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Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck

Margarita Engle

3.68 · Rating details · 507 ratings · 159 reviews

Quebrado has been traded from pirate ship to ship in the Caribbean Sea for as long as he can remember. The sailors he toils under call him el quebrado--half islander, half outsider, a broken one. Now the pirate captain Bernardino de Talavera uses Quebrado as a translator to help navigate the worlds and words between his mother's Taíno Indian language and his father's Spani ...more

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Hardcover, 160 pages

Published March 15th 2011 by Henry Holt & Company

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Jun 07, 2020 Manybooks rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, childrens-poetry, book-reviews, too-distracting, too-many-points-of-view, removed-from-specific-time

Albeit that the sense of historical place works well and also engagingly enough in Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck, because in Maria Engle's blank verse texts there are never really ANY specific calendar dates being mentioned, the to and for me equally important and necessary sense of historical time does have the annoying and frustrating tendency to become more than a trifle confusing and problematic (since Engle actually seems to just assume that us readers should someh Albeit that the sense of historical place works well and also engagingly enough in Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck, because in Maria Engle's blank verse texts there are never really ANY specific calendar dates being mentioned, the to and for me equally important and necessary sense of historical time does have the annoying and frustrating tendency to become more than a trifle confusing and problematic (since Engle actually seems to just assume that us readers should somehow already be well aware of prior to even commencing with the main textual body of Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck that the temporal setting is supposed to be around 1510 A.D.). And sure, if you actually remember to read the Historical Setting section prior to commencing with Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck, you would (or at least you should) of course be cognizant of the latter, you would/should realise that the events, that the scenarios described in Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck do in fact take place in the early years of the 16th century.

But yes indeed, if you do decide to eschew reading the historical setting blurb, if you start your reading of Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck with young Quebrado's musings, there is really nothing in his words (or actually in the words of any of the other characters encountered in Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck) that clearly demonstrate a specific state of when, and yes, I certainly have been left wondering about the specific time frame of and for Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck. For while I do know that the time being described is clearly very much early, honestly, nowhere in Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck am I being given nearly enough details regarding time to in any way and specifically satisfy me (and therefore, much of Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck actually seems to feel pretty annoyingly and strangely temporally removed, and Maria Engle's blank verse poems, they feel as though I am reading above and beyond time, and well, for a piece of writing that is clearly meant to be historical fiction, that kind of a feeling and a sensation whilst reading is certainly and definitely rather frustrating at best).

Combined with the fact that I have also and equally simply not really all that much enjoyed Maria Engle's general writing style in Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck, that the constant switching from one character's point of view to another's, that the blank verse poetry of Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck just is not all that personally pleasurable and also tends to feel rather distancing and distracting, I can and will only consider but a two star maximum ranking for Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck (since yes, my entire reading experience has in fact and actually been been pretty well intensely disappointing). And really, the only reason why Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck is still receiving a two and not a one star rating from me is because I do in fact very much appreciate the supplemental information, and that Maria Engle has included not only an author's and a historical note but also appreciated secondary sources to further explore and study. But yes, me saying that the supplemental information section of Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck has in fact and in my opinion been the most readable and the most interesting part of Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck, this certainly does tell how much Maria Engle's blank verse narrative has simply not really resonated with me on a reading pleasure level. ...more

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Jul 17, 2011 Kimberly rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 52-books-in-52-weeks-2011

A gorgeously written account of the first Carribean pirate shipwreck in the 1500s. Our hero, Quebrado, is a slave of Taino Indian and Spanish ancestry. He belongs to no one, a child of two worlds, of two languages. He is a slave on the famous Vernardino de Talavera's pirate ship, the first of its kind in the Caribbean Sea, and a very important hostage is on board with them, Alonso de Ojeda.

The story is based on actual events, though Quebrado himself is fictional.
After the shipwreck, Quedbrado i ...more

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Jul 19, 2017 R K rated it liked it

Shelves: children-and-youth, recomended-books, poetry, cuba

3.5

An excellent introduction to poetry in verse. Poetry in verse is not my favourite style of as I prefer ones that have some sort of rhythm or rhyme, yet, for the story that Engle was trying to tell, verse was the only style that would fit.

