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Peter and the Starcatchers (by Dave Barry, Ridley Pearson)

common sense media says

A swashbuckling high-seas adventure.


parents & educators say

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that there's a fair amount of sexual innuendo for a book aimed at tweens. There's plenty of peril and fighting as well, and adult sailors and pirates get drunk on rum and grog.

Positive messages: Not applicable.
Violence: Lots of fighting, children often in peril, some shooting and stabbing, Peter cuts off Stache's hand.
Sex: A surprising amount of sexual innuendo, and Peter kisses a mermaid who is naked from the waist up.
Language: Not applicable.
Consumerism: Not applicable.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking: Sailors and pirates indulge in grog and rum, get drunk, and pass out.

More on Peter and the Starcatchers

What to talk about

Talk to your kids
Families can talk about what this story has in common with the original. How is it similar, and where does it differ? Which do you like better, and why? Also, what are the book's major themes? Kids: Do you think not growing up is a good thing or a bad thing? Why?

What's the story?

What's the story?
Peter and four other orphans are taken aboard a rickety old ship, the Never Land, to be delivered as servants to the evil king of Rundoon. Also on board the ship is Molly, daughter of the British Ambassador to Rundoon, and a mysterious trunk filled with a special treasure. The feared pirate Captain Black Stache knows there's a valuable treasure on board, though he doesn't know what it is. Peter befriends Molly and finds out that she and her father are Starcatchers, members of a centuries-old secret society that protects humanity by making sure that evil people don't get their hands on starstuff, magical material that falls from the stars and changes the nature of everything it touches.

Through storm, treachery, and shipwreck, Peter, Molly, and the boys end up on an island with the treasure, the pirates, fierce natives, the villainous first mate of the Never Land, mermaids created by the starstuff, and a giant crocodile. While Peter and Molly try to get the starstuff for the Starcatchers, everyone else is battling to get it for themselves.

Is it any good?

Is it any good?
 

It rarely works when a modern author seeks to write a sequel (or in this case a prequel) to a classic, and humor columnist Dave Barry, one of our reigning Sultans of Snide, hardly seems like the person to give it a try. But though his background shows up in the occasional and unnecessary sexual innuendo, otherwise this works surprisingly well.

He and co-author Ridley Pearson make some good choices at the outset. They do not attempt, in style, plot, or atmosphere, to mimic J.M. Barrie's masterpiece. Instead they cleverly create and bring together almost all of the characters and elements of the original: pirates, natives (no longer Indians in these culturally sensitive times), lost boys, mermaids, fairies, the crocodile, fairy dust, flying, not growing up, and the enchanted island itself. Though it's unnecessarily long, it's an exciting adventure, fun in its own right.

Book themes & details

Book Details
Author: Dave Barry, Ridley Pearson
Illustrator: Greg Call
Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children
Publication date: September 26, 2004
Number of pages: 451
Hardcover price: $17.99

This review was written by Matt Berman
 
 

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What parents & educators say

9

Most useful reviews by all members

bookworm12345511
teen, 16 years old
 
i love these books
i really like these books i love books with peterpan as a kid my favorite storys werent about princess like other girls i loved peter pan so maybe i mwierd that way but i dont care anyway i love these books it brings a new idea to the story of peter pan

pebchristian
parent of and 7 , 9 , 11 year old
 
A great adventure story
I thouroughly enjoyed Peter and the Starcatchers. It involves fairies, pirates, wild savages. It was a classic adventure story. A really great adventure story.

Dancingmaniac29
teen, 18 years old
 
perfect for kids 8 and up
I think this book was very action packed and made you want to know what happened next!!! I read this book in 6 days because i could not put it down!!!! If you haven't read it buy it or pick it up right now and READ!!!!!!!!

becStarcatcher
teen, 14 years old
 
perfect for EVERYBODY even adults
LOVE IT. and oh please, this book has very little sex talk! nudity is literly the bare truth! and they do state that it was covered. also, it was CPR not really innaproprate. your comment might tell kids that it is wrong to put a mouth to a mouth, or to be ashamed to be naked, when in realiatly, is not anything to be let down about. Also, with the drinking, it teaches kids to not trust tipplers, and it shows the bad resultes of drinking. also, it is not bad for a person of 21 and up to drink.

zapfam
parent of 13 and 15 year old
 
Best Peter Pan Story Ever
This has got to be the best story ever....other than the two that follow it..Its based off the Disney Peter Pan cartoon really. And is a Disney Book actually. It gives you all about how Peter and the lost boys came to the island and how it got its 'neverland' name. Everything has a start and I loved the rendition of the mermaids starting as fish, how Peter became able to fly, the infamous Crocodile, and tink! I really hope that a director with abilities to capture the essence of books, makes these three stories into a movie or better yet a television series!

SelenaGomezfan110
teen, 14 years old
 
Why I rated this Iffy for ages 9-10
Peter is DEFINETLY NOT a good role model. He killed Mermaids!!!!! I think so, anyway, either that or he just hurt them. I can't remember. and there is some innuendo, like: 'he kissed a mermaid who was naked from the waist up'. and some cussing like He__ , D--n, and the like.And a little too much violence for littler kids. anyway, its a pretty good book, and it's not terribly Innapropriate; nothing explicit.

