Golden Kite Award Winners (Book) - The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle (Paperback)

Purchase includes free access to book updates online and a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle is a young adult historical fiction novel by the American author Avi that was published in 1990. It takes place during the transatlantic crossing of a ship from England to America in the 19th Century. The book chronicles the evolution of the title character as she is pushed outside of her naive existence and learns about life aboard a ship. The novel was well received and won several awards, including as a Newbery Honor book. A ship similar to what the Seahawk would have been likeThe story begins in the early summer of 1832 as thirteen-year old Charlotte Doyle prepares to take a voyage from Liverpool, England to her family in their new home in Providence, Rhode Island. Her upper-middle class upbringing and her education in the very proper Barrington School for Better Girls give her a very sheltered and narrow view of life. As the other families due to travel with her mysteriously fail to appear, Charlotte finds herself the only passenger and female on the ship, the Seahawk One day she is with one of her particularly favorite sailors, Ewing, as he is patching a jacket, when his needle snaps. Charlotte offers to get a new one for him from the forecastle where the crew sleep. While looking for the needle she sees a pistol (contrary to the captain's words) and a round-robin, a pact telling of an imminent uprising of the crew against the captain. After contemplating whether or not to tell the captain, Charlotte's fear drives her to inform him. Captain Jaggery heads off the rebellion, shooting the stowaway Cranick, who held a grudge against the captain for cutting off his arm. Charlotte is distressed as Captain Jaggery orders Zachariah whipped 50 lashes. Charlotte tries to protect Zachariah by grabbing the w... More: http://booksllc.net/?id=3057743