In 1603 James I withdrew permission for privateers to raid enemy ships.
Piracy in the Caribbean was instead carried out by buccaneers from the island of Hispaniola. The buccaneers originally made a living from trading meat, fat and hides from pigs and cattle to passing ships. They had a wild reputation, and dressed in uncured animal hides.
They got their name from the “boucan” smokehouses they used to cure their meat. So they were called buccaneers.
They turned to piracy after they were attacked by the Spanish, who killed the animals from which they made their living. They formed the “Brotherhood of the Coast” to defend themselves. They began by attacking small Spanish ships before going after larger vessels.
Convicts, outlaws, and escaped slaves increased their numbers. The buccaneers obeyed no laws but their own, and exacted ruthless and cruel punishment on captives.
Read this book for more.
If you were lucky enough to come along to one of our School Holiday Programmes in October you would have had the chance to make an awesome creation using recycled material. If you missed out, why don’t you check out the fantastic ideas in Make it! Don’t throw it away – create something amazing. This book is full of ideas for all that stuff you would normally throw away. Have fun, and remember: Reduce Reuse and Recycle.
Making History is a cool new series of non-fiction books that “brings history to life”. Apart from the usual facts, figures and pictures, the books all have projects and things to make and do, for example:
- In Ancient Rome, you can make a mosaic fish!
- In Ancient Egypt, learn how to make a mummy mask
- Read about Pirates and then follow instructions to learn how to dress like a pirate and make a pirate fruit salad!
- The Knights book tells you how to make a knight’s helmet and play Fox and Geese, a board game that was popular in the Middle Ages.
Check these out some time and you’re sure to become an expert!
…or maybe that should be Capital Eek? If you’re after a fun, safe way to do Halloween things then look no further than The Big Halloween 2008 at Capital E on Friday 31 October, starting at 4pm.
Enjoy the freaky and fun Twisted Circus: be entertained by ghoulish entertainers and spooky performers, come dressed in your favourite scary costume and have a blast! Best of all, it’s free and suitable for ages 5 and up.
Hi!
Some new books from some of your favourite series have just arrived:
Oath Breaker by Michelle Paver (from the Chronicles of Ancient Darkness). “Torak circled the fire and Thiazzi came after him: slowly, cracking his whip, playing with his prey as a lynz plays with a lemming. Torak was exhausted. He wasn’t going to last much longer.” (Book cover) Sounds like edge of your seat stuff! You’d better read it to find out what happens to Torak.
The Second Siege by Henry H Neff (Book 2 of The Tapestry). “Grave forces are converging to seize control of the Book of Thoth, a hidden artefact whose pages hold the key to creating – or unravelling – the very threads of existence.” (Book cover) If you’re into Harry Potter-type stories you should give The Tapestry a go!
Inkdeath by Cornelia Funke (the conclusion to the Inkheart trilogy). “‘Go back and rid the world of that 
book. Fill it with words before spring comes, or winter will never end for you. And I will take not only your life for the Adderhead’s but your daughter’s, too, because she helped you bind the book. Do you understand, Bluejay?’ ‘Why two?’ asked Mo hoarsely. ‘How can you ask for two lives in return for one?’” (Book cover). Cornelia Funke fans will be totally excited to see that Inkdeath is available for lending! If you are a fan, check out her website: www.corneliafunkefans.com.
Charlie Bone and the Shadow of Badlock by Jenny Nimmo. “Charlie’s ancestor Otus the giant is in trouble – imprisoned by the evit Count Harken in Badlock and guarded by a troll army. Charlie is sucked into a painting of Badlock to rescue him. Back at school, there is a terrible battle between two of the endowed. Only one will walk away…” (Book cover). Again, if you love Charlie Bone visit the website at www.charlie-bone.com.
By Royal Command by Charlie Higson (Young Bond series). This is the fifth book in the Young Bond series, following James Bond during his school years at Eton College in England. Since 007 is so into gadgets, it’s no surprise that he has a cool website: www.youngbond.com.
If you’ve read one of these books and you think it’s fantastic you can nominate it for a Kids’ Choice sticker by filling in a review for us. We love hearing from you!
Well, the school holidays are nearly over which means you’re heading back into a world of lessons and homework… But…
Never Fear! We have the solution!
If you’re stuck on your homework or projects and need to get some good info you can jump onto AnyQuestions to find the info you need on the web. AnyQuestions is a free online homework help site where you can chat live to librarians from across the country who will help you by showing you good websites to use.
If you don’t want to chat you can visit the Many Answers site and see if what you need is there. Many Answers has heaps of cool links to helpful homework sites.
Good Luck!
Wellington City Libraries’ School Holiday Programme is drawing to a close. So tomorrow is your last chance to get in on the recycling fun! Children from all over the city have been popping into their local libraries to get their hands mucky in worm farms, find out how recycling trucks work, learn what can and cannot be recycled and to make some cool art out of recycled rubbish.
Coming up tomorrow:
11am-1pm Create a wicked sculpture out of recycled rubbish at Johnsonville Library, 11am-midday learn about worm farms and what happens to your recycling with some cool craft activities at Island Bay Library, 2pm-3pm more craft activities and the chance to crawl around inside a recycling truck at Miramar Library.
They’re all fun and free! See you there!
Kia ora!
This Maori-language play is on at Te Papa on Thursday the 9th of October starting at 6pm. It’s free entry, so grab a parent and drag them down there and enjoy 40 minutes of great Maori theatre!
For more information go to the Te Papa site.
The Mediterranean and Aegean seas were home to the pirates of Ancient Greece.
The Aegean was full of tiny islands where pirates could easily hide their ships. In Ancient Greek times ships did not cross the open ocean, so all the pirates had to do was wait by the coast for trade ships to come past.
Pirates also attacked villages, kidnapping people for ransom, or to sell as slaves.
Greek pirates favoured light, shallow-bottomed galleys that were fast and easy to steer. If their ships were pursued they could sail over rocky areas close to the shore where large ships were unable to follow.
Piracy continued right through the reign of the Roman Empire, and through to Viking times in the 9th century. Vikings practised piracy in the North Sea.
Read this book to find out more!
Have you ever had the sensation of forgetting something you’re absolutely sure you wouldn’t? Well I have and almost always I’d feel like my memory is getting sucked off to lala land. I came across this cool book that actually helps you remember stuff. You’ll learn cool tricks, experiments and great mind games. You could use this to amaze your friends and train your brain to remember stuff along the way. Simply awesome! Check out the book How to remember (almost) everything, ever! by Rob Eastaway.
