Cindy Vallar's Blog - Posts Tagged "jacquotte-delahaye"

Pirate Women: The Princesses, Prostitutes, and Privateers Who Ruled the Seven Seas by Laura Sook Duncombe

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



Men and victors have been the predominant recorders of events throughout history. Their opinions and societal norms color their objectivity. As a result, women and their participation in historical events are either omitted from these accounts or given short shrift. Or as Duncombe writes: “Pirates live outside the laws of man, but women pirates live outside the laws of nature.” (xi) This is a reality that she encountered time and again in her research for this book. A prime example of this is Grace O’Malley, one of the few names the general public readily recognizes. Although this Irish “pirate queen” was a major thorn in the side of the English and had a private meeting with her contemporary, Queen Elizabeth I, archival mention her is scant. It is the bards of Ireland who have kept her alive.

In this highly readable and interesting account, Duncombe collects the known women who dared to become pirates. Yet this book is far more than just a look at well-researched history; among the women here one finds fictional female rogues too. She shares what is known about these people, as well as what is missing about them. In the process she clearly identifies whether this information can be proven historically or if it’s just a myth. She asks thought-provoking questions along the way to stimulate readers’ curiosity and further discussion.

The women who are often discussed in pirate histories – including Queen Teuta of Illyria, Anne Bonny, Mary Read, Cheng I Sao, and Grace O’Malley – are found in this collection. So are names that rarely see the light of day, such as Sayyida al-Hurra, Maria Cobham, Lai Choi, and Rachel Wall. Duncombe even mentions the suggestion that Bartholomew Roberts might have been a woman in disguise. Rather than use footnotes or end notes, she seamlessly weaves this information into her narrative, removing the need to search for this elsewhere and thus break its flow. Pirate Women also includes fictional pirates, such as Anne de Graaf, Jacquotte Delahaye, and Gunpowder Gertie. Duncombe provides an index and “To Find Out More” lists for general pirate and chapter-by-chapter subject resources. Most of the latter are secondary and tertiary sources, rather than primary documents.

What this book is not is strictly a history of women pirates. Duncombe tends to stray from that narrow theme, but with purpose, and she always returns to the original subject before moving on to the next pirate. Examples of this come when she discusses courtesans in ancient times, Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent’s marriage to one of his concubines, or binding women’s feet in China. Her use of a broad definition of piracy allows her to demonstrate the evolution of what constituteds piracy in different time periods. It also permits the inclusion of women who have no direct connection to maritime piracy, such as Cheng Chui Ping, a snakehead (human trafficker).

The weakest chapter in this book is the last, “The Pirates of the Silver Screen.” Although several pirate films are discussed because they focus on fictional female pirates, Duncombe also examines Bonnie and Clyde and An Unmarried Woman – neither of which involves pirates. She concludes the chapter with a criticism on Hollywood’s portrayal of and treatment of women in film.

Pirate Women is a good introduction to female pirates and the eras in which they lived. As Duncombe says, “Pirate women deserve a spot next to their more famous male counterparts because yearning to escape the confines of an ordinary life and to live on one’s own terms is not an exclusively male feeling.” (228) Her purpose in writing this book is to inspire the next generation of women to strive to be innovators. But are pirates the best role model to achieve this goal?

There are several reasons, however, why Pirate Women is a valuable addition to the handful of books that deal exclusively with these females predators. Presented in chronological sequence from ancient times to the present, it is an extensive list that includes far more than any other volume. Earlier titles often focus on only a small sample or examine women associated with piracy, but who aren’t actually pirates themselves, during a specific time period. More importantly, Duncombe incorporates the society, culture, and historical events of the period in which each woman lives. This means she examines them as part of a whole, rather than a single aspect of their lives. Equally noteworthy is the inclusion of the people who have told each pirate’s story and how their motivations impacted their renderings of her.




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Girl Before the Legend by S.K. Minnis

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Jacquotte Delahaye. The name may mean nothing to most readers, or perhaps a few have heard of this female buccaneer of the 17th century. Mystery surrounds her . . . if she ever existed. If Jacquotte was a real person, who was she and what transpired to make her become a fearsome pirate captain? This is the premise of Minnis’s new trilogy, The Red Pirate, and Girl Before the Legend recounts how Jacquotte went on the account.

A carnival comes to the village where Jacquotte lives. She has a wonderful time with her father and younger brother until she swipes a necklace she covets. She could have purchased it, but doing so lacks adventure and that is something she craves. Perhaps because of her father’s many stories of his adventures. Perhaps because she already knows what life has ordained for her, and she’s not particularly thrilled with getting married and obeying society’s rules.

Sometimes, wishes are granted, but not in the way we expect or want. That night, intruders come. Her father takes Jacquotte and her brother into the smuggler’s tunnels under the house. After making sure they are hidden, he surrenders to the English soldiers and before Jacquotte’s eyes, she watches them kill him. She exacts retribution, but in the process, her brother is traumatized. They must leave even though a storm rages. They set sail in a boat, which causes Etienne further health problems. At sixteen, Jacquotte is too young and lacks the means to take care of him, especially after wanted posters for her appear. If they are to survive, she has only one choice: surrender Etienne into the safekeeping of others while she flees the island aboard her father’s ship. But who’s going to allow a girl aboard a pirate ship? And once there, how can she reclaim what rightfully belongs to her?

This coming-of-age story deftly shows how a series of unconnected events lead Jacquotte onto paths she never expects. At the same time, she must come to grips with what happens to her. Although no specific time frame is provided, references are made to the period when Lord Protectors ruled England during the 1650s. Minnis crafts a realistic pirate tale with touches of swashbuckling adventure in which there are always consequences to face. The only misstep is making Paragon, her father’s ship, a galleon, which in real-life did not possess the sailing qualities needed for these adventures. Revenge, secret codes, a treasure map, slave trading, mysticism, and empire-building are just some of the interwoven threads that make for riveting, action-packed exploits.


This review originally appeared at Pirates and Privateers: http://www.cindyvallar.com/youngadult...



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