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Bloody Jack #1
Bloody Jack: Being an Account of the Curious Adventures of Mary "Jacky" Faber, Ship's Boy
Life as a ship's boy aboard HMS Dolphin is a dream come true for Jacky Faber. Gone are the days of scavenging for food and fighting for survival on the streets of eighteenth-century London. Instead, Jacky is becoming a skilled and respected sailor as the crew pursues pirates on the high seas. There's only one problem: Jacky is a girl. And she will have to use every bit of her spirit, wit, and courage to keep the crew from discovering her secret. This could be the adventure of her life--if only she doesn't get caught...
8 pages, Audio CD
First published June 6, 2002
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About the author
L.A. Meyer
18 books1,107 followersLouis A. Meyer is best known as the author of the Bloody Jack novels. He was also a painter and the author of two children's picture books, and he and his wife owned an art gallery called Clair de Loon in Bar Harbor.
Louis A. Meyer passed away on July 29, 2014 from refractory Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. His final Jacky Faber book, Wild Rover No More, was published posthumously in September that year.
Louis A. Meyer passed away on July 29, 2014 from refractory Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. His final Jacky Faber book, Wild Rover No More, was published posthumously in September that year.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,678 reviews
March 10, 2008
The audio version of this book does exactly what an audio version should do - it not only gives voice to a darn good story, but it carries the reader/listener into the heart of the story. The audio version helps interpret the dialect that the story is written in, which also helps give Jacky her character in a palpable way. This book is made for audio - it has action, adventure, and emotion, all of which are vividly portrayed by the narrator (I forget her name right now, but I'll look it up.) All this adds up to a fabulous audiobook that should win fans whenever it is popped into a CD player.
The story is a rip-snorter, too. Mary is a poor orphan living on the streets when she decides to take the only talent she has, the ability to read, and to sign on to a ship. Disguised as a boy, she is able to transform into Jacky and to pull off the deception for several years even while living in close quarters on a British naval vessel. She has courage, even though she doesn't think she is brave. She has sass and a toughness that keeps her going under dire circumstances. This is a great YA novel for teens who like action and/or historical novels.
The story is a rip-snorter, too. Mary is a poor orphan living on the streets when she decides to take the only talent she has, the ability to read, and to sign on to a ship. Disguised as a boy, she is able to transform into Jacky and to pull off the deception for several years even while living in close quarters on a British naval vessel. She has courage, even though she doesn't think she is brave. She has sass and a toughness that keeps her going under dire circumstances. This is a great YA novel for teens who like action and/or historical novels.
October 12, 2007
I loved this book. REminds me of the True COnfessions of Charolotte Doyle, btu for an older reader... From School Library Journal Grade 6-8-With the plague running rampant in London in 1797, Mary's parents and sister are soon counted among the dead. Left alone and penniless, the eight-year-old is taken in by a gang of orphans and learns survival skills. However, when their leader is killed, Mary decides to try her luck elsewhere. She strips the dead body, cuts her hair, renames herself Jack Faber, and is soon employed as a ship's boy on the HMS Dolphin. When the vessel sees its first skirmish with a pirate ship, her bravery saves her friend Jaimy and earns her the nickname "Bloody Jack." Told by Mary/Jack in an uneven dialect that sometimes doesn't ring true, the story weaves details of life aboard the Dolphin. Readers see how she changes her disguise based on her own physical changes and handles the "call of nature," her first experiences with maturation, and the dangers to boys from unscrupulous crew members. The protagonist's vocabulary, her appearance and demeanor, and her desire to be one of the boys and do everything they do without complaint complete the deception. This story also shows a welcome slant to this genre with an honorable, albeit strict Captain, and ship's mates who are willing and able teachers. If readers are looking for a rousing, swashbuckling tale of pirates and adventures on the high seas, this title falls short. However, it is a good story of a brave ship's "boy" with natural leadership abilities and a sense of fair play and humanity.
July 11, 2018
Mary Faber, a young guttersnipe living in eighteenth-century London, cuts her hair, pulls on some pants, and signs up as a ship's boy on the HMS Dolphin. On board, "Jacky" Faber soon acquires a reputation as a brave and fearless pirate-fighter. It's a grand adventure for both Mary, and the reader.
Though much of the book is taken up with Mary's efforts to camouflage her femininity, AND her struggle to hide her feelings for another ship's boy, there's plenty of action and treachery to keep things interesting. I'm curious about the next chapter in Mary's life, so I plan to continue with this series.
Though much of the book is taken up with Mary's efforts to camouflage her femininity, AND her struggle to hide her feelings for another ship's boy, there's plenty of action and treachery to keep things interesting. I'm curious about the next chapter in Mary's life, so I plan to continue with this series.
July 26, 2008
This book is about as much fun as Harry Potter...a coming of age story for a child with the odds stacked against her. And yes, BONUS, the heroine is a girl. I found it to be an engaging read with a novel setting and story line (for me). I'm so happy I picked up on the series!
February 16, 2011
I completely loved the first half of this book. I loved Mary, I was totally enthralled by her experience on the streets of London and then on the ship and the whole thing was written in such a compelling voice that I really did not want to put it down.
But then came the romance, which made Mary quite silly, and the book kind of lost me. Don't get me wrong, I like romance, often even the dumb ones, but I felt like this particular romance really made Mary seem much less interesting (and much more whiny and/or stereotypically female) and felt pretty awkward, especially in comparison to the quality of the rest of the story.
I'll likely read the next book in the series, but I'm not nearly as excited about it as I was, and if it continues on this vein, it'll likely be the last one I read.
But then came the romance, which made Mary quite silly, and the book kind of lost me. Don't get me wrong, I like romance, often even the dumb ones, but I felt like this particular romance really made Mary seem much less interesting (and much more whiny and/or stereotypically female) and felt pretty awkward, especially in comparison to the quality of the rest of the story.
I'll likely read the next book in the series, but I'm not nearly as excited about it as I was, and if it continues on this vein, it'll likely be the last one I read.
April 15, 2011
Excellent story! I tend to like those gender-bending characters in general, but Jacky was especially well done. So many female action heroes tend to be modeled as boys in skirts - ass-kicking, bloodthirsty heroines out to prove they're not just some weakling girl. Jacky is a girl. She proves herself worthy in combat, but doesn't relish it. She plays a boy because it will secure her food and freedom. She challenges gender assumptions when her boyfriend wants to mold her into something she isn't. Her little commentary on the lack of protection a dress affords is pretty cool. She is bold and smart and thoughtful and resourceful. She gets a bit weepy, but it seems justified and in-character for the hardships she's suffered. Furthermore, I believe that women do outwardly express their emotions more, so this was kind of a reaffirmation of her femaleness. (It's not the only way of being female and thus did still bug me a bit.)
The criticism I thought I would have - how can a girl escape notice as a girl? - was adequately addressed. She's pre-pubescent when she joins up - and there really isn't much difference except in that one spot then - and as she matures she does have to take extra precautions in how and where she dresses. It required only a mild suspension of disbelief. And the action was fun. It's a quick read, no lulls but with breathing room.
On another note, I'm really glad that the author abandoned most of the dialect once she got on the ship. If you build the character well, the reader will hear the words right without all the apostrophes. Several other reviewers applauded the audio book; I think that would help. (Actually, the orphan Charlie's accent made the character for me. He was given some really funny lines. He was also touching, explaining how rich folk don't really care about your life story, they only want to feel good and charitable and go on with their lives. I was sad to see him go.)
Also, I was glad that the author addressed how to identify bullying behavior and recognize your own power and dignity. Addressing bullying with hit-him-back is maybe not the advice I'd give, but it does seem historically appropriate in an honor-bound society. It was nice to see Jacky teach an elder how to defend himself. I'm neither a child nor a parent, so I can't really assess the age-appropriateness of the book, but it did seem to contain some themes worth conveying to a child of some age or other.