Hurricane Dancers tells the story of a young boy working as a slave on a ship whose name Quebrado meaning "broken one" as his heritage is mixed since he comes from a Native mother and a Spanish father. Alone since he was very young, Quebrado does not know wh ...more

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May 24, 2011 Kim rated it it was amazing

Shelves: giveaways

I read this book the very same day I received it in the mail. The cover is beautiful, but the content is even more beautiful. This book is destined to become a classic. This book should be shared over and over, and passed from generation to generation.

I think that I will go read it again!

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Nov 30, 2014 Sarah rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: diversity, great-world-building, historical-fiction, poetry-verse-and-drama

I read this short book on the way back from my family's house this Thanksgiving.

I was surprised to find that it was told in verse--a quick flip-through would have shown me this, but this was one of the Free Book Day selections I had to grab before someone else did. Still, I was impressed with how much I was able to imagine and visualize with only a handful of words. Adjectives were used sparingly but with great effect.

I think the subtitle actually sells the book short: I picked this up mostly b ...more

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Apr 05, 2014 Michelle Llewellyn rated it it was ok

The poetic narrative in this book is admirable but I was easily confused by all the different storylines and characters with strange names.
No one talks to each other in this story.
No action except what is presented through stream of consciousness by each individual character. Drawings of each character next to their name at the top of the page would've made it easier to follow.
This becomes redundant, all these first person internal narratives presenting a thin tale of slavery, shipwreck, and ...more

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Apr 05, 2019 Cynthia rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2019, pirates

It was neat to read a whole story in poetry/verse form!

This pirate seafaring tale revolved around a native boy who was taken from his home and became a slave aboard a pirate ship. The ship perished in a Caribbean hurricane. The boy, the pirate captain, and the hostage - a Venezuelan governor survived and landed upon an island of cu ba "Friend Big", known today as Cuba.

Through the lens of these three characters and two more, characters of a folk tale Caucubu "Brave Earth" and Narido "River Being ...more

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Dec 27, 2020 Thaydra rated it really liked it

Shelves: fiction, poetry, history

A beautifully written book of prose of fictional slave boy based off of true historical events. The cadence is light, swift, and sometimes intense. Written in different "perspectives", it tells of a boy's plight after being taken captive on the first pirate ship, how it wrecked, and the people he found afterwards. I read it in only a couple of hours, so it is a small quick book. ...more

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Feb 08, 2021 Anna rated it really liked it

This is book is poetry in prose for children about the first Caribbean pirates. It is sparse in words, but is a great book for understanding characters and "reading in between the lines."

Quebrado is a mixed-race child stolen and enslaved on a ship. On a journey that ship is later sunk in a hurricane.

He arrives on an island, but is not the sole survivor. He must face his past to move forward in the future. ...more

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Jan 22, 2019 Pat C rated it it was amazing

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Dec 13, 2016 NerdyJediGymnast rated it really liked it

This book was told in different points of view and in a poetic kind of verse, which was pretty cool.

It's a historical fiction story about The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck (as he title says) and was short and to the point which I loved and it told the short tale of a slave boy who tries to find some kind freedom for himself while dealing with his original captors. It was a fun read and kept me engaged. But it mentioned the boy's (Quebrado) parents a lot and I wish in the end I knew what happ ...more

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Jul 06, 2011 Krista the Krazy Kataloguer rated it liked it

Shelves: read-childrens-books, read-novels-in-verse

I enjoyed learning the historical facts about the early history of Cuba that were revealed in this book, but the story itself lacked something. I might have liked it more had the drama of the flight of the lovers Narido and Caucubu been expanded upon, or the thoughts of Bernardino de Talavera and Alonso de Ojeda as they wandered, shipwrecked, on the island (did they repent their evil ways?) been dealt with at greater length. However, I understand the the story was mainly about the boy Quebrado a ...more

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Sep 24, 2011 Heather rated it liked it

Shelves: multicultural-titles, 2011, kids-books-i-would-recommend

After reading this book, I wondered why is it that

if we break up
the text on a page
it is
suddenly considered
poetry.

