheer and want to visit Newfoundland.]
December 30, 2020
3.5-ish stars
The Black Joke is heavy on nautical terminology, but there is enough emphasis on character and action to keep things moving along. It's nothing groundbreaking, but it's a comfortable historical seafaring adventure, with an immersive setting and a fun cast. The woodcut-like illustrations are gorgeous and add plenty to the atmosphere. I classify The Black Joke as more of a young adult book since young kids would probably find it too dry and technical in places. I did skim through some of these bits, but I ended up pretty immersed in the Newfoundland setting and in the heroes(Pierre is my favorite, though!). I would love to see Newfoundland myself someday, if it's anywhere near as picturesque as Farley Mowat paints it!
Not my very favorite of Mowat's stories, but a unique and nostalgic sea story for a rainy day!
The Black Joke is heavy on nautical terminology, but there is enough emphasis on character and action to keep things moving along. It's nothing groundbreaking, but it's a comfortable historical seafaring adventure, with an immersive setting and a fun cast. The woodcut-like illustrations are gorgeous and add plenty to the atmosphere. I classify The Black Joke as more of a young adult book since young kids would probably find it too dry and technical in places. I did skim through some of these bits, but I ended up pretty immersed in the Newfoundland setting and in the heroes(Pierre is my favorite, though!). I would love to see Newfoundland myself someday, if it's anywhere near as picturesque as Farley Mowat paints it!
Not my very favorite of Mowat's stories, but a unique and nostalgic sea story for a rainy day!
August 27, 2021
Pirate adventure in the 1930’s with contraband liquor as the prize catch instead of buried treasure. A rousing adventure set in Newfoundland filled with admirable heroic action as three boys take back the ship that was wrongfully shanghaied.
Mowat, known for his exciting tales of courage and action, does not disappoint with The Black Joke. Thorough detail and a fast plot once the introduction is read, readers who appreciate Treasure Island and The Coral Island will want to add The Black Joke to their list.
Mowat, known for his exciting tales of courage and action, does not disappoint with The Black Joke. Thorough detail and a fast plot once the introduction is read, readers who appreciate Treasure Island and The Coral Island will want to add The Black Joke to their list.
February 8, 2023
A pleasant adventure story, fictional, but based heavily on Mowat's experience of boating in the seas around Newfoundland. This story seems written for a young adult audience. The dialogue is contrived and clichéd and the resolution of the climax is corny. But I enjoyed it as an easy read and a bit of fun.
February 21, 2020
Had it on my shelf since I was very young, but read it a few years after university. Classic "boys book" with some fast paced scenes. Good for people who've enjoyed the Patrick O'Brian series. The east Canadian dialect that the characters use takes a bit of getting used to.
July 31, 2020
A great nautical adventure
December 26, 2020
The Black Joke is a story told in the classic "Boy's Adventures" style of books. Set in the 1930s it is about a fishing boat, The Black Joke and deals with adventures on the sea, and smugglers.
July 19, 2021
Fun lil book to read during a camping weekend. Exciting story and brilliant descriptions of the south coast of Newfoundland and St Pierre-Miquelon.
January 6, 2022
Need to read more Farley Mowat tales. Only the third one I have read. The other two being Never Cry Wolf and Grey Seas Under.
July 9, 2023
A fun little bedtime story for young children who imagine themselves pirates in Canadian waters.
January 17, 2021
Very enjoyable read.
June 21, 2014
Farley Mowat is a household name even to me, with only an inkling of a captain and whales. Most reviews have been comparative commentaries and expectations of his reputation. My feedback is independent. “The Black Joke” is my introduction to Farley. Without any penchant for marine tales, I loved it. I had acquired two books and upon his very recent passing, felt it was time to dip a toe into the waters of his work.
Central Canadians are far removed from Newfoundland. A seafaring life itself, to us, is surrealistic. Both offered culturally-enriching reasons to try this novel. I truly don’t know if environmental details are factual or fictional. The story is that a man fell in love with a hidden inlet in 1735 and sparked a community. Jonathan Spence was English, forced into service with the ‘Black Joke’. He was free to quit and keen to emigrate but settlers were unwelcome in eastern waters. However when his captain fled French squadrons by entering a crevice, he saw that the treacherous-looking south was untouched. Better still, ‘Hole Island’ was invisible from the outside and protected from storms. It would be isolated without couriering by boat but idyllic. We meet a Jonathan Spence descendent in 1935, the latest christener of a ‘Black Joke’ craft. The crucial protagonists are his son, Peter and Kye, a brother’s son whom he is raising.