Plus this book reminded me of The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, which I loved as a child, without all the... frumpery in the beginning. And with that, my ramble is done. Do read.
The criticism I thought I would have - how can a girl escape notice as a girl? - was adequately addressed. She's pre-pubescent when she joins up - and there really isn't much difference except in that one spot then - and as she matures she does have to take extra precautions in how and where she dresses. It required only a mild suspension of disbelief. And the action was fun. It's a quick read, no lulls but with breathing room.
On another note, I'm really glad that the author abandoned most of the dialect once she got on the ship. If you build the character well, the reader will hear the words right without all the apostrophes. Several other reviewers applauded the audio book; I think that would help. (Actually, the orphan Charlie's accent made the character for me. He was given some really funny lines. He was also touching, explaining how rich folk don't really care about your life story, they only want to feel good and charitable and go on with their lives. I was sad to see him go.)
Also, I was glad that the author addressed how to identify bullying behavior and recognize your own power and dignity. Addressing bullying with hit-him-back is maybe not the advice I'd give, but it does seem historically appropriate in an honor-bound society. It was nice to see Jacky teach an elder how to defend himself. I'm neither a child nor a parent, so I can't really assess the age-appropriateness of the book, but it did seem to contain some themes worth conveying to a child of some age or other.
Plus this book reminded me of The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, which I loved as a child, without all the... frumpery in the beginning. And with that, my ramble is done. Do read.
September 7, 2018
3.5 stars
I liked this book a fair bit, but there were a couple of ways in which it disappointed me. As the quote above illustrates, there is a bit of commentary on the role of women during this time period. The basic plot is quite liberating for Jacky—she impersonates a boy and gets herself a job. She’s a sharp enough observer (trained by her time on the streets of London) to figure out how to pull it off without getting caught right away.
However, Jacky spends more time than necessary, in my opinion, bawling and dripping snot. Because apparently that’s what girls do. I don’t know about you, but my mother was the reserved one of my parents. You could make my dad cry fairly easily, but Mom was the Iron Lady. I remember that she gave me hell for crying too much at her mother’s funeral! She believed in crying in private, on your own, not in public for all the neighbours to see.
The writing style, though somehow strangely appropriate for this tale, didn’t really thrill me. Perhaps that’s because I am far older than the intended demographic for this series. I found it a decent book and a relatively quick read, but I sincerely doubt that I’ll be pursuing the series any further.
”It's easier bein' a boy, 'cause when someone needs somethin' done like holdin' a horse, they'll always pick a boy 'cause they think the dumbest boy will be better at it than the brightest girl, which is stupid, but there you are.”
I liked this book a fair bit, but there were a couple of ways in which it disappointed me. As the quote above illustrates, there is a bit of commentary on the role of women during this time period. The basic plot is quite liberating for Jacky—she impersonates a boy and gets herself a job. She’s a sharp enough observer (trained by her time on the streets of London) to figure out how to pull it off without getting caught right away.
However, Jacky spends more time than necessary, in my opinion, bawling and dripping snot. Because apparently that’s what girls do. I don’t know about you, but my mother was the reserved one of my parents. You could make my dad cry fairly easily, but Mom was the Iron Lady. I remember that she gave me hell for crying too much at her mother’s funeral! She believed in crying in private, on your own, not in public for all the neighbours to see.
The writing style, though somehow strangely appropriate for this tale, didn’t really thrill me. Perhaps that’s because I am far older than the intended demographic for this series. I found it a decent book and a relatively quick read, but I sincerely doubt that I’ll be pursuing the series any further.
May 17, 2015
An extraordinary tale about a young girl who has everything and everyone taken from her and still unbelievably rises out of the ashes like a Phoenix to survive in a time of death and hopelessness. A great, captivating story with a completely original cast of characters that show great bravery and wildly cunning wit throughout. Mary/Jack/Jackie is a wonderfully imaginative and resourceful individual who I found to be extremely entertaining and couldn't wait to see what crazy thing she would do next. It is a coming of age book with a twist that is listed as a YA, but for me it was just an exciting adventure that I did not want to end.
Katherine Kellgren has outstanding timing and is a perfect fit for Jackie's personality. Her distinct character voices and consistent pace always bring a little something extra to the listen. I highly recommend this to everyone who would like to take an exhilarating ride on the high seas.
Katherine Kellgren has outstanding timing and is a perfect fit for Jackie's personality. Her distinct character voices and consistent pace always bring a little something extra to the listen. I highly recommend this to everyone who would like to take an exhilarating ride on the high seas.
July 1, 2008
I love, love, LOVE all of the Bloody Jack books. She does edge a little into Mary Sue territory at times, but not in typical ways for a female character. She's kind of like an adolescent female version of Jack Ryan (Patriot Games, etc).
July 13, 2019
I'll admit it! One of my guilty pleasure reads is era-pieces in which women disguise themselves as men. Also, most all piratey situations. Enter a novel about a girl dressing as a boy...not a pirate. But close. Give me that old time religion!
This was a fun little book!
The progression of Mary "Jacky" Faber from a ten year old to a fifteen year old was well played out. It was interesting to see how the author shifted Jacky's mindset from child to young woman. In fact, her depiction of Jacky as a boy obsessed fifteen year old may have played out a little too well. Towards the end it felt like reading a giddy teenager's diary. So I enjoyed it, but I have to say the book started stronger than it finished for me.
And speaking of finished...I'm questioning if I want to finish the series because of how it finished. I'll have to mull it over after reading some reviews for the next book.
This was a fun little jaunt though, and overall I would recommend.
I'd rate this book a PG-13 for some violence and perilous situations, some mild swearing, some adult humor, and thematic references (brothels, alcohol, etc.).
This was a fun little book!
The progression of Mary "Jacky" Faber from a ten year old to a fifteen year old was well played out. It was interesting to see how the author shifted Jacky's mindset from child to young woman. In fact, her depiction of Jacky as a boy obsessed fifteen year old may have played out a little too well. Towards the end it felt like reading a giddy teenager's diary. So I enjoyed it, but I have to say the book started stronger than it finished for me.
And speaking of finished...I'm questioning if I want to finish the series because of how it finished. I'll have to mull it over after reading some reviews for the next book.
This was a fun little jaunt though, and overall I would recommend.
I'd rate this book a PG-13 for some violence and perilous situations, some mild swearing, some adult humor, and thematic references (brothels, alcohol, etc.).
May 22, 2007
Excellent story! I love the style of writing...I feel like I'm right with them on the ship. Can't wait to read the others!
November 13, 2013
Bloody Jack is just the kind of book I love. Girl runs away to sea disguised as a boy! Historical fiction! Pirates and adventures!
* * * * Now there do come SPOILERS * * * *
I started reading with great pleasure. Okay, there were a few twitches. It became obvious that, unlike most devotees of the English Regency period, the author had not read Georgette Heyer. Georgette Heyer wrote delightful Regency romances. She was also a meticulous scholar. If she says the Catch Me Who Can caught fire that year, then that was the year it caught fire, not before or after. She fit her story to the history. Georgette Heyer read thousands of period letters, and collected period slang. Readers of Heyer have learned half a dozen terms to describe the precise stage of someone's inebriation. And that is the standard of research and accuracy that has been set for this period. Heyer has also educated three generations of readers in the facts, personalities, and mores of Regency England.
So, in reading Bloody Jack, I began to twitch. Wild gangs of feral children in London, at the turn of the 19th century? I don't think so; that comes later, after Industrialization. But let that pass. All the children in terror of the guy who supplies the surgeon doing anatomies? Probably not; in the summer, in London, the yearly epidemics had casualties in the thousands. But let that pass. The children are afraid of the police? The bobbies? Absolutely not. Robert Peel did not establish London's police force until 1822, ten or twenty years after this story (the date of Bloody Jack isn't precise, but it is before Napoleon's exile).
Why didn't the author look that up? I looked it up on the google in seven seconds. That's just . . . careless.
But okay, it's still a good story. Mostly. Onward!
