He described the book as a “most piratical adventure” – it will feature a boy and his sister who embark on “a riotous adventure beneath a pirate moon” with one Long John McRon, “Ship’s Cook … and the most unusual babysitter you’ve ever seen”. Gaiman was the creator/writer of monthly cult DC Comics horror-weird series, Sandman, which won nine Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards. Norman Mailer said of Sandman: "Along with all else, Sandman is a comic strip for intellectuals, and I say it's about time." A riotous rhyming picture book by a pair of ingenious book-aneers ... A buccaneering blast of a book that demands to be read aloud, acted out and treasured like ill-gotten gains!' -LoveReading4Kids Vivie Wivie Redesigns The Flapper’s Magazette: More Issues of a Child-Made Manuscript Magazine Acquired

Gaiman's literary prowess and Riddell's genius illustