New Customer Review - Fish

Fish
by Gregory Mone [j Mone]

Did you know there are both good and bad pirates? In Fish by Gregory Mone, when Fish (whose real name is Maurice) is forced to join the crew of The Scurvy Mistress, he doesn't know one kind of pirate from the other. He also doesn't care. His sole mission is to retrieve the bag of gold coins which Nate had stolen from him. Unfortunately, Fish gets caught. In the interrogation that follows, Fish learns that some pirates are raiders while others are seekers. The "raiding" pirates believe that attacking every ship in the water is the swiftest way to fortune. (These are the bad pirates.) In contrast, "seeking" pirates prefer to undertake challenging quests. The Scurvy Mistress is manned by both types, a division which eventually leads to a mutiny. Thus begins an adventure where Fish not only has to decide which pirates to defend, he also faces other choices. For example, should he interfere with Cobb's orders, when a fellow pirate is sentenced to walk the plank for betraying the crew? Or should he fight when challenged to a duel, despite his abhorrence of violence? Although Mone isn't blatant about themes, he does interweave into Fish the values of family, friendship, pacifism (which might seem like an oxymoron in a pirate book) and being true to self. Their subtle inclusion is part of what makes Fish stand out from typical adventure stories. Time to talk treasure! Every good pirate story must include it. Fish is no exception. Initially, all that anyone on board knows is that head pirate Cobb seeks a treasure that will render the ship's treasure chest of coins "as worthless as pebbles and stones". Cobb also promises that every member of the crew will receive a share large enough to buy a herd of horses. That's enough to make Fish give up on the idea of retrieving that bag of coins his uncle gave him. It's also enough to cause mutiny. What better adventure could one ask for than a soaking-good seafaring pirate story about a treasure hunt? There's even a dash of romance and humor. Just be sure that when you do borrow Fish, you can curl up for a long read. It's that good! -- review submitted by Allison H.-F. - a customer of the Bennett Martin Public Library

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