And I read on. I read on until the scene where this British naval ship is in a fight with the pirates. Look! What are the pirates doing? They're putting something in a sailing boat! Oh my goodness! It is a fire ship! They have filled the sailboat with fuel and set it on fire, and it is coming right at us!
There is a reason why fireships are used against fleets of ships bunched up at anchor, usually in a harbor. Fire ships are not used against ships that are already sailing. Why? Because they're sailing. On the high sea. In any direction they want to.
Okay, we're sailing, right? And the sailboat is so far away that the officer is looking at it through a telescope. And the ship is sailing, and the sailboat is sailing, and the sailboat has been aimed at the ship. Can you see what I'm getting at? The sailboat starts out a ways away. The sailboat has one sail, and nobody on board. It is full of burning incendiaries. The Royal Naval Vessel has three masts worth of sails. It is much, much faster than a sailboat. Also, it can tack to either side. Or it can fire all its guns at the sailboat and destroy it before it arrives. It can do half a dozen things to not meet up with that boat. But no, the British Naval vessel doesn't do any of them! It does not turn and run, and outsail the little one-sailed boat with its three masts full of sails. No, it keeps going, turning neither to the right or left, heading right for the position where the sailboat has been pointed to meet up with it. Nor does the ship turn into the wind so that it stops moving! It keeps going so that the little sailboat with one sail comes right up to it and blows it up. And then I wasn't twitching. I was yelling at the book. No, at the author. And his editor. Doesn't he know anything about sailing? Didn't he do any research? Or ask someone who knows? Does he think fiction is just making stuff up or something?
Okay, but it gets worse. The ship has been blown up. So they pump their way (and we won't talk about that. Just . . . we won't.) to this island. And then they are in really big trouble, because -- get this -- they don't know where they are! They have no idea! Not a clue! They could be twenty miles from the coast of South America, or they could be two hundred! They Just Don't Know!
Wait. These are British Naval Officers. And they have their ship. And in their ship there are, yes, charts. Sailing charts. Lots of them! And also, there are navigational instruments! Sextants! Compasses! And by this time, in the early eighteen hundreds (while Napoleon was still around, for sure), they already knew how to take a longtitude. And you know what? Every officer on board, down to and including the midshipmen, would know how to do this.
So. This isn't just slovenly research. This is incompetent research. What this looks like is none of that pesky research at all.
But let us pass on, because there is one more howling error in this book. They've lost a few of their ship's boys. They need to recruit some more. Where does this British ship of His Majesty's navy go to recruit more ship's boys to fill their ranks? Why, to the United States of America! Yes! Can you just see it? A British naval vessel sails into Charleston Harbor, and sets up a table at the docks to take applications for American boys to join the British navy!
And why not? The fact that the Americans had just trounced the British in our Revolution can just be completely ignored! The fact that, at that time, British naval vessels were stopping American ships on the high seas and simply kidnapping sailors off them to fill their ranks, which is one of the reasons for the War of 1812 which is going to happen somewhere arond that time, if this book just had a specific date where it's set (but that would be so confining! Might even have to do some research!)
As Mark Twain says about his wonderful book, The Prince and the Pauper, "It may have happened, it may not have happened: but it COULD have happened."
Not this one.
* * * * Now there do come SPOILERS * * * *
I started reading with great pleasure. Okay, there were a few twitches. It became obvious that, unlike most devotees of the English Regency period, the author had not read Georgette Heyer. Georgette Heyer wrote delightful Regency romances. She was also a meticulous scholar. If she says the Catch Me Who Can caught fire that year, then that was the year it caught fire, not before or after. She fit her story to the history. Georgette Heyer read thousands of period letters, and collected period slang. Readers of Heyer have learned half a dozen terms to describe the precise stage of someone's inebriation. And that is the standard of research and accuracy that has been set for this period. Heyer has also educated three generations of readers in the facts, personalities, and mores of Regency England.
So, in reading Bloody Jack, I began to twitch. Wild gangs of feral children in London, at the turn of the 19th century? I don't think so; that comes later, after Industrialization. But let that pass. All the children in terror of the guy who supplies the surgeon doing anatomies? Probably not; in the summer, in London, the yearly epidemics had casualties in the thousands. But let that pass. The children are afraid of the police? The bobbies? Absolutely not. Robert Peel did not establish London's police force until 1822, ten or twenty years after this story (the date of Bloody Jack isn't precise, but it is before Napoleon's exile).
Why didn't the author look that up? I looked it up on the google in seven seconds. That's just . . . careless.
But okay, it's still a good story. Mostly. Onward!
And I read on. I read on until the scene where this British naval ship is in a fight with the pirates. Look! What are the pirates doing? They're putting something in a sailing boat! Oh my goodness! It is a fire ship! They have filled the sailboat with fuel and set it on fire, and it is coming right at us!
There is a reason why fireships are used against fleets of ships bunched up at anchor, usually in a harbor. Fire ships are not used against ships that are already sailing. Why? Because they're sailing. On the high sea. In any direction they want to.
Okay, we're sailing, right? And the sailboat is so far away that the officer is looking at it through a telescope. And the ship is sailing, and the sailboat is sailing, and the sailboat has been aimed at the ship. Can you see what I'm getting at? The sailboat starts out a ways away. The sailboat has one sail, and nobody on board. It is full of burning incendiaries. The Royal Naval Vessel has three masts worth of sails. It is much, much faster than a sailboat. Also, it can tack to either side. Or it can fire all its guns at the sailboat and destroy it before it arrives. It can do half a dozen things to not meet up with that boat. But no, the British Naval vessel doesn't do any of them! It does not turn and run, and outsail the little one-sailed boat with its three masts full of sails. No, it keeps going, turning neither to the right or left, heading right for the position where the sailboat has been pointed to meet up with it. Nor does the ship turn into the wind so that it stops moving! It keeps going so that the little sailboat with one sail comes right up to it and blows it up. And then I wasn't twitching. I was yelling at the book. No, at the author. And his editor. Doesn't he know anything about sailing? Didn't he do any research? Or ask someone who knows? Does he think fiction is just making stuff up or something?
Okay, but it gets worse. The ship has been blown up. So they pump their way (and we won't talk about that. Just . . . we won't.) to this island. And then they are in really big trouble, because -- get this -- they don't know where they are! They have no idea! Not a clue! They could be twenty miles from the coast of South America, or they could be two hundred! They Just Don't Know!
Wait. These are British Naval Officers. And they have their ship. And in their ship there are, yes, charts. Sailing charts. Lots of them! And also, there are navigational instruments! Sextants! Compasses! And by this time, in the early eighteen hundreds (while Napoleon was still around, for sure), they already knew how to take a longtitude. And you know what? Every officer on board, down to and including the midshipmen, would know how to do this.
So. This isn't just slovenly research. This is incompetent research. What this looks like is none of that pesky research at all.
But let us pass on, because there is one more howling error in this book. They've lost a few of their ship's boys. They need to recruit some more. Where does this British ship of His Majesty's navy go to recruit more ship's boys to fill their ranks? Why, to the United States of America! Yes! Can you just see it? A British naval vessel sails into Charleston Harbor, and sets up a table at the docks to take applications for American boys to join the British navy!
And why not? The fact that the Americans had just trounced the British in our Revolution can just be completely ignored! The fact that, at that time, British naval vessels were stopping American ships on the high seas and simply kidnapping sailors off them to fill their ranks, which is one of the reasons for the War of 1812 which is going to happen somewhere arond that time, if this book just had a specific date where it's set (but that would be so confining! Might even have to do some research!)
As Mark Twain says about his wonderful book, The Prince and the Pauper, "It may have happened, it may not have happened: but it COULD have happened."
