"Peter Duck" by Arthur Ransome

This book has a very unusual premise:  it is a fictional story written all together by the (also fictional) characters of Swallows and Amazons and Swallowdale.  It's a story that they made up together that stars themselves, but also a bunch of people they made up, like Peter Duck himself.  Got that straight, now?  If not, don't fret -- it took us a little while to get our minds wrapped around it too.  But we did, eventually!  

I read this aloud to my kids over the summer, though we got sidetracked for a bit and just finished it up toward the end of September.  It's a jolly good treasure-hunting yarn, and was such fun to experience alongside my kids.

Within the story, the four Swallows and two Amazons, plus Captain Flint (aka Uncle Jim) are all set to go on a summertime sailing adventure around Britain.  But when they invite an old seafaring gentleman named Peter Duck to go along, they soon find themselves being chased all over by Black Jake and his foul crew of miscreants, who are convinced Peter Duck knows where there's a fabulous treasure hidden over in the Caribbean on a deserted island.

Well, naturally, they all end up sailing across the Atlantic Ocean to find that treasure and get it before Black Jake can.  Many adventures befall them, especially once they reach the island and go looking for the treasure that Peter Duck did indeed see buried there when he was a boy.

If you like wholesome stories about kids having adventures and learning new skills alongside some trusted but adventurous adults, you need to read this series!

If This was a Movie, I Would Rate It: PG for some fairly intense parts involving natural disasters and big storms, and also a hand-to-hand fight with pirates.  No cussing or inappropriate content.

This is my 19th book read for my fourth Classics Club list, and my 49th from my TBR shelves for #TheUnreadShelfProject2023.