Frankly, I just consider it easier to read! :) Ms. Engle's words are lovely, though, so I guess that is why it is "free verse" and not just a wise use of white space. However, I don't think this was the best format for this story. There was too much going on to be addressed in a short free-verse novel, and I didn't think the legend of the two lovers meshed well with the rest of the ...more

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Jun 19, 2012 Tiffany rated it really liked it

Shelves: children-s-lit

This book could be read by a girl or boy who are in the grade 6 to 10. This book has spanish character names. The book is young boy that is called Quebrado that means half islander and half outsider, a broken. He has traded from ship to ship in the Caribbean Sea from as long as he can remember. But now the pirate captain wants this young boy to boy the translator to help navigate the worlds and words between his mother's and father's languages. Then a hurricane sinks the ship and most of the cre ...more

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Jan 29, 2012 Wendy rated it liked it

Shelves: 2011-award-possibilities

Some lovely atmosphere and writing here, but I had trouble following the timeline, which drew me out of the story. I could understand it only when I thought of it as a story without a linear timeline. Which I don't think was the intention. ...more

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Jul 10, 2015 Verity rated it it was amazing

This was a really quick read. The poetry flowed perfectly and the characters well defined despite the shortness of the poem. I enjoyed it!

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Apr 28, 2016 Kayla Edwards rated it liked it

Shelves: middle-grade-nonfiction

This was a very unique poetry-style telling about the convergence of several very different characters' lives and how it changes the course of those lives forever. A pleasant read. ...more

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Apr 29, 2018 Becky B rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, novels-in-verse, young-adult, adventure, legend

Quebrado is a gold mine for the pirate captain. With his half Caribbean native, half Spanish blood he can speak the tribal languages of the islands in addition to Spanish and act as translator for the pirate. Qeubrado can't wait to escape the abusive captain's clutches. Alonso de Ojeda also can't wait to escape the pirate's clutches. He was a brutal conquistador and Spanish governor until Captain Bernardino de Talavera kidnapped him. Meanwhile on a nearby island, the villagers have gathered in a Quebrado is a gold mine for the pirate captain. With his half Caribbean native, half Spanish blood he can speak the tribal languages of the islands in addition to Spanish and act as translator for the pirate. Qeubrado can't wait to escape the abusive captain's clutches. Alonso de Ojeda also can't wait to escape the pirate's clutches. He was a brutal conquistador and Spanish governor until Captain Bernardino de Talavera kidnapped him. Meanwhile on a nearby island, the villagers have gathered in a cave to sing and dance to appease the spirits. Among them is Naridó, a fisherman who loves the chief's daughter Caucubú. But Caucubú's father is determined to have his daughter marry the son of another tribe's chief instead of a lowly fisherman. Soon, the hurricane winds will bring all of these people together.

It is amazing to me how Engle can weave such a detailed and vivid story from just a few words. I love all of her books I've read to date, and this is no different. It's an enticing historical fiction set in what is now known as Cuba. It mixes historical fact with Cuban legend (Bernardino de Talavera was the first Caribbean pirate and he really did kidnap Alonso de Ojeda and have him on his ship when they were shipwrecked, the Naridó and Caucubú tale is a Cuban legend). Pirates often get a little too romanticized and we forget that in real life they're often brutal murderers and thieves. This paints a more realistic portrait of piracy while still providing an exciting tale. I think my two favorite characters were Quebrado, he gets the most focus and development, and even though he's a villain, Ojeda because of the way Engle wrote his conflicted soul. He feels almost like a Shakespearean character. Recommended for those who want a quick read and a more realistic portrayal of piracy and an easier historical slave trade read.