LizEd
teen, 13 years old
 
it was cute
its a great book but you dont have to waut until u r TWELVE *cough people-down-there-cough* my brother read it at eight and so did i. its cute, but for younger people.

CzechRepGirl
teen, 16 years old
 
Peter Pan VS. Peter and The Star Catchers.
I am a very strong Peter fan, and find this book very good, though has room to improve. in the original they say "My parents were planning my growing up so I ran away and never will grow up." not that he was an orphin. other than that and a few bothersome things, I loved it. I am using it for a program to help 7th graders read at a faster and deeper level.

 
Amazingly good stuff!!
You always worry about books like these. But I was pleasantly surprised. It's well written. The story picks up quickly and holds your interest. All those questions we had as kids reading Peter Pan are finally answered! The slightly questionable material IMO isn't really an issue. The naked mermaid isn't described, and it was from the point of view of a shocked young boy. It's a pirate book....of course they are drinking....they are the bad guys. Sword fighting...again...pirates... And yes he gets his hand chopped off. We knew that was gonna happen, how else would he become Cap'n Hook?!?! All of that is done in the least graphic way possible. I was really impressed! I definitely reccommend these books!

Mattmchugh
parent of 8 and 10 year old
 
Read this to my son when he was 8, and he was suitably enthralled. My then-5-year-old-daughter had little interest, though there is a good female lead to engage girls. Barry and Pearson spin a decent adventure yarn, with believable characters and just enough comedy and action to keep things moving without being gratuitous. Here and there, they put in tidbits that allude to the Peter Pan mythology that seem more distracting than prescient. There's some implied violence and broad double entendres, but nothing particularly inappropriate. Overall, a solid read for 8 and up.

ocie14
teen, 14 years old
 
i have always loved all of these books! the only thing dissapointing was the end of the 3rd one!

kikirocks
kid, 13 years old
 
awesomeee boook!!!!!!! i love itt .its very intereestingg.. you get glued to the book after the 3rd chapter :)

Luna86
teen, 14 years old
 
Must-READ!!!
my teacher knows im a big reader. so over winter break, she lent my that book, and said "if it's good, tell me. then i'll make it available to all the students."

 
Worried about this book?
I really enjoy this series! I read it to my brothers and they beg me to continue when its time to stop. The only thing that bothers me about this series is the sneaky (and completely unnecessary) sexual content. Nothing horrid, but enough to make me purposefully skip certain sentences. For instance, one character's governess flirts and possibly has a sexual relationship with one of the villains (implied), and the mermaids look like naked women from the waist up (they have long hair that supposedly covers them). Some other stuff I didn't think necessary to skip: a mermaid saves Peter from drowning and gives him CPR and in his dazed state he thinks its a kiss (pretty silly actually)- a pirate captain has a special sail made that is shaped like a corset (image included in the book). I definitely recommend this series, but read it yourself first, so you can choose to skip stuff or not. The bad guys are bad, the good guys are good, but nobody's perfect, even the heroes.

alpha dog 2435
kid, 12 years old
 
it was a great book.there is fighting,but its pirate stuff.the mermaid is naked from the waist up,but it was not detailed.

Ricochet94
teen, 17 years old
 
Ripping good yarn.
While not exactly true to it's source material, it's a page-turning read that will keep you up long past midnight. Think 'Harry Potter' meets 'Pirates of the Carribean'. Although surpringly violent for it's intended audience.

greeneyes707
teen, 13 years old
 
BEST BOOK EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!
I love this story but i havent finished it yet.Im on chapter fourty-eight.

Theauerbachfamily
parent of 5 and 10 year old
 
Creative. Some of the twisted innuendoes were over her head, but we thought it was great.
I love how it tells the story of Peter before he became Peter pan. This is the biggest book my daughter read and she couldn't put it down.

alexa5225
kid, 12 years old
 
amazing book!
this is an amazing book.it tells the story of the classic character "peter pan" before he became the lost boy that so many movies and books are based off of. in the begining he was just an orphan on a ship, if all had gone as planed he would have just been an ignored sevant to an evil king. but things did not go as planned and desteny took peter for a wild ride! there are only a few reasons why i rated this book ages nine and up. number one charaters get into situations that younger children would not understand the importance of. characters also make desicions that would be confusing for young readers . thre are also some mildly scary characters in this novel that include: captian hook ( of course), lord umbra, the shadow thieves, and many more sinister power hungry villians who are all after one thing ;stardust i wont tell you any more about the stuff for fear of ruining the book. the other reason i rated this book nine+ was they use a very wide range of vocabulary though i enjoy long descriptive words lots of kids even my age (12) dont know what they mean, this is a really good book for teens and pre teens even if they just sart reading it for a book report and don't think they'll like it, by the end they'll be dying to read the sequal. this book keept me busy and i ws upset when the series ended becuse i wanted to read more! i have never met any one who didn't like this book adn i hope who ever is reading this will not e the first!

 
Not your father's Peter Pan.
There is a certain magic to the original Peter stories because they are, well, magical. Fairies and magic are accepted as real and J. M. Barrie makes no excuses for that. The entire point of this story is that, rather than taking it on faith that these things exist, their origins need to be explained. Not only did this take the fun out of the story but it also left room to catch the abundant spelling and grammatical mistakes. If it had been anything BUT a Peter Pan story I probably would have liked it more. As it is, I feel the two 'versions' clash a bit.

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