Not this one.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 29, 2024
2023: Ack, I fell behind on my biennial reread of this series! And I know that in 2020, I only got 3 books in before another highly anticipated audiobook arrived for me, so I got distracted...and that was it. So this time I'm really gonna buckle down and reread all 12 books to get back on schedule! As always, highly entertaining, occasionally silly (Jacky gets a bit boy crazy when she hits puberty), and although LA Meyer seemed to have done his ship related research, he knew very little about historic undergarments (Jacky's drawers are occasionally pivotal to the plot, but aren't something that would have been worn in this time period). Still, this isn't a series to be taken too seriously, so ya just go along with the adventure and have a jolly good time!
2020: If my Goodreads records are accurate, this is my 7th listen of this audiobook. Maybe I have a problem....
2018: I guess it's official that this series will never get old for me, at least not the first books. This will have been the sixth time that I've listened to book 1. Still a joy, still vastly entertaining. I also got a little teary-eyed at the end when the narrator says "This has been a recording of 'Bloody Jack' by L A Meyer, read to you by Katherine Kellgren." It's the first time that I've listened to the series since Katherine has passed away so to hear her talking as herself was bizarrely emotional.
2016 Reading Challenge: An audiobook that has won an Audie Award/A book guaranteed to bring me joy. 5th re-listen for this series now.
2015 UPDATE: 4th re-listen to this series, this time buying the CDs as I go.
2014 Update: As always, these books are a delight on CD. Perfect blend of high adventure and a spunky heroine, mixed with the amazing talents of Katherine Kellgren. This will be my 2nd time listening to this series.
I won't pretend this series is high literature by any means, but it is still my absolute favorite series to listen to on audio. Just pure fun!
2020: If my Goodreads records are accurate, this is my 7th listen of this audiobook. Maybe I have a problem....
2018: I guess it's official that this series will never get old for me, at least not the first books. This will have been the sixth time that I've listened to book 1. Still a joy, still vastly entertaining. I also got a little teary-eyed at the end when the narrator says "This has been a recording of 'Bloody Jack' by L A Meyer, read to you by Katherine Kellgren." It's the first time that I've listened to the series since Katherine has passed away so to hear her talking as herself was bizarrely emotional.
2016 Reading Challenge: An audiobook that has won an Audie Award/A book guaranteed to bring me joy. 5th re-listen for this series now.
2015 UPDATE: 4th re-listen to this series, this time buying the CDs as I go.
2014 Update: As always, these books are a delight on CD. Perfect blend of high adventure and a spunky heroine, mixed with the amazing talents of Katherine Kellgren. This will be my 2nd time listening to this series.
I won't pretend this series is high literature by any means, but it is still my absolute favorite series to listen to on audio. Just pure fun!
June 21, 2015
I don't normally read YA books because I'm an A and not very Y, but this was a book club pick, so what are you going to do? Well, it was because I would have never found this book on my own. In fact, while reading it, I wished that this series had been around when I was younger.
The story couldn't be simpler: A young girl, Mary Faber, pretends to be a boy in order to become a ships boy. She's an orphan whose only friend in the world was just killed so she takes off to the high seas and high adventure.
The story lends itself to the episodic nature of a lot of YA (the ship sails to new locations and at each new location there's a new adventure). I appreciated that nothing about the time or place was romanticized. The 1790's was a very dangerous time to be alive if you were rich, let alone a poor orphan.
For the adult reader, there aren't too many twists and turns you won't see coming but that takes nothing away from the experience. Will she fall in love with one of the boys? Yep. Will on of the purvy old sailors try to rape her? Sure. Will she find her inner courage? I'll let you guess.
I doubt I'll end up reading the rest of the series (12 book in total) but that's due to lack of time, not lack of quality. A high recommend for the young adventurer in all of us.
The story couldn't be simpler: A young girl, Mary Faber, pretends to be a boy in order to become a ships boy. She's an orphan whose only friend in the world was just killed so she takes off to the high seas and high adventure.
The story lends itself to the episodic nature of a lot of YA (the ship sails to new locations and at each new location there's a new adventure). I appreciated that nothing about the time or place was romanticized. The 1790's was a very dangerous time to be alive if you were rich, let alone a poor orphan.
For the adult reader, there aren't too many twists and turns you won't see coming but that takes nothing away from the experience. Will she fall in love with one of the boys? Yep. Will on of the purvy old sailors try to rape her? Sure. Will she find her inner courage? I'll let you guess.
I doubt I'll end up reading the rest of the series (12 book in total) but that's due to lack of time, not lack of quality. A high recommend for the young adventurer in all of us.
Read
March 20, 2011If you've ever wanted girl adventure stories, Jacky is your girl. What's more, Meyer manages to handle the tired old saw of girl dressed as boy and make it believable, describing her adventures with clarity, vividness, humor, and sympathy. Even the subjects one would consider somewhat dicey are well-handled, probably because Jacky's voice is so very assured, we always believe in her, don't see the author wincing or smirking or pushing the puppets about. Jacky is born to a nice family but they die and she sees them taken away by a corpse-seller, whereupon she joins an orphan gang under Blackfriars Bridge. When things get worse, she disguises herself as a boy, noticing how much freedom they have. She manages to get hired onto a ship because she can read, though once there, she has plenty of problems to solve. But she's on her way to adventure—sometimes finding it almost too much to bear.
June 4, 2010
I love this book and just can't get enough of it. jacky's fabulous and absolutely crazy. Its just what I need, a good does of adventure following a streetsmart heroine who doesn't have a chip on her shoulder or an abusive family.
I think that the best part is that Jacky adapts to every situations and learns like a sponge. She's bloody talented and completely wild.
There is a smidgit of romance or love interest, which also manages to keep me hooked for the next book (and the book after that and so on).
Definitely worth a read or two, I promise
I think that the best part is that Jacky adapts to every situations and learns like a sponge. She's bloody talented and completely wild.
There is a smidgit of romance or love interest, which also manages to keep me hooked for the next book (and the book after that and so on).
Definitely worth a read or two, I promise
April 3, 2015
(Review edited in 2015, read in 2013)
I at first thought, several years ago when I saw this, that it was probably border-lining on being a children's book, or even a typical immature YA novel. But it was everything I wanted to read right now.
This came out in 2002, a year before the first of the Pirates of the Caribbean films, so no, it is not some kind of rip off, even with the character's name. It is really good for anyone who loves those movies though. I was actually so entranced by the imagery while reading this that I wasn't sure I would be able to finish it in decent time. I kept wanting to go watch those movies. They really aren't similar, I'm just so in love with pirates.
What I thought was handled quite well was that this book doesn't give you the entirely romanticized version of pirates or the Royal Navy. People are raped, people die. Also, Jacky was not the typical Mary-Sue that is often found in the pirate books and fan fiction, you know the one who runs off and WANTS to be a boy and completely dismisses women as pirates. She does want to grow up to be a lady and get married, which is kind of amusing, but she is also strong and decent at ship life.
I at first thought, several years ago when I saw this, that it was probably border-lining on being a children's book, or even a typical immature YA novel. But it was everything I wanted to read right now.
This came out in 2002, a year before the first of the Pirates of the Caribbean films, so no, it is not some kind of rip off, even with the character's name. It is really good for anyone who loves those movies though. I was actually so entranced by the imagery while reading this that I wasn't sure I would be able to finish it in decent time. I kept wanting to go watch those movies. They really aren't similar, I'm just so in love with pirates.
What I thought was handled quite well was that this book doesn't give you the entirely romanticized version of pirates or the Royal Navy. People are raped, people die. Also, Jacky was not the typical Mary-Sue that is often found in the pirate books and fan fiction, you know the one who runs off and WANTS to be a boy and completely dismisses women as pirates. She does want to grow up to be a lady and get married, which is kind of amusing, but she is also strong and decent at ship life.
September 21, 2013
Katherine Kellgren absolutely made this book for me. "Bloody Jack" is a well-written, well-plotted historical adventure, but Kellgren's performance transformed it into something truly special. She brought color and nuance to Jacky’s world, pulling me right onto the deck of the HMS Dolphin. I could hear the roar of cannons, the swell of the sea and the music played by the sailors in her voice. I can’t imagine experiencing this book in any other way.