Notes on content: No language issues. No sexual content beyond some "embraces." Past violence and deaths are mentioned as well as some injuries incurred in the storm. ...more

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Jan 07, 2013 Katrina rated it really liked it

Shelves: young-adult-literature

Margarita Engle’s Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck is a beautifully written novel in verse, similar in many ways to her earlier book The Surrender Tree. Here again, Engle brings to life a lesser known period of Caribbean history through three distinct but intertwined stories: that of Quebrado; Naridó and Caucubú; and Ojeda and Talavera. While many of us are familiar with the history of Christopher Columbus, other stories of the conquest and colonization of the Americas are Margarita Engle’s Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck is a beautifully written novel in verse, similar in many ways to her earlier book The Surrender Tree. Here again, Engle brings to life a lesser known period of Caribbean history through three distinct but intertwined stories: that of Quebrado; Naridó and Caucubú; and Ojeda and Talavera. While many of us are familiar with the history of Christopher Columbus, other stories of the conquest and colonization of the Americas are often overlooked. This book offers part of that missing perspective.

Set in the early 16th century, Hurricane Dancers tells the story of Quebrado, a young boy enslaved on a pirate ship after losing his Taíno mother and Spanish father. In learning about Quebrado’s sotry, we also hear the tales o fthose around him. Here we learn about Alonso de Ojeda, a contemporary of Columbus, who sailed with him on his second voyage to the Americas. Ojeda became famous for his brutality, both in his settlement of Hispaniola and his later conquest of South America. Yet, in Engle’s book we find Ojeda the injured captive of Spanish pirate Bernardino de Talavera. We learn that Talavera is an impoverished conquistador. Once awarded a profitable land grant, Talavera literally worked his indigenous slaves to death, resulting in the loss of all his wealth. In order to avoid debtor’s prison, Talavera steals a ship and takes to the seas. And then, on this ship, we are introduced to Quebrado. The sailors name him Quebrado, meaning a broken one, because he is half islander and half outsider. Enslaved and beaten, Quebrado is used by Talavera as a translator because he speaks both Spanish and Taíno. Quebrado eventually gains his freedom when a hurricane sinks the ship and kills most of the crew. After the crash, Quebrado is saved and befriend by Naridó, a Taíno fisherman. Naridó is in love with Caucubú, the daughter of the tribe’s leader who is to be given away in an arranged marriage. Meanwhile, in an interesting twist of fate, Talavera and Ojeda find themselves alive, albeit severely injured, and are forced to depend on each other to survive and find help.

In the prose-poetry that follows, Ojeda and Talavera find themselves among the same villagers who have taken in Quebrado. Banished to an alligator infested swamp, the two Spaniards seem to have the nine lives of a cat, surviving even this. Quebrado is soon banished as well and sent away from his new found home. Ultimately, Quebrado must find the courage to banish the two from the island forever.

Hurricane Dancers is one of those books with limitless possibilities for classroom use, appropriate across grade levels for read aloud, independent reading or novel study. If you’re hesitant to use novel in verse in your classroom, don’t be. I’ll admit I had my doubts before I read Engle’s Surrender Tree. But I, along with the other teachers in our monthly book group, loved it. The novelty of this style will be interesting to students not familiar with it. It’s also a much simpler read. There’s no complicated dialogue to keep track of or dense pages to wade through. Each page is a poem written from one character’s perspective which makes it a great book to be read out loud—especially if you have enough copies for each student to have their own. Then, students can take turns reading the lines of the different characters as if it was a play. The simple style won’t intimidate struggling readers, but the engaging plot and beautiful descriptive imagery will catch the attention of all of your students. Booklist writes in its review, “Engle distills the emotion in each episode with potent rhythms, sounds, and original, unforgettable imagery. Linked together, the poems capture elemental identity questions and the infinite sorrows of slavery and dislocation. . .” It would be a perfect book to teach elements of literary or poetic analysis. Many students can struggle to understand or analyze the symbolism or imagery of a short poem, but within the context of an entire novel, these things can be easier to uncover and understand. The simple but beautiful imagery will paint amazing pictures in the minds and imaginations of young and old readers alike.

