This month our Mother Daughter Book Club read The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi. We met tonight to discuss Charlotte’s persecution and trial, and the many claims made by men throughout the book that she is an “unnatural” woman for having picked up sailing so quickly.
If you haven’t read this yet, I strongly recommend it. The girls in the group liked it a lot. It’s a gripping read that keeps you wondering who Charlotte can really trust.
Since the book contains a heavy amount of nautical vocabulary, explained by an appendix, I challenged the girls and moms to study that appendix and participate in a game. I passed out these worksheets with some of the terms blocked out, and the girls had to write the terms in.
Whoever wrote in the most correct answers would win a box of Scottish rounds, sort of like the Scottish thins that Charlotte ate with Captain Jaggery.
Anouk got the most right answers–10! She and her mom won the box of cookies!
Next month we will be discussing Rump by Liesl Shurtliff. The book takes the legend of Rumpelstiltskin and gives him a believable but surprising history with much more sympathy for his character. It was chosen as the Young Reader’s League book for this year, and there will be lots of activities in Pasadena to celebrate it, including a visit from the author! Stay tuned!
