Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

The Queen of the Pirate Isle
The Queen of the Pirate Isle
The Queen of the Pirate Isle
Ebook69 pages34 minutes

The Queen of the Pirate Isle

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

3/5

()

Read preview
LanguageEnglish
Release dateJan 1, 1955
The Queen of the Pirate Isle
Author

Kate Greenaway

Kate Greenaway (1846–1901) was an English artist and writer, best known for her work in children’s books. Her slightly fantastical illustrations highlight the innocence of childhood, and her depictions of Regency era fashion were adapted into children’s clothing designs.

Read more from Kate Greenaway

Related to The Queen of the Pirate Isle

Related ebooks

Related articles

Reviews for The Queen of the Pirate Isle

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
3/5

5 ratings1 review

What did you think?

Tap to rate

Review must be at least 10 words

  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    Originally published in 1886, The Queen of the Pirate Isle is a short story set in and around a mining camp in gold-rush California - a milieu that features in almost all of Bret Harte's work. Illustrated in this 1931 edition by the fabulous Kate Greenaway, for whom Britain's premier illustrator's award is named, it seems at first glance to be a story for children.The four young protagonists - imaginative Polly, her cousin Hickory Hunt, their Chinese "page" Wan Lee, and neighbor-boy Patsey - are all children, and Harte here relates their adventures playing pirate. Unfortunately, the narrative is somewhat muddled, with a "realistic" runaway-adventure being followed by a (possible) dream sequence, morphing into an imaginary/fantastic adventure, which turns out to be "real" play. The connection between these various scenes is not always clear, and the language is rather dense. I find it hard to imagine that young readers, in Harte's day or in our own, would find this narrative appealing, leading me to suspect that this is an adult story presented here as a children's book because its protagonists are young.Leaving aside the question of the intended audience for The Queen of the Pirate Isle, Harte's narrative is also marred by his racist portrayal of Wan Lee, who speaks in the regrettable dialect reserved for "Oriental" characters in nineteenth and early twentieth-century literature. If I were rating this book based solely upon the text, this combination of unappealing story and anachronistic social themes would probably result in a single star.Fortunately (or not, as the case may be), I did find Kate Greenaway's illustrations absolutely delightful, and have therefore given this an added star. All in all, this is not a title I would recommend to readers either young or old, although Greenaway devotees will no doubt get something out of the experience.

Book preview

The Queen of the Pirate Isle - Kate Greenaway

y1^book_preview_excerpt.html}VnFP Pd;WH0-GQAVzfէ~D_3KIn86ɝ3dwhkͦݑې?V>^5LI0<zڵŅ[gY]/ YG rtS(S1ĞCuhguj{CZt3B3^Hu8E+O%>͹Oa_CU 0[isbC6uݰػZ D7~^u6g61]xTlX!뷐ѵ гzv|>ɫVseVph'OhN)-Q>Yravm:Ζbq >f׽n$QH<'jTJ6f@kZe ,zhwo` sxV*lHPy`l1~hhw?]nu-g)GHU*ok Gզj!1* Ż( нvmQ) ;8 tP*%s:0y-aϰL%ZUُoPv8:2>}@ vW9Q22[:݈g(RIj4Jڂ&++WY#W H-z)J@kD\yM_%~m{A7Tg" ̀ĻV@EPGEW& ,Xesn p9YFAy _Ao\nF hpaF\)Gˡ.mP5\ܹ:aD_ңqthmYHg mh@{k罓QxlchCrCWC[=\m{؂1 k8ixD#k &ZU-2.n UOS=)M{umɿ w8
Enjoying the preview?
Page 1 of 1