Goldenlocks and the Three Pirates

PreS-Gr 1— A raucous and nautical take on the classic "Goldilocks" story with an extravagant pirate family and a handy and competent heroine. Somewhere out at sea on a "seaworthy sloop" there were the three pirates—big, pilfering Papa pirate; medium-size, menacing Mama pirate; and small, bonny Baby pirate. While cunning with a cutlass, Mama pirate is a terrible cook, and one morning after burning the gruel the trio rows to shore and leaves their ship unattended. Goldenlocks happens along and climbs aboard, but instead of leaving the usual trail of destruction in her wake, she manages to remedy, repair, and mend all that she encounters. When the fierce pirate family returns, it is to a noticeably improved ship. They happily invite Goldenlocks to join their crew and together they set off on more adventures. The delightfully cheery and detailed full-bleed illustrations fill each page with color and excitement. Nautical lingo and a hearty sprinkling of "Piratese" add to the amusement of reading the story aloud and a handy "Pirate Glossary" in the back helps to alleviate any possible confusion. Even at their most fierce, the pirate family with their excessively angry expressions and excellent eyebrows are more fun than frightening and the spry Goldenlocks with her flowing tresses and practical pantaloons is a welcome change from the frilled and encumbered costumes of other fairy tale predecessors.