Shiver me timbers, it’s pirate time again!

Columbia Tribune: Ahoy, mates! Looking for a good pirate adventure? With “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End” coming out this week, what better way to really get into the mood than to read about pirates?

“Backbeard and the Birthday Suit: The Hairiest Pirate Who Ever Lived,” written and illustrated by Matthew McElligott, makes the average mean old pirate look especially crusty. That’s because Backbeard, who is drawn with hair everywhere, is so ugly and smelly that you can almost sense the stink from the book’s pages. It is his birthday, and as his crew yells rude remarks about his appearance, he suddenly takes heed and heads off his ship to a clothing shop to find something that doesn’t have holes or smell. He’s also looking for a parrot that won’t leave him because he smells. The shopkeeper assures him that he has just the right clothing for him.

How he is dressed, and the animal a shopkeeper places on Backbeard’s shoulder, will surely have your youngster smiling all the way to the end!

By HOLLY E. NEWTON, Columbia Daily Tribune
Published Thursday, May 24, 2007