Pirate Brother

Jamie's Amazing Cape #4

by Pete Johnson, Mike Gordon (Illustrator)

Jamie’s wishes don’t always work perfectly, but this time Jamie has the perfect wish – to hang out with Brave Bill, the magic pirate from his favorite book! But then Jamie’s little brother steals his wish! Harry is off sailing the seven seas and Jamie is miserable – until Brave Bill turns up in Jamie’s bedroom. Jamie takes his new pirate friend to school but it turns out that magic pirate + school = disaster, and it’s up to Jamie to save the day.

112 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[Christina (Confessions of a Book Addict) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars - a cute read about a little boy whose favorite character, Brave Bill, comes to life and accompanies him to school! Adventure ensues!

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not so logical. But it has a moral.

[Megan Scarpelli · Rating 2 out of 5]

One of the books I’ve read to Nash. Didn’t care for this one.

[Sidra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jamie is just a normal boy who lacks confidence and therefore confides in the character of his favourite book called 'Brave Bill'. He also believes in magic, however his magic cape doesn't seem to be working too well. So one night, Jamie and his best friend Reema plan to wake up at midnight, also known as 'The Witching Hour', to make a wish using his magic cape to join Brave Bill on his ship. Unfortunately, Jamie's elder brother Harry beats him to it. Jamie tries to use the remaining magic to wish for Brave Bill once more, but he feels it might not work, only to find Brave Bill in his room the next morning.
Having Brave Bill seems like great fun at the start, but at school he causes a lot of chaos. Brave Bill loses his temper and disappears, which results in two shrunken teachers, several stolen items and a treasure map. Jamie has to eventually stand up to Brave Bill in front of his whole class and after returning get all their stolen items, Jamie is received with a great cheer.
Later that evening, Brave Bill finds Jamie at home and discovers that Brave Bill only did what he did to have everyone see how brave he really is.

This is a wonderful story for KS1 readers, as it is divided in to chapters and also contains a wide range of vocabulary. It is written in first person, which allows readers to relate to the main character in the story too. The story also contains direct speech and other language techniques such as rhetorical questions. This is helpful for children to start implementing new techniques in their own writing.