Publisher Description

Tumbling, clawing, screeching, they teemed down the hillside, spilling over me like a filthy black blanket … Tam is a cabin boy aboard the pirate ship Terrified Jane. He lives in fear of the dreaded pirate Captain Ezekiel Tombs and his pet scorpion Virus. Tombs sets Tam the awful task of spying on his shipmates and assures him of a dreadful fate if he doesn't obey his commands. Meanwhile, the crew demand that Tam take their side and mutiny against the captain. Tam has a terrible choice to make – should he obey Captain Tombs' orders, or should he be loyal to the crew and risk the captain's wrath?

Author Biography

Stu Duval is a professional story-teller and artist who travels New Zealand performing his unique tales, accompanied by live painting, all of which are highly acclaimed by audiences young and old. He has had six previous books published for young people.

Feature

What Nitty Gritty brings to your classroom: High interest, rich texts with themes relevant and of interest to young adolescents Stimulating and engaging discussion prompts, and activities focusing on key critical literacy areas including author purpose, power of language, characterisation, bias, point of view and more. Cutting-edge design and text layout to engage young adult readers Text written by a range of local and international authors including Diana Noonan, Jillian Sullivan, William Taylor, Stu Duval, Tina Shaw, John Lockyer, Glynne MacLean and more a range of genres: mystery, adventure, historical fiction, science fiction, fantasy and contemporary fiction Different social and cultural perspectives, strong themes and messages to spark discussion. and encourage the questioning, challenging and deconstructing of texts Gatefold back covers with critical literacy discussion prompts for literature circles.

Details