Set at the turn of the 19th Century, “Bloody Jack” uses the familiar trope of a girl dressed as a boy to experience a man’s world, but the appealing heroine, diverse cast of characters and spot-on pacing made the story fresh and exciting.
Mary “Jacky” Faber escapes a dismal life as a London street urchin by fast-talking her way on board a British man-of-war headed out to sea in pursuit of pirates. Because she can read and write, she is assigned to help the tutor who instructs the young midshipmen and ship's boys. As performed by Kellgren, Jacky's voice conveys her wonder at the sights and workings of the ship, terror in battle, and later in the story, the overwhelming joy of young love. She comes fully alive in Kellgren's telling – smart, resourceful, self-deprecating, tender-hearted yet practical.
Much of the humor and dramatic tension in the story comes from Jacky's efforts to maintain her disguise – first because she does not think through all the implications ("What about the call of nature, you twit?") and second because she begins to fall in love with another ship's boy, Jamie Fletcher, who comes from a respectable family fallen on hard times. Jacky struggles very believably to choose between the freedom of being a boy – able to climb rigging, visit taverns on shore leave and explore opportunities denied to women – and her desire to live as her true self. (She also discovers, later on, what is meant by the phrase "feminine wiles" and how to use hers to advantage.)
Jacky also learns hard lessons about grown men who bully those they perceive as weaker, and about abusers who victimize children to satisfy their twisted desires. The HMS Dolphin is a microcosm of humanity itself, with all of the good and evil of men represented on its decks. Much of the story was quite dark and brutal, showing the hardships sailors endured and how cheaply life was sometimes held.
I greatly appreciated how the characters behaved in ways both true to their times and to their own experiences. (For example, Jamie at first turns up his nose at the daily ration of horse meat, while the malnourished Jacky wolfs it down as if it’s the best thing she’s ever tasted.) By the story's end, many of the characters - from the unflappable Captain Locke to the passionate but prudish scholar Mr. Tilden to the kindly "sea dad" Liam Delaney - seemed like old friends.
This book has it all: adventure, excitement, humor, pathos and tenderness – all vividly rendered by Kellgren. I am looking forward to joining Jacky on the rest of her adventures in this series.
Set at the turn of the 19th Century, “Bloody Jack” uses the familiar trope of a girl dressed as a boy to experience a man’s world, but the appealing heroine, diverse cast of characters and spot-on pacing made the story fresh and exciting.
Mary “Jacky” Faber escapes a dismal life as a London street urchin by fast-talking her way on board a British man-of-war headed out to sea in pursuit of pirates. Because she can read and write, she is assigned to help the tutor who instructs the young midshipmen and ship's boys. As performed by Kellgren, Jacky's voice conveys her wonder at the sights and workings of the ship, terror in battle, and later in the story, the overwhelming joy of young love. She comes fully alive in Kellgren's telling – smart, resourceful, self-deprecating, tender-hearted yet practical.
Much of the humor and dramatic tension in the story comes from Jacky's efforts to maintain her disguise – first because she does not think through all the implications ("What about the call of nature, you twit?") and second because she begins to fall in love with another ship's boy, Jamie Fletcher, who comes from a respectable family fallen on hard times. Jacky struggles very believably to choose between the freedom of being a boy – able to climb rigging, visit taverns on shore leave and explore opportunities denied to women – and her desire to live as her true self. (She also discovers, later on, what is meant by the phrase "feminine wiles" and how to use hers to advantage.)
Jacky also learns hard lessons about grown men who bully those they perceive as weaker, and about abusers who victimize children to satisfy their twisted desires. The HMS Dolphin is a microcosm of humanity itself, with all of the good and evil of men represented on its decks. Much of the story was quite dark and brutal, showing the hardships sailors endured and how cheaply life was sometimes held.
I greatly appreciated how the characters behaved in ways both true to their times and to their own experiences. (For example, Jamie at first turns up his nose at the daily ration of horse meat, while the malnourished Jacky wolfs it down as if it’s the best thing she’s ever tasted.) By the story's end, many of the characters - from the unflappable Captain Locke to the passionate but prudish scholar Mr. Tilden to the kindly "sea dad" Liam Delaney - seemed like old friends.
This book has it all: adventure, excitement, humor, pathos and tenderness – all vividly rendered by Kellgren. I am looking forward to joining Jacky on the rest of her adventures in this series.
August 3, 2007
Fun book about a girl from the London slums who boards a British Navy boat as a boy. In my library it's a Young Adult book, but it's a good quick read, plenty of happenings and adventure. It's told first person, so it takes a little bit to get used to the grammar. A kid from the gutter's not going to speak the Queen's English, after all.
After surviving on the streets of London, Mary's friend and protector is killed. She takes his clothes and his shiv and heads off to find something more for herself. She can read and write (her parents had some means, before the rest of her family died from some illness) and is pretty scrappy. She's always dreamed of going to sea, so she boards a ship, no long Little Mary, but Jacky.
She thrives on steady meals and hard work. She faces battles, both with pirates and her shipmates, during which she earns her nickname "Bloody Jack." After a heated battle with a dreaded pirate in the Caribbean, the ship has to run itself ashore on an island or sink. Jacky is sent aloft on a kite to search for land and hardwood to repair the ship. She's swept off on the winds, finds woods, signals her ship and waits. Her rescue's imperiled when the pirates attack her shipmates. Her attempts to save them end her in a noose, with everyone knowing she's a girl.
They take the day, but she's put off the ship in Boston to attend a school for young ladies.
This is the first in a series. Maybe not great for younger kids.
After surviving on the streets of London, Mary's friend and protector is killed. She takes his clothes and his shiv and heads off to find something more for herself. She can read and write (her parents had some means, before the rest of her family died from some illness) and is pretty scrappy. She's always dreamed of going to sea, so she boards a ship, no long Little Mary, but Jacky.
She thrives on steady meals and hard work. She faces battles, both with pirates and her shipmates, during which she earns her nickname "Bloody Jack." After a heated battle with a dreaded pirate in the Caribbean, the ship has to run itself ashore on an island or sink. Jacky is sent aloft on a kite to search for land and hardwood to repair the ship. She's swept off on the winds, finds woods, signals her ship and waits. Her rescue's imperiled when the pirates attack her shipmates. Her attempts to save them end her in a noose, with everyone knowing she's a girl.
They take the day, but she's put off the ship in Boston to attend a school for young ladies.
This is the first in a series. Maybe not great for younger kids.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 21, 2022
About 12 years ago, I had a student wanting to know if this series was available from the high school media center. She had read it in middle school and wanted to reread it because it was that good. It took me awhile, but I finally read this story about Jacky (aka Mary Faber) who disguises herself as a boy in the early 1800s London to become a sailor on a sea vessel. Who knew life on the high seas could be so much fun?
September 26, 2013
It's a YA novel, but it's also great fun. It's one of those books where I'm like, "There should be more of these." (And there are! It's a whole series!) None of the elements are terribly new or original (or realistic), but it's all put together well and has just what (well, I) like to read!
A young girl, Mary Faber, is orphaned on the streets of 18th-century London. She joins a gang of kids and learns begging and even some thieving, but when a ghoulish thug who sells the bodies of dead street kids to medical schools kills the leader of her gang, she realizes it's time to leave. Disguising herself as a boy and calling herself Jack, she gets taken on as a cabin boy on a ship bound to hunt down pirates.
Much nautical adventure ensues...
A young girl, Mary Faber, is orphaned on the streets of 18th-century London. She joins a gang of kids and learns begging and even some thieving, but when a ghoulish thug who sells the bodies of dead street kids to medical schools kills the leader of her gang, she realizes it's time to leave. Disguising herself as a boy and calling herself Jack, she gets taken on as a cabin boy on a ship bound to hunt down pirates.
Much nautical adventure ensues...
