ON THE GO WITH PIRATE PETE AND PIRATE JOE

Here’s a silly pirate story for the brand new reader, a hilarious marriage of words and illustrations meant to entertain and build reading confidence. Though not meant to be a phonetic reader, there’s lots of repetition and rhyme to help the emergent reader feel confident while reading a tale that amuses and keeps those pesky pages turning. Pirate Pete and Pirate Joe and their pets, Dudley and Studley, live the adventurous life. Do they plunder and pillage? NO. They like to play the hornpipe, limbo, collect seashells, and count coins. They want to eat, but they do not want to steal food; they want a ship, but they do not like the sea. So they spend their coins on dinner and buy a used mini-van instead. Eventually, they purchase a parrot who can say just one phrase, “Yo ho.” Smith’s cartoonish illustrations are a critical part of the story, providing visual clues and entertaining the reader. Speech bubbles and labels pointing out “cook, treasure chest, and pirate flag” all add to the fun. Yo ho! Away we go! Let’s hope for many more adventures from these pirates. (Easy reader. 5-8)