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Summary
Summary
After losing his glass eye, pirate Captain Black is at a loss. Not far away, Sandpiper, a pauper, finds a shiny, round object in the road. Peering through what appears to be a glass marble, Sandpiper is amazed by what he sees.
What is a glass eye without its pirate? And what is a pirate without his glass eye? Sandpiper is about to find out--but danger looms, for Captain Black is determined to find his missing eye . . . by hook or by crook!
Robert Priest offers another quirky take on pirate life in this surprising tale of adventure, reflection, and missing treasure.
Author Notes
Robert Priest is an illustrator and art instructor. He is the author of The Pirate's Eye, and The Town That Got Out of Town, which received excellent reviews. He lives in Stoughton, Massachusetts, with his wife, his son, his dog, and some rowdy chickens.
Reviews (4)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 2-4-In the midst of a friendly skirmish, pirate Captain Black loses his glass eye. Unbeknownst to him, it rolls off the ship and through a town, and is picked up by a poor man named Sandpiper. The eye, like a crystal ball, shows the pauper images of the pirate's life-"scenes of mischievous boyhood and scenes of crime and treason!" Fascinated, he begins to draw what he has seen, eventually creating a book called The Pirate's Life, which he gives away to all the people who have helped him. Captain Black, who has been frantically searching for the missing orb, eventually finds the book in a town library. When he tracks down and confronts the pauper, Sandpiper hands the eye to its rightful owner. When Black looks through it, he sees the life of the pauper, "struggle and hardship.-generosity and kindness,"and is transformed in the process. Priest uses deceptively simple shapes and forms in the full-color, airbrushed enamel on clayboard art to keep the focus on the story. The text is well balanced and beautifully written, with playful repetition and alliteration and an economy of style. The sophisticated theme of the transformative power of seeing and understanding another person's viewpoint makes this unusual picture book best suited for older readers.-Marge Loch-Wouters, Menasha's Public Library, WI (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
During "a friendly skirmish" among scurvy dogs, Captain Black's glass eye-witness to many a dastardly deed-pops out. When the ship docks, the eye rolls into the port city, where it's scooped up by a beachcomber called Sandpiper. In his meager clapboard cabin, the fellow inspects the orb, which clouds like a crystal ball: "Sandpiper saw scenes of the pirate as a child and scenes of the pirate as a man, scenes of mischievous boyhood and scenes of crime and treason!" While the bereft Captain Black posts "Lost Eye" flyers, Sandpiper writes a picture book based on the eye's revelations, and gives copies to the kind townsfolk who have given him odd jobs and groceries. Captain Black soon reads the tale (at the public library!) and tracks down Sandpiper; but by this time the magical eye has collected scenes of generosity that make the scalawag question his lawless ways. As in his The Old Pirate of Central Park, Priest introduces characters with opposing perspectives and shows them finding common ground. His airbrushed enamel on clayboard illustrations have a grainy eggshell texture, jewel-like colors and the flatness of glazed ceramic tiles; thin white outlines surround stylized images of a multiracial populace. Those expecting swordplay may feel dismay at Captain Black's nascent pacifism, but once again Priest puts an unexpected spin on the pirate tale. Ages 4-8. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
Sandpiper finds a glass eye, which, like a crystal ball, reveals the pirating life of Captain Black, the eye's owner. Sandpiper writes a book based on Captain Black's adventures that helps to reunite Captain Black with his eye. This is an odd story that stays afloat thanks to the clean airbrushed enamel on clayboard illustrations, which convey the characters' depth and warmth. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
Kirkus Review
As in his Old Pirate of Central Park (1999), Priest pairs elegantly composed, deceptively simple cartoon illustrations to an unusually rich and satisfying story. Here, it's a tale of karmic balance restored, as the glass eye of a fierce pirate captain falls into the hands of a gentle pauper named Sandpiper. He turns the (low violence) visions of crime, treason and treasure-gathering that he sees within it into a popular book--A Pirate's Life--that he gives away to all who have been kind to him. Later, catching sight of the title in a library--overseen by a shushing, bun-haired librarian, but let that pass--the pirate tracks Sandpiper down, and demands his eye back--only to be profoundly changed by the acts of kindness given and received in Sandpiper's life that the eye now reflects. Readers too will be left reflective by this understated episode. (Picture book. 7-9) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.