March 16, 2009
Sangat mudah menemukan anak-anak jalanan di hampir setiap sudut jalan-jalan di Jakarta, sepertinya di banyak kota di Indonesia. Ada yang jadi pengemis, pengamen, pedagang asongan, dan pedagang koran. Kebanyakan, dipaksa untuk melakukan pekerjaan itu, baik oleh orang tuanya ataupun oleh orang lain yang “menyewa” mereka. Tapi, tidak sedikit juga yang memang melakukan pekerjaan itu karena ingin membantu orang tau dalam memenuhi kebutuhan hidup keluarga, atau bisa juga karena mereka memang sudah tidak punya siapa-siapa lagi.
Tidak hanya bekerja di jalanan, banyak juga anak-anak yang bekerja di pabrik sebagai buruh, anak-anak yang terpaksa kehilangan masa anak-anak. Pernah mendengar kata jermal? Dalam KBBI, jermal berarti alat penangkap ikan berupa pagar dari pancang yang dipasang di tepi laut, berpintu seperti bubu dan dibelakangnya dipasang jaring besar yang dapat diangkat-angkat. Sebuah jermal lepas pantai Cermin, Sumatera Utara (bukan di tepi laut lagi) pun pernah (atau mungkin masih sampai sekarang, karena pada September 2008, masih ditemukan 3 orang pekerja jermal dibawah 18 tahun) menjadi tempat mempekerjakan anak-anak. Bisa dibayangkan, jika para pekerja minyak lepas pantai punya jadwal tiga minggu kerja dan seminggu istirahat di darat, maka para anak-anak ini harus tinggal berbulan-bulan di atas jermal untuk bekerja menangkap ikan. Bukan cuma kelelahan fisik yang akan mereka alami saat bekerja, tapi juga tekanan emosi ataupun mental dari pada “senior”.
Sekedar informasi, sejumlah jermal di lepas pantai Sumatera Utara, ditengarai masih mempekerjakan anak. Menurut hasil pengawasan pada September 2008 di beberapa jermal yang dilakukan oleh Pusat Pendidikan dan Informasi Hak Anak bersama Komite Aksi Propinsi Penanggulangan Bentuk-bentuk Pekerjaan Terburuk untuk Anak, ditemukan setidaknya tiga anak yang berusia masih dibawah 18 tahun, bekerja sebagai buruh jermal di perairan Kabupaten Asahan. Fakta ini jelas melanggar Peraturan Daerah Pemerintah Propinsi Sumatera Utara No 5 Tahun 2004 tentang Penghapusan Bentuk-Bentuk Pekerjaan Terburuk untuk Anak, serta melanggar juga Konvensi ILO Nomor 182 tentang Pelarangan Bentuk-bentuk Pekerjaan Terburuk Bagi Anak melalui UU Nomor 1 Tahun 2000. Jumlah itu memang sudah jauh berkurang dari sekitar 400 buruh anak pada tahun 1998, turun menjadi 30-an pada akhir Maret 2003.
Baiklah, mari kembali ke buku….
Mary Faber sudah menjadi anak yatim piatu sejak kecil. Dia harus menyaksikan ayah, ibu, dan adiknya meninggal karena terserang wabah penyakit. Lebih parahnya lagi, jasad adiknya dibawa oleh Muck, seorang pengumpul mayat, untuk kemudian di jual kepada dokter yang sedang belajar anatomi. Sejak saat itu, dia menganggap hari itu sebagai yang yang mengerikan dalam hidupnya. Dan hari itu juga, dia pun keluar dari rumahnya, dan menjadi anak jalanan. Hari pertama jadi anak jalanan, baju yang dia pakai sudah langsung dipalak oleh anak jalanan lainnya. Dia terpaksa memakai sebuah daster kotor dan bau, milik anak perempuan yang memalaknya.
Sebagai anak jalanan (di wilayah manapun), tidak baik berdiri sendiri, dia pun bergabung dengan geng anak jalanan yang dipimpin oleh Charlie. Bersama dengan anggota geng lainnya, mereka bekerja sama mencari uang dan makanan untuk kebutuhan sehari-hari. Mengemis dan mencuri adalah hal yang biasa mereka lakukan setiap hari. Bahkan, mereka pun harus siap sedia bertarung dengan geng anak jalanan lainnya demi mempertahankan “rumah” dan harga diri gengnya. Diam-diam, Mary menyukai Charlie. Sebagai pemimpin, Charlie selalu melindungi anggota gengnya. Terutama Mary, dia takut geng yang lain akan merebut Mary karena Mary bisa menulis dan membaca, sesuatu yang sangat jarang dimiliki oleh anak-anak jalanan pada masa itu.
Hingga suatu waktu, Charlie mati terbunuh. Dan ini yang membuat Mary memutuskan untuk keluar dari geng dan menjadi pelaut, untuk meraih impiannya. Sejak kecil, dia ingin berlayar mengeliling dunia agar bisa melihat kucing Cathay, tikus Bengali, dan kangguru. Mary mengambil baju Charlie dan menggunakannya, serta tidak lupa menyelipkan sebuah belati Charlie di balik rompinya. Dia memotong rambutnya menjadi sangat pendek dan dia menyamar jadi seorang anak laki-laki. Dia sadar, sangat tidak menguntungkan bagi seorang anak perempuan hidup dijalanan seorang diri. Dengan menjadi anak laki-laki, akan mempermudah Mary untuk mendapatkan uang dengan bekerja sebagai penjaga kuda.
Singkat kata, , Mary bergabung dengan Kapal Kerajaan Inggris yang sedang membutuhkan 6 anak laki-laki untuk dijadikan menjadi pesuruh kapal. Dia bersaing dengan anak-anak laki-laki yang lain untuk mendapatkan pekerjaan itu. Ketika anak-anak lainnya mengandalkan kemampuan ototnya, dia hanya berteriak kalau dia bisa membaca dan menulis. Sebagai pesuruh kapal, dia mengaku bernama Jack. Orang-orang di kapal memanggilnya dengan nama Jacky. Jacky tumbuh sebagai seorang anak yang tidak mau ditindas.
Dalam penyamarannya, Jacky bersiasat membuat gulungan kain berbentuk silinder, dan menjahitkannya kebagian depan celana dalamnya, agar terlihat memiliki “sesuatu” yang seharusnya dimiliki oleh seorang lelaki. Dia juga harus bersiasat ketika harus mandi dan pipis bersama pesuruh kapal lainnya. Tapi satu hal yang sempat dia tidak mengerti adalah ketika dia mulai mengalami menstruasi. Mengetahui tubuhnya mengeluarkan darah, dia merasa telah terkena wabah penyakit mematikan dan akan segera meninggal. Sampai dia menuliskan sebuah surat wasiat untuk membagikan “warisan” buat teman-temannya.
Banyak hal yang dialami oleh Jacky di atas kapal itu, mulai dari penindasan seorang taruna, tidur bersama anak-anak laki-laki, pelecehan seksual dari seorang kelasi, dan berperang dengan bajak laut, yang menjadikan dia diberi gelar Jack Si Pemberani. Jacky dua kali membunuh manusia, pertama dengan menembak bajak laut yang hendak menusuk Jaimy, pesuruh kapal yang dia cintai, dan yang kedua adalah kelasi yang hendak melecehkannya secara seksual.
Sebagai pekerja anak, Mary “Jack” Faber pun mengalami hal-hal yang umumnya dialami pekerja anak lainnya. Ada orang-orang yang menjadi “musuh”, dan ada juga yang menjadi teman yang melindungi. Tapi, apakah penyamaran Jack akan terbongkar? Dan bagaimana kisah cintanya dengan Jaimy?
Buku ini sangat menghibur, terjemahannya benar-benar dikerjakan secara serius (tidak asal-asalan seperti beberapa buku terjemahan yang sebelumnya saya baca) walaupun ada sedikit salah-salah ketik, tapi tidak mengurangi kenikmatan membaca buku ini. Katanya sih ada buku lanjutannya, berburu dimulai. And, this book is recommended for everyone!!!
