Review: Pirate Stew for me and you!
This post contains gifted items. All views are our own.
Ahoy there, me hearties! It’s Talk Like a Pirate Day today, and we have the perfect book for it to share with you. Pirate Stew, the swashbuckling adventure by master storyteller Neil and award-winning illustrator Chris Riddell – a picture book dream team! – was published in paperback by Bloomsbury earlier this month and we were sent a copy to review.
The story is told from the point of view of two siblings. When mum and dad go out for the night, the children are slightly alarmed to be left in the care of a very unusual babysitter – Long John McRon, ship’s cook and pirate. And no sooner are the parents out of sight, than the rest of Long John’s pirate crew turn up. And for dinner they’re making pirate stew. Of course.
It starts off fairly harmless with some onions and carrots, but soon the unusual ingredients start to appear, and they just keep on coming. Cannonballs, gold doubloons, some locks from Davy Jones’s lockers…you name it. One of our favourite ingredients was the bottle of mermaid’s tears. All cooked in a treasure chest and stirred with a pirate sword. But although the stew smells scrumptious, you’d better be wary of eating any of you might turn in to a pirate yourself!
Speaking of turning in to a pirate, a massive thank you to my wee pirate who – despite still recovering from tonsillitis and feeling a little poorly – agreed to dress up and pose for some photos because he loved the book so much. There was no pressure on my part, he absolutely did not have to do this, but he really wanted to. Bless him.
Neil Gaiman’s rollicking rhyming story takes you on a marvellously entertaining journey of riotous pirates, flying houses, donut feasts, and of course, not to forget, the magical stew. All accompanied by Chris Riddell’s wonderfully detailed illustrations. This book had my six year old laughing out loud, and is a must for any young pirate fans and those young at heart. You’ll love the twist at the end too. And who better to read the book to you than the author himself! Just hit play on the video below, shared from Bloomsbury’s YouTube channel, to watch…
Pirate Stew is available to buy from Amazon (affiliate link), or even better you can order it from your nearest independent bookseller. And to extend the pirate fun, Bloomsbury have also put together a Pirate Stew activity pack, which includes a number of puzzles, drawing activities, and a chart to find your own pirate name. You can download a free copy of the activity pack from the Bloomsbury website – a perfect way to celebrate Talk Like a Pirate Day!
Disclosure: We were gifted a copy of the book in return for an honest review. All views are our own. If you buy anything via the affiliate link in this post, I will receive a small commission – at no extra cost to you – which helps to keep this blog running. Thank you.