But, it’s not just a book for reading or language arts classes. It could be quite powerful in a social studies or history course. Hurricane Dancers could easily be integrated into any study on early exploration and conquest of the Caribbean and South America. An amazing unit could be put together using Engle’s novel along with Michael Dorris’ Morning Girl, and the teacher’s guide Rethinking Columbus: The Next 500 Years published by Rethinking Schools. Quite often our classroom resources focus on the point of view of Columbus or other explorers, but rarely do they give voice to the indigenous groups who inhabited the land or even name those groups. This is not the case with Hurricane Dancers. Engle’s “Author’s Note” at the end provides a wealth of information on the background of the historical figures mentioned in the book. Rethinking Columbus: The Next 500 Years also has a number of great resources written specifically about the Taíno. While Engle’s book doesn’t focus on current events, it could be an excellent resource for those teaching about more contemporary Social Studies issues, like child slavery. We featured another novel in October, The Queen of Water, that, if paired with Hurricane Dancers could provide an excellent means for studying both historical and contemporary issues around child slavery.
If nothing else, it is a moving story of a young boy’s journey to redemption. His final message is one that I believe we hope all our students understand and accept for themselves: “I no longer feel like Quebrado, a broken place. . .I am free of all those shattered ways of seeing myself. I am whole” (p. 133).

We have a free educator’s guide for Hurricane Dancers available on our blog at: http://teachinglatinamericathroughlit...
...more

flag Like · see review

Aug 11, 2015 Vamos a Leer rated it it was amazing

Margarita Engle's Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck is a beautifully written novel in verse, similar in many ways to her earlier book The Surrender Tree. Here again, Engle brings to life a lesser known period of Caribbean history through three distinct but intertwined stories: that of Quebrado; Naridó and Caucubú; and Ojeda and Talavera. While many of us are familiar with the history of Christopher Columbus, other stories of the conquest and colonization of the Americas are Margarita Engle's Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck is a beautifully written novel in verse, similar in many ways to her earlier book The Surrender Tree. Here again, Engle brings to life a lesser known period of Caribbean history through three distinct but intertwined stories: that of Quebrado; Naridó and Caucubú; and Ojeda and Talavera. While many of us are familiar with the history of Christopher Columbus, other stories of the conquest and colonization of the Americas are often overlooked. This book offers part of that missing perspective.

Set in the early 16th century, Hurricane Dancers tells the story of Quebrado, a young boy enslaved on a pirate ship after losing his Taíno mother and Spanish father. In learning about Quebrado's story, we also hear the tales of those around him. Here we learn about Alonso de Ojeda, a contemporary of Columbus, who sailed with Columbus on his second voyage to the Americas. Ojeda became famous for his brutality, both in his settlement of Hispaniola and his later conquest of South America. Yet, in Engle's book we find Ojeda the injured captive of Spanish pirate Bernardino de Talavera. We learn that Talavera is an impoverished conquistador. Once awarded a profitable land grant, Talavera literally worked his indigenous slaves to death, resulting in the loss of all his wealth. In order to avoid debtor's prison, Talavera steals a ship and takes to the seas. And then, on this ship, we are introduced to Quebrado. The sailors name him Quebrado, meaning a broken one, because he is half islander and half outsider. Enslaved and beaten, Quebrado is used by Talavera as a translator because he speaks both Spanish and Taíno. Quebrado eventually gains his freedom when a hurricane sinks the ship and kills most of the crew. After the crash, Quebrado is saved and befriended by Naridó, a Taíno fisherman. Naridó is in love with Caucubú, the daughter of the tribe's leader, who is to be given away in an arranged marriage. Meanwhile, in an interesting twist of fate, Talavera and Ojeda find themselves alive, albeit severely injured, and are forced to depend on each other to survive and find help.