Tidak hanya bekerja di jalanan, banyak juga anak-anak yang bekerja di pabrik sebagai buruh, anak-anak yang terpaksa kehilangan masa anak-anak. Pernah mendengar kata jermal? Dalam KBBI, jermal berarti alat penangkap ikan berupa pagar dari pancang yang dipasang di tepi laut, berpintu seperti bubu dan dibelakangnya dipasang jaring besar yang dapat diangkat-angkat. Sebuah jermal lepas pantai Cermin, Sumatera Utara (bukan di tepi laut lagi) pun pernah (atau mungkin masih sampai sekarang, karena pada September 2008, masih ditemukan 3 orang pekerja jermal dibawah 18 tahun) menjadi tempat mempekerjakan anak-anak. Bisa dibayangkan, jika para pekerja minyak lepas pantai punya jadwal tiga minggu kerja dan seminggu istirahat di darat, maka para anak-anak ini harus tinggal berbulan-bulan di atas jermal untuk bekerja menangkap ikan. Bukan cuma kelelahan fisik yang akan mereka alami saat bekerja, tapi juga tekanan emosi ataupun mental dari pada “senior”.
Sekedar informasi, sejumlah jermal di lepas pantai Sumatera Utara, ditengarai masih mempekerjakan anak. Menurut hasil pengawasan pada September 2008 di beberapa jermal yang dilakukan oleh Pusat Pendidikan dan Informasi Hak Anak bersama Komite Aksi Propinsi Penanggulangan Bentuk-bentuk Pekerjaan Terburuk untuk Anak, ditemukan setidaknya tiga anak yang berusia masih dibawah 18 tahun, bekerja sebagai buruh jermal di perairan Kabupaten Asahan. Fakta ini jelas melanggar Peraturan Daerah Pemerintah Propinsi Sumatera Utara No 5 Tahun 2004 tentang Penghapusan Bentuk-Bentuk Pekerjaan Terburuk untuk Anak, serta melanggar juga Konvensi ILO Nomor 182 tentang Pelarangan Bentuk-bentuk Pekerjaan Terburuk Bagi Anak melalui UU Nomor 1 Tahun 2000. Jumlah itu memang sudah jauh berkurang dari sekitar 400 buruh anak pada tahun 1998, turun menjadi 30-an pada akhir Maret 2003.
Baiklah, mari kembali ke buku….
Mary Faber sudah menjadi anak yatim piatu sejak kecil. Dia harus menyaksikan ayah, ibu, dan adiknya meninggal karena terserang wabah penyakit. Lebih parahnya lagi, jasad adiknya dibawa oleh Muck, seorang pengumpul mayat, untuk kemudian di jual kepada dokter yang sedang belajar anatomi. Sejak saat itu, dia menganggap hari itu sebagai yang yang mengerikan dalam hidupnya. Dan hari itu juga, dia pun keluar dari rumahnya, dan menjadi anak jalanan. Hari pertama jadi anak jalanan, baju yang dia pakai sudah langsung dipalak oleh anak jalanan lainnya. Dia terpaksa memakai sebuah daster kotor dan bau, milik anak perempuan yang memalaknya.
Sebagai anak jalanan (di wilayah manapun), tidak baik berdiri sendiri, dia pun bergabung dengan geng anak jalanan yang dipimpin oleh Charlie. Bersama dengan anggota geng lainnya, mereka bekerja sama mencari uang dan makanan untuk kebutuhan sehari-hari. Mengemis dan mencuri adalah hal yang biasa mereka lakukan setiap hari. Bahkan, mereka pun harus siap sedia bertarung dengan geng anak jalanan lainnya demi mempertahankan “rumah” dan harga diri gengnya. Diam-diam, Mary menyukai Charlie. Sebagai pemimpin, Charlie selalu melindungi anggota gengnya. Terutama Mary, dia takut geng yang lain akan merebut Mary karena Mary bisa menulis dan membaca, sesuatu yang sangat jarang dimiliki oleh anak-anak jalanan pada masa itu.
Hingga suatu waktu, Charlie mati terbunuh. Dan ini yang membuat Mary memutuskan untuk keluar dari geng dan menjadi pelaut, untuk meraih impiannya. Sejak kecil, dia ingin berlayar mengeliling dunia agar bisa melihat kucing Cathay, tikus Bengali, dan kangguru. Mary mengambil baju Charlie dan menggunakannya, serta tidak lupa menyelipkan sebuah belati Charlie di balik rompinya. Dia memotong rambutnya menjadi sangat pendek dan dia menyamar jadi seorang anak laki-laki. Dia sadar, sangat tidak menguntungkan bagi seorang anak perempuan hidup dijalanan seorang diri. Dengan menjadi anak laki-laki, akan mempermudah Mary untuk mendapatkan uang dengan bekerja sebagai penjaga kuda.
Singkat kata, , Mary bergabung dengan Kapal Kerajaan Inggris yang sedang membutuhkan 6 anak laki-laki untuk dijadikan menjadi pesuruh kapal. Dia bersaing dengan anak-anak laki-laki yang lain untuk mendapatkan pekerjaan itu. Ketika anak-anak lainnya mengandalkan kemampuan ototnya, dia hanya berteriak kalau dia bisa membaca dan menulis. Sebagai pesuruh kapal, dia mengaku bernama Jack. Orang-orang di kapal memanggilnya dengan nama Jacky. Jacky tumbuh sebagai seorang anak yang tidak mau ditindas.
Dalam penyamarannya, Jacky bersiasat membuat gulungan kain berbentuk silinder, dan menjahitkannya kebagian depan celana dalamnya, agar terlihat memiliki “sesuatu” yang seharusnya dimiliki oleh seorang lelaki. Dia juga harus bersiasat ketika harus mandi dan pipis bersama pesuruh kapal lainnya. Tapi satu hal yang sempat dia tidak mengerti adalah ketika dia mulai mengalami menstruasi. Mengetahui tubuhnya mengeluarkan darah, dia merasa telah terkena wabah penyakit mematikan dan akan segera meninggal. Sampai dia menuliskan sebuah surat wasiat untuk membagikan “warisan” buat teman-temannya.
Banyak hal yang dialami oleh Jacky di atas kapal itu, mulai dari penindasan seorang taruna, tidur bersama anak-anak laki-laki, pelecehan seksual dari seorang kelasi, dan berperang dengan bajak laut, yang menjadikan dia diberi gelar Jack Si Pemberani. Jacky dua kali membunuh manusia, pertama dengan menembak bajak laut yang hendak menusuk Jaimy, pesuruh kapal yang dia cintai, dan yang kedua adalah kelasi yang hendak melecehkannya secara seksual.
Sebagai pekerja anak, Mary “Jack” Faber pun mengalami hal-hal yang umumnya dialami pekerja anak lainnya. Ada orang-orang yang menjadi “musuh”, dan ada juga yang menjadi teman yang melindungi. Tapi, apakah penyamaran Jack akan terbongkar? Dan bagaimana kisah cintanya dengan Jaimy?
Buku ini sangat menghibur, terjemahannya benar-benar dikerjakan secara serius (tidak asal-asalan seperti beberapa buku terjemahan yang sebelumnya saya baca) walaupun ada sedikit salah-salah ketik, tapi tidak mengurangi kenikmatan membaca buku ini. Katanya sih ada buku lanjutannya, berburu dimulai. And, this book is recommended for everyone!!!
September 10, 2022
This is the type of book I love. History, love, pirates, a gutsy girl and just overall fun. Young Jacky Faber loses her family to the pestilence and ends up a preteen girl living in the streets of London, singing and begging to survive. When the gang leader who protects her dies, she joins her majesty's royal navy but she has to change her identity to male. I loved every minute of this action filled story and I am delighted to have come across this series. Btw, I listened to the audiobook and I love when I come across the great marriage of a awesome book and a outstanding narration. That is what you have here in Bloody Jack.
