Devil's Ballast

May 15, 2020
A swashbuckling fictional account of two of the world's most infamous pirates. Fiery 18-year-old Anne Bonny flees from her abusive husband into the arms of Calico Jack Rackham and a life at sea. Disguised as a boy, she sails as a pirate aboard Calico's ship--only he knows her true identity. When a dalliance with Calico leads to an unwanted pregnancy, Bonny plans to wait out her pregnancy in Cuba, where they are headed. When their ship is attacked by pirate hunter Jonathan Barnet, Calico's crew flees, leaving an injured Bonny behind. She befriends Martin Read, an even-keeled sailor from Barnet's crew, and the duo escape to Havana, where Bonny waits out her pregnancy. However, both Barnet and Bonny's husband are on the hunt. Bonny's first-person narration is punctuated by chapters following Barnet in close third person; Bonny's narrative voice is compelling while Barnet's portions mostly just work to keep the plot at a clip. While some aspects of Bonny's and Read's intersecting timelines are rearranged, Caddy maintains historical authenticity throughout, neither dampening the violence of the setting nor the dangers of having a marginalized body. Most characters are white. The two black pirates on Calico's crew were formerly enslaved; one is also implied to be gay. The author plays with gender and identity, maintaining the spirit of the traditional story while adding much-needed trans representation. A satisfying seafaring adventure. (map) (Historical fiction. 14-18)

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July 1, 2020
Grades 7-12 This swashbuckling tale of early eighteenth-century Caribbean piracy manages to be hilarious and harrowing. After running away from her drunken, abusive husband, 18-year-old Anne Bonney falls in love with pirate John Rackham, aka Calico Jack. Disguising herself as a young boy, she works as a rigger on his ship, eventually becoming his mistress and later his wife. Her feistiness, Irish temper, quick tongue, and sharp-shooting ability often get Anne in trouble, but these characteristics also help her escape from scrapes and rescue Calico Jack several times. Anne is the story's heroine, but her accomplice, pirate Mark (Mary) Read, also plays an important role. Caddy deftly blends fact and fiction, taking the three actual pirates and their exploits and turning them into a propulsive and unified work of historical fiction?though she sometimes arranges events to suit the story. Her characterization of Bonney's ability to outwit even the meanest pursuer is spot-on, and Caddy successfully incorporates issues of sexuality, abuse, and male dominance, proving them as relevant then as now. An invigorating page-turner!(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)

April 4, 2019
After escaping her violently abusive husband, Anne Bonny disguises herself as a boy and joins her lover, pirate captain Calico Jack Rackham, on his ship the Ranger. Anne fits in well on the Ranger: she is mouthy and a fantastic shot, and while she may not be universally loved by the rest of the crew, she at least earns their begrudging respect. Life feels good for Anne until she learns she is pregnant. But before she and Calico Jack can go through with their plan to leave the baby with some friends of his in Cuba, Anne is captured by Barnet, a pirate hunter hired by her abusive husband to bring ‘his property’ back. Devil’s Ballast is a morally murky book. Even though you spend most of the book cheering them on, furiously turning the pages desperate to see them together again, Anne and Calico Jack are not good guys in the story. Nor is Barnet the ‘bad guy’ of the story. Yes, he is hunting down our heroes, but he has good reason to feel burning hatred against their kind. At the same time, he is a brutal, violent captain, as violent as the pirates he chases (though he justifies his violent streak by insisting it’s needed to keep the men in line). Devil’s Ballast is great for readers of action-filled historical fiction aged 14 and up.

Dani Solomon is the assistant manager of Readings Kids