In the prose-poetry that follows, Ojeda and Talavera find themselves among the same villagers who have taken in Quebrado. Banished to an alligator infested swamp, the two Spaniards seem to have the nine lives of a cat, surviving even this. Quebrado is soon banished as well and sent away from his newfound home. Ultimately, Quebrado must find the courage to banish the two from the island forever.
Hurricane Dancers is one of those books with limitless possibilities for classroom use, appropriate across grade levels for read aloud, independent reading or novel study. If you're hesitant to use novel in verse in your classroom, don't be. I'll admit I had my doubts before I read Engle's Surrender Tree. But I, along with the other teachers in our monthly book group, loved it. The novelty of this style will be interesting to students not familiar with it. It's also a much simpler read. There's no complicated dialogue to keep track of or dense pages to wade through. Each page is a poem written from one character's perspective which makes it a great book to be read out loud--especially if you have enough copies for each student to have his or her own. Then, students can take turns reading the lines of the different characters as if it was a play. The simple style won't intimidate struggling readers, but the engaging plot and beautiful descriptive imagery will catch the attention of all of your students. Booklist writes in its review, "Engle distills the emotion in each episode with potent rhythms, sounds, and original, unforgettable imagery. Linked together, the poems capture elemental identity questions and the infinite sorrows of slavery and dislocation. . ." It would be a perfect book to teach elements of literary or poetic analysis. Many students can struggle to understand or analyze the symbolism or imagery of a short poem, but within the context of an entire novel, these things can be easier to uncover and understand. The simple but beautiful imagery will paint amazing pictures in the minds and imaginations of young and old readers alike.

But, it's not just a book for reading or language arts classes. It could be quite powerful in a social studies or history course. Hurricane Dancers could easily be integrated into any study on early exploration and conquest of the Caribbean and South America. An amazing unit could be put together using Engle's novel along with Michael Dorris' Morning Girl, and the teacher's guide Rethinking Columbus published by Rethinking Schools. Quite often our classroom resources focus on the point of view of Columbus or other explorers, but rarely do they give voice to the indigenous groups who inhabited the land or even name those groups. This is not the case with Hurricane Dancers. Engle's "Author's Note" at the end provides a wealth of information on the background of the historical figures and peoples mentioned in the book. Rethinking Columbus: The Next 500 Years also has a number of great resources written specifically about the Taíno. While Engle's book doesn't focus on current events, it could be an excellent resource for those teaching about more contemporary Social Studies issues, like child slavery. We featured another novel in October, The Queen of Water, that, if paired with Hurricane Dancers, could provide an excellent means for studying both historical and contemporary issues around child. If nothing else, this is a moving story of a young boy's journey to redemption. His final message is one that I believe we hope all our students understand and accept for themselves: "I no longer feel like Quebrado, a broken place. . .I am free of all those shattered ways of seeing myself. I am whole" (p. 133).

Check out our free educator's guide at our wordpress blog Vamos a Leer. http://teachinglatinamericathroughlit... ...more

flag Like · see review

May 26, 2020 Lena Platt rated it really liked it

Shelves: spring-2020

Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck, by Margarita Engle, is a novel written in poetic free verse. Quebrado, meaning “broken,” is the main character. He is a slave aboard a pirate ship captained by Bernardino de Talavera, a real historical figure. Quebrado was born to a Spanish father and Ciboney Indian mother. He speaks two languages and as a slave, this is his only value to the pirate de Talavera. He abuses Quebrado, beats him to comply and translate for the wares that de Ta ...more

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Dec 01, 2020 Rosemarie Hill rated it it was ok

Shelves: books-11-20

Warnings: religious connotations, abuse (physical), mental disorders (PTSD)

This was a poetry book. Each poem's title is the name of one of the characters. The story is about the survivors of a shipwreck and the protagonist is "Quebrado" who was a slave to the pirate captain of the ship. The story follows him as he meets new people and tries to find his place despite his torn heritage. However, he isn't the only one to survive the shipwreck and his past comes back to haunt him.