August 23, 2017
Would have given this more stars, because I (mostly) enjoyed the story and I like the main character, but.
1. James 'Jaimy' Emerson Fletcher. Holy fuck I wanna punch that boy in the face. I can't even put it into words, really, but he rubs me the wrong way something major. The fact that wants Jacky to be more "lady-like" doesn't help.
2. The fact that, when Jacky and Jaimy are fooling around, it is Jacky's job to make sure things don't go too far, because Jaimy can't think straight in these situations and can't help himself. Which, OK, Jacky doesn't want to get pregnant, so she doesn't want full out piv intercourse, so she makes sure it doesn't happen. Awesome. More power to her. But I could really, really do without another thing telling me that women have to be the responsible ones in stuff like this, because men are slaves to their needs and they can't help themselves the poor babies. Ugh. Also, the fact that Jacky broke down in tears when trying to convince Jaimy that they can't have sex doesn't really makes things any better.
So, yeah. Fun little story but. Issues. I have them.
1. James 'Jaimy' Emerson Fletcher. Holy fuck I wanna punch that boy in the face. I can't even put it into words, really, but he rubs me the wrong way something major. The fact that wants Jacky to be more "lady-like" doesn't help.
2. The fact that, when Jacky and Jaimy are fooling around, it is Jacky's job to make sure things don't go too far, because Jaimy can't think straight in these situations and can't help himself. Which, OK, Jacky doesn't want to get pregnant, so she doesn't want full out piv intercourse, so she makes sure it doesn't happen. Awesome. More power to her. But I could really, really do without another thing telling me that women have to be the responsible ones in stuff like this, because men are slaves to their needs and they can't help themselves the poor babies. Ugh. Also, the fact that Jacky broke down in tears when trying to convince Jaimy that they can't have sex doesn't really makes things any better.
So, yeah. Fun little story but. Issues. I have them.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 21, 2017
Young Adult book--audience ages 12-18. "Jacky" the 13 year old girl who pretends to be boy is asleep in her rope bunk aboard ship. One of the adult males believing she is a boy attempts to rape her. When he discovers she is a hen and not a rooster, he. Is even happier. Jacky stabs him with her shiv to protect herself.
I don't find this realistic content appropriate for most of this age group. 16-18 okay but younger kids no. If you allow your child to read a book like this that appears to be entertainment and wish fulfillment ( I want to be a pirate), you better read it first, so you can prepare them for the above sort of content.
I didn't find this book to be entertaining or enjoyable, but then I am not a young adult and never wanted to be a pirate!
I don't find this realistic content appropriate for most of this age group. 16-18 okay but younger kids no. If you allow your child to read a book like this that appears to be entertainment and wish fulfillment ( I want to be a pirate), you better read it first, so you can prepare them for the above sort of content.
I didn't find this book to be entertaining or enjoyable, but then I am not a young adult and never wanted to be a pirate!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 9, 2017
After reading Daughter of the Pirate King, I was in the mood for more high seas adventure. Featuring a cross-dressing girl trying to escape a life on the streets by getting hired on as a ship boy on a royal vessel, Bloody Jack definitely fit the bill. But it was funny, too. I about died when Jacky thought she had contracted some plague and was going to die a horrible death because she didn't know what her monthlies were. Bahaha. Yeah, it starts out young, but by the end of the book she's about 15, so I know future books in the series will likely be less on the middle-grade side. Though, I did enjoy her child-like demeanor and the levity it brought.
Oh, and Katherine Kellgren as narrator was perfection.
Oh, and Katherine Kellgren as narrator was perfection.
April 5, 2009
Honestly didn't think I would like this one--you know, cause I get seasick, and this being a story about sailors and ships.
Jacky Faber has wonderful characteristics: strong female, too much pride for her own good, and clever. Her voice stays with you long after you close the book.
The only thing that bothered me (and this is going to sound really stupid) are the run-on sentences. I hope I'll get used to it with the next installment.
My favorite line: "The Captain is so happy, he's forgivin' you for bein' a girl..."
Jacky Faber has wonderful characteristics: strong female, too much pride for her own good, and clever. Her voice stays with you long after you close the book.
The only thing that bothered me (and this is going to sound really stupid) are the run-on sentences. I hope I'll get used to it with the next installment.
My favorite line: "The Captain is so happy, he's forgivin' you for bein' a girl..."
September 24, 2018
I wanted to like this more than I did, and I can't quite put my finger on why this was just an okay book to me. Jackie is a fun character. I guess it just didn't quite click.
Content warning: some gruesome violence and some sex talk and sexual situations including an attempted rape
2018 challenge: a book set at sea
Content warning: some gruesome violence and some sex talk and sexual situations including an attempted rape
2018 challenge: a book set at sea
February 13, 2009
"Bloody Jack" was an amazing story! I don't think I could've done half of what she did. Jacky lived ever since her parents had died of the plague on the streets of London but when an old man named Muck kills the leader of the gang, at least that is who they think did it, then she feels that she is forced to leave. Jacky takes his clothes, and his shiv, and comes aboard a royal navy ship as a ships boy. There she is the only girl aboard, and she has stay under the radar, but she seems to naturally draw attenetion, from almost getting raped by one of the senior members of the crew, to being the best flute player aboard,she gracefully hides her identity from everyone practically flawlessly. My favorite part was when Jaimy, who she had to share a hammock with, came into the sleeping quarters and caught her sewing a dress. He then proceeded to tell her that he liked her (not just as a friend) and that he would probably have to leave the ship because it meant that he was gay. Then Jacky got up, held out the dress, asked him to help her measure it, and then said "What, ain't you ever seen a girl?"
I recomend this for anyone with a sense of adventure and a taste for the ocean, but mostly for teenage girls. You will never be dissapointed by the action, or the plot. This is an amazing book. Not to mention how fun it is to figure out all of the old-English slang that the characters use.
I recomend this for anyone with a sense of adventure and a taste for the ocean, but mostly for teenage girls. You will never be dissapointed by the action, or the plot. This is an amazing book. Not to mention how fun it is to figure out all of the old-English slang that the characters use.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 7, 2010
I thoroughly enjoyed at least the first half of this, and enjoyed many bits after, so I'd rather give three and a half stars if I could...
Know all those great old ballads where the girl cuts off her hair, sometimes binds up her breasts and goes off to sea? With never a mention of how the hell she's going to continue to pass for a boy on a ship full of sailors - no private bedrooms or nice, locking toilets? Well, this book has the same plotline, except the heroine more sensibly gets taken on as a ship's boy when young and undernourished, and it actually deals with problems like going to the toilet, the very rare occasion on which she has to wash and later on, getting her period and not knowing that she isn't dying!
When my enjoyment started dimming down was when the romance started up. Jacky remains the resourceful-but-no-braver-than-she-HAS-to-be character she was, but her love (*not* lover, thanks to a useful lesson from a prostitute she visits!) is pretty wet, and the incredulity at their managing to sneak all this time together unnoticed, just because they climb up to a cozy spot in the rigging is pretty high.
Know all those great old ballads where the girl cuts off her hair, sometimes binds up her breasts and goes off to sea? With never a mention of how the hell she's going to continue to pass for a boy on a ship full of sailors - no private bedrooms or nice, locking toilets? Well, this book has the same plotline, except the heroine more sensibly gets taken on as a ship's boy when young and undernourished, and it actually deals with problems like going to the toilet, the very rare occasion on which she has to wash and later on, getting her period and not knowing that she isn't dying!
When my enjoyment started dimming down was when the romance started up. Jacky remains the resourceful-but-no-braver-than-she-HAS-to-be character she was, but her love (*not* lover, thanks to a useful lesson from a prostitute she visits!) is pretty wet, and the incredulity at their managing to sneak all this time together unnoticed, just because they climb up to a cozy spot in the rigging is pretty high.
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