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Summary
Summary
There's a mile-long word for the fear (and magic) of the number thirteen-triskaidekaphobia. In this comic fireworks of a novel, newly orphaned Buddy Stebbins stumbles onto the 13th floor of a shabby old building and finds himself transported aboard a leaking pirate ship in a howling storm--300 years in the past! Cast adrift, he washes up in New England where his plucky ancestor, ten-year-old Abigail, is caught up in the witchcraft mania and is about to be hanged. Firing off surprises like Roman candles from almost every page, award-winning novelist Sid Fleischman tells a many-mirrored tale of ghosts, witchcraft, razzle-dazzle treasure, and the mischief of illusion and delusion.
There's a mile-long word for the fear (and magic) or the number thirteen - triskaidekaphobia.
In this comic fireworks of a novel, newly orphaned Buddy Stebbins stumbles onto the 13th floor of a shabby old building and finds himself transported aboard a leaking pirate ship in a howling storm - 300 years in the past! Cast adrift, he washes up in New England where his plucky ancestor, ten-year-old Abigail, is caught up in the witchcraft mania and is about to be hanged. Firing off surprises like Roman candles from almost every page, award-winning novelist Sid Fleischman tells a many-mirrored tale of ghosts, witchcraft, razzle-dazzle treasure, and the mischief of illusion and delusion.
Reviews (5)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Hold on to your hats-there's never a dull moment when Fleischman (The Whipping Boy) is at the helm. A rollicking ride, this tale by the Newbery Medalist casts off into comic adventure with the young orphan Buddy, his lawyer sister, and a magical elevator that whisks them 300 years into the past. Fleischman deftly juggles several equally entertaining story lines, one involving a pirate ship and a hidden treasure, another focused on a 10-year-old girl accused of witchcraft in Puritan Boston, and a third revolving around Buddy and his sister's present-day struggle to pay off their recently deceased parents' debts and keep the family home. Liberally laced with dry wit and thoroughly satisfying-in Fleischman's world, villains always get their just deserts and endings are as happy as they are unexpected-readers could hardly ask for more. Ages 8-up. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
A lively time-slip fantasy involves Buddy and his lawyer sister, Liz. When she disappears after meeting a client, Buddy goes to her rescue. The many adventures that follow include battle, being cast adrift, buried treasure, trickery, the pitfalls of Puritan Boston, and Buddy's stint as lawyer at the witchcraft trial of Liz's mysterious client. A lighthearted adventure -- yet the author's note also points out the serious consequences of ignorance and superstition. From HORN BOOK 1995, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
Gr. 4^-6. The subtitle calls this a ghost story, but it's also a time travel adventure, with a bit of witchcraft thrown in. Bud Stebbins has been in the custody of his sister, Liz, an attorney, since the death of his parents. When a ghostly relative from the seventeenth century invokes their help, first Liz and then Buddy travel back in time. Finding himself on a pirate ship, Buddy eventually makes his way to Boston, where Liz has found the young girl who called them. Abigail is being accused of witchcraft, and it's up to Buddy and Liz to save her. As he's done in previous books, Fleischman offers readers a rollicking story, filled to the brim with weird goings-on and witty contrivances. To be illustrated by Peter Sis, and if the dust jacket is any indication, he knows where the laughs are. --Ilene Cooper
School Library Journal Review
Gr 4-6Recently orphaned Buddy Stebbins, 12, is in the care of his sister, Liz, a young attorney. Faced with the prospect of selling the family home to pay off their parents' debts, Buddy calls on an ancestor, Captain Crackstone, rumored to be a pirate, for assistance. In response, a plea for help from the 17th century arrives from another descendant, Abigail Parsons, who is about to be tried for witchcraft at age 10. Independently, Buddy and Liz find their ways back to 1692 Massachussets to join forces with their forebears. This rollicking time-travel adventure requires a willing suspension of disbelief on the part of the characters as well as readers. Thrust into scenes of piracy and witchcraft hysteria respectively, Buddy and Liz experience the most dramatic and fascinating aspects of life at that time. Fleischman's characteristic flair for compelling action, lively dialogue, authentic details, and humorous elements are all present here, resulting in a thoroughly entertaining page turner. However, Buddy's 20th-century mannerisms and dress, including glow-in-the-dark shoelaces, are almost uniformly accepted after his initial appearance. Liz, for all her cleverness, foolishly refers to upcoming events in Salem, which casts suspicion of witchcraft upon her. Still, the rambunctious events aboard the ship and the tension of the trial will engage readers. The tidy ending is satisfying, containing enough irony to avoid predictability. An author's note eloquently and articulately explains the historical context of the setting.Starr LaTronica, Berkeley Public Library, CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
A tale of time travel, filled with Fleischman's trademark combination of humor and wild adventure. After a mysterious message appears on their answering machine, ostensibly from Abigail, a relative who's been dead for 300 years, Buddy and his lawyer sister, Liz, are transported back in time. Buddy finds himself on a pirate ship captained by another ancestor, Captain Crackstone; after surviving a storm, an attack, and being set adrift, Buddy is reunited with Liz, who is defending Abigail against the charge of witchcraft. In this briskly paced novel, action is Fleischman's strong suit and fans of Jim Ugly (1992) and The Whipping Boy (1986) will not be disappointed. Whether climbing the ship's rigging in a storm or rescuing his sister from death by creating a pirate's ghost out of a codfish and a Walkman, Buddy is sturdy and unflappable, and his adventures are entertaining. (b&w illustrations, not seen) (Fiction. 8-12)