Category: Children Publisher: Guardian Angel Publishing, Inc.
ISBN-10: 1616333855
Pages: 24
Copyright: May 20, 2013
ISBN-13: 9781616333850
Price: $5.00 (eBook)
The brutality of being kidnapped by the Royal Press Gangs becomes all too real for 12-year-old Tommy Kitt.
Forced into a life at sea by the Royal Navy Press Gangs, 12-year-old Tommy Kitt finds himself in a floating sea of misery. Poor living conditions and beatings occur daily. Despite his runt like size, Tommy must summon the courage and physical ability to prevail in a situation he cannot escape.
Excerpt
Smaller and two years younger than his 14-year-old brother, Tommy dove into the hay at the barn's edge. On many nights Tommy lay awake and strained to hear the muffled voices of his parents. The words muttered by his mama always the same. "What shall we do if the press gang comes here?" And father's steadfast response, "We shall hide our boys."
Professional Reviews
Best-selling children's author, Nancy I. Sanders Reviews Powder Monkey
"Danger. Hardship. Cannon blasts. And whips. Stolen violently into service as a boy who delivers powder to the cannons during a battle, young Tommy never sees his parents again. What adventures await him? Donna M. McDine's book, Powder Monkey, moves quickly through tense action scenes to portray realistic life during this dangerous era on the high seas."
~ Nancy I. Sanders, bestselling and award-winning children's author of Challenge on the Hill of Fire and Frederick Douglass for Kids
Amazon Best-selling author, Nancy Stewart Reviews Powder Monkey
"The saga of an age gone by, Donna McDine's Powder Monkey, ably captures the essence of what some young boys endured as impressed sailors. With pathos and honesty, this historically accurate account of Tommy Kitt's struggle to stay alive at sea, is a testimony to the author's prowess as a storyteller."
~ Nancy Stewart, Award-winning and Amazon best-selling children's author
Midwest Book Review Children's Bookwatch reviews Powder Monkey
Written by award winning children's author Donna McDine, "Powder Monkey" is a thumbnail sketch of the impressment experience of 12-year-old Tommy Kitt who was taken by force with his older brother from his parents' farm by a Royal Navy press gang to serve as a powder monkey and ship boy in a battleship at sea. Enduring beatings, dangerous living conditions, and demanding physical tasks, Tommy witnessed many brutalities including the death by drowning of his brother. But he survived to become an able seaman, never seeing his father and mother again. The fast moving action, bewildering immediacy, and vivid descriptions and illustrations make "Powder Monkey" an intense time travel experience for middle grade readers.
~ Reviewed by Midwest Book Review, Children’s Bookwatch, The Fiction Shelf http://www.midwestbookreview.com/cbw/sep_14.htm#EasyReader
