Lunch on a Pirate Ship stars a young boy called Jack who, unimpressed by what his mother is serving up for lunch, boards a pirate ship in search of something more tasty. Adventure abounds in this rollicking, rhyming adventure which had us turning the pages to see what Jack and his friends would eventually eat.
The Story: Jack doesn’t want to eat the baked beans and chips that Mum has cooked for his lunch so he boards a pirate ship. Lunch on board is not at all appetising so the pirates set sail to find more options. They are joined by a giant but when they discover a fabulous feast they discover that they’ve been tricked by a… (We don’t want to spoil the story!).
Jack’s adventure moves at a cracking pace thanks to Caryl’s wonderfully rollicking rhyming text which lends itself to adding a range of voices as you read the story out loud. The use of verbs such as ‘tumbled’, ‘dashed’ and ‘sprinted’ heighten the action and add to the adventure’s tension. We love the way that the story shows the power of a child’s imagination, Jack’s pirate companions are his own toys and my daughter pored through the illustrations to work out which toy became which character.
The food options that Jack comes across during the story are even less appetising than his lunch at home, would you want to eat rotting fish?, but his adventure does end with him recognising who is a good cook. There’s a wonderful camaraderie between the characters who help each other throughout the story and the gentle giant is particularly helpful in carrying the friends on his back!
Kristina’s fabulous illustrations are full of action and humour, we love the expressions on the characters’ faces when they are served less than appetising food! My daughter thinks it’s brilliant that Jack’s toys have been transformed into the characters who share his adventure, our favourite illustration shows Jack and his friends splashing across big waves to get to the giant’s cave.
Lunch on a Pirate Ship is a really fun, fast paced adventure that will keep you turning the pages to discover exactly what Jack and his friends ultimately end up eating, his dessert sounds particularly yummy (but only ‘if you eat your greens’)!
Age Range: 2+
Author: Caryl Hart / Illustrator: Kristina Stephenson
Thank you to Caryl for sending us a review copy of Lunch on a Pirate Ship. We’ll give the rotting fish a miss if that’s ok 😉
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