It was an okay boo ...more

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Mar 24, 2020 Chloe Poe rated it really liked it

Hurricane Dancers
Free Choice
Genre: Poetry- Narrative
Awards: Pura Belpre Honor Book
Audience: 6th-10th grade

Hurricane dancers is a book of poems from the perspective of a Caribbean pirate, the hostage, a slave, a fisherman, and the village chief's daughter. Each poem is a narrative because it tells the story of each character and their struggles on the island after the hurricane hit. Through the narrative poems the reader learns about the life and struggles of each character.

The author, Margarit ...more

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Dec 12, 2017 ACS Librarian rated it liked it

Shelves: set-in-the-16th-century, read-for-the-kids, poetry, female-author, written-in-the-21st-century, my-classroom-library, young-adult, middle-grades, historical-fiction, adventure

In the 1500s, pirates roamed the Caribbean Sea. Hurricane Dancers is the story of a historical pirate (Talavera), a conquistador (Ojeda), and three natives (Quebrado, Narido, and Caucubu). When a hurricane strikes, the ship wrecks on an island and the power structure is reversed. Well the pirate and the conquistador survive this strange new world of natives, jungles, and wild animals?

This book was a bit challenging to follow at times. It is written in verse and every page is from a different poi ...more

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Oct 13, 2019 Beth (FebruaryFilly) rated it really liked it

Shelves: homeschooling, with-rory, library

The absolute surprise discovery of our homeschooling year. I didn’t expect such a rich experience when I randomly reserved every interesting looking book having to do with pirates from our library. Then we dove into a weather and a related natural disasters unit so with the title I held it off til the end of our pirates journey as a melding point between two units. And got so much more.

Early world exploration, native peoples, a play told in verse, language references, piracy, and yes, a hurrican ...more

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Oct 15, 2019 Elisabeth rated it it was amazing

Unexpected beauty. Recommended to me as a homeschool read for indigenous peoples day, I had no idea what I was getting with this book. What I got was something that was part historical fiction, part legend, part baring of cultural scars, and part poetry told in an understated free verse that was just lovely. I need to check out some other works by this author. I read this in one short sitting and I feel like I need to reread it and read something else like it.

Also, wouldn’t this be kind of grea ...more

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Apr 02, 2020 Angie rated it liked it

Shelves: middle-grade, fiction, historical, books-in-verse

My Review: After enjoying Firefly Letters by Engle, I wanted to track down more books in verse by her and came across this one. I really enjoyed this one with the various perspectives we get throughout the story. From the slave boy who has been shuffled around, to the privateer and the pirate ship captain, then to the natives they come across after the wreck. It is easy reading and can be enjoyed by readers of all ages, and the story keeps the pages turning to see what happens next. I love the d ...more

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Nov 23, 2020 Kelly rated it really liked it

Shelves: historical-fiction, poetry

I love poetry that tells a story, and Engle does this marvelously. With multiple narrators in this verse fiction book (very short verses), we learn meet the governor of Venezuela and the pirate who kidnapped him. Full of real and fictional characters and events, my only concern (complaint?) is that there are perhaps too many narrators so it's hard to distinguish the voices sometimes despite including their name at the top of each page. If I struggled a little as an adult, I expect young readers ...more

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Sep 17, 2017 Sharon rated it it was amazing

There are many stories going on in this short book making me want to investigate more. Who is Bernardino de Talavera, and why did he become a pirate? Alonso de Ojeda traveled with Amerigo Vespucci, so how did that come about? Narido and Caucubu's relationship is legend, so did it end well? There are so many questions from reading this exciting story! ...more

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Jun 28, 2018 Alice rated it really liked it

Told in free verse, this is a story of the first pirate of the Caribbean.Some of the characters are real but the storyteller is a fictional boy. We learn the story of Cuba and how it was decimated of natives by the Spanish. We also learn of two native Americans who ran away to marry: Narido and Caucuba, after whom the island of Cuba was named.

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About Margarita Engle

Margarita Engle

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Margarita Engle is a Cuban-American poet, novelist, and journalist whose work has been published in many countries. She lives with her husband in northern California.