When you’re through political orientation of the region, the pace becomes riveting. These were peculiar environs: some islands were French and all of them, traversed by liquor-bootlegging Americans. Hole Island’s greedy store merchant had a dire economic hold and ‘Black Joke’ was the last craft for him to seize. He dangles a job and frames Jonathan with ‘St. Pierre’ laws. Fourteen year-old Peter & Kye face long-distance peril without their parent.
Central Canadians are far removed from Newfoundland. A seafaring life itself, to us, is surrealistic. Both offered culturally-enriching reasons to try this novel. I truly don’t know if environmental details are factual or fictional. The story is that a man fell in love with a hidden inlet in 1735 and sparked a community. Jonathan Spence was English, forced into service with the ‘Black Joke’. He was free to quit and keen to emigrate but settlers were unwelcome in eastern waters. However when his captain fled French squadrons by entering a crevice, he saw that the treacherous-looking south was untouched. Better still, ‘Hole Island’ was invisible from the outside and protected from storms. It would be isolated without couriering by boat but idyllic. We meet a Jonathan Spence descendent in 1935, the latest christener of a ‘Black Joke’ craft. The crucial protagonists are his son, Peter and Kye, a brother’s son whom he is raising.
When you’re through political orientation of the region, the pace becomes riveting. These were peculiar environs: some islands were French and all of them, traversed by liquor-bootlegging Americans. Hole Island’s greedy store merchant had a dire economic hold and ‘Black Joke’ was the last craft for him to seize. He dangles a job and frames Jonathan with ‘St. Pierre’ laws. Fourteen year-old Peter & Kye face long-distance peril without their parent.
July 25, 2012
I think what I like best about "The Black Joke," is that it introduces the reader to a little known corner of North America: Newfoundland and St-Pierre and Miquelon. The other thing I like about it is that it proves that Farley Mowat can write just about anything he sets his mind to.
With an historical background that is not negligible (nor does it matter much to the actual plot), the book Mowat has set out to write is ostensibly for children. It follows a classic "Boys Own" formula of putting the action safely into the hands of a pair of enterprising youngsters who then have to deal as well as they can with the baddies. It is really an excellent story of the sea; readers of maritime literature will love the boat that lends its name to the book, and bewail its apparent fate near the end. I suppose children will also like this book, although it seems so old-fashioned in many ways. Nevertheless, if you can convince a 12-year-old to have a look at it, you may make another convert, both to Mowat and the art of reading. Just don't forget to read it yourself!
Mowat seems to have tried an experiment with this book and I am confounded a bit to know why he didn't try and take it a bit further with other volumes. He had already written one of his Arctic stories for children, "Lost in the Barrens," by the time he wrote this one, and he subsequently wrote a sequel to it. But "The Black Joke" has to stand alone and I suppose all one can say is that, based on his output since its 1962 publication, it has nothing to do with fearing the hard work of writing. Excellent and underrated book.
With an historical background that is not negligible (nor does it matter much to the actual plot), the book Mowat has set out to write is ostensibly for children. It follows a classic "Boys Own" formula of putting the action safely into the hands of a pair of enterprising youngsters who then have to deal as well as they can with the baddies. It is really an excellent story of the sea; readers of maritime literature will love the boat that lends its name to the book, and bewail its apparent fate near the end. I suppose children will also like this book, although it seems so old-fashioned in many ways. Nevertheless, if you can convince a 12-year-old to have a look at it, you may make another convert, both to Mowat and the art of reading. Just don't forget to read it yourself!
Mowat seems to have tried an experiment with this book and I am confounded a bit to know why he didn't try and take it a bit further with other volumes. He had already written one of his Arctic stories for children, "Lost in the Barrens," by the time he wrote this one, and he subsequently wrote a sequel to it. But "The Black Joke" has to stand alone and I suppose all one can say is that, based on his output since its 1962 publication, it has nothing to do with fearing the hard work of writing. Excellent and underrated book.
January 12, 2014
This book was a fun read. Not exactly what I was expecting with a more modern setting than old time pirates. If you're in the mood for a lighter hearted read this is a good pick. I did find the descriptions of most of the things the characters ate to be somewhat gross, but that has nothing to do with the plot.
February 3, 2015
Very very funny
October 20, 2017
A good all-around adventure story that I would recommend to readers of all ages.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews