Pirate Boy of Sydney Town

(Paperback)

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A swashbuckling adventure from Australia's Children's Laureate

CAN YOU STILL LOVE YOUR FATHER, NO MATTER WHAT HIS CRIMES ARE

Twelve-year-old Ben Huntsmore is the son of a shipowner, an only child who loves the farming life on his mother's family estate, Badger's Hill.

But when Ben's father loses their ancestral home in 1809 as payment for a gambling debt, Ben reluctantly joins him in a desperate venture to win it back, capturing enemy trading ships off the west Australian coast.

While at sea, Ben must face not just the giant waves of the Southern Ocean but also the guns of a Dutch ship, along with unexpected treachery. And only the friendships of the mysterious convict Higgins and the young Indigenous sailor Guwara will help Ben survive, as well as show him the true meaning of loyalty and riches.

From renowned children's author Jackie French comes a book filled with swashbuckling adventures and which uncovers Australia's hidden history as a pirate port and slavers' den.

PRAISE FOR NANBERRY: BLACK BROTHER WHITE

'For really, really good Australian young-adult (and middle-grade) historical fiction, Jackie French has always been a winner ... With Nanberry: Black Brother White she delivers an excellent fictionalised account of the First Fleet's settlement at Sydney Cove ... a powerful novel' -- Australian Bookseller & Publisher, 5 stars

'She is one of few masters who can embed historic characters in rattling good tales, and her meticulous research is seamlessly inserted so that you live the detail rather than learn it. Even if you are not into history, Nanberry will hook you in ... Irresistible for history buffs of any age' -- Good Reading Magazine, 5 stars

'I've been telling all my friends to read this book, and to give it to their kids to read. It's absolutely engrossing' -- Herald Sun


AWARDS FOR PIRATE BOY OF SYDNEY TOWN

Shortlisted - NSW Premier's History Awards (Young People's History Prize)

Author Bio

Jackie French AM is an award-winning writer, wombat negotiator, the 20142015 Australian Children's Laureate and the 2015 Senior Australian of the Year. In 2016 Jackie became a Member of the Order of Australia for her contribution to children's literature and her advocacy for youth literacy. She is regarded as one of Australia's most popular children's authors and writes across all genres from picture books, history, fantasy, ecology and sci-fi to her much loved historical fiction for a variety of age groups. A book can change a child's life. A book can change the world' was the primary philosophy behind Jackie's two-year term as Laureate. jackiefrench.com facebook.com/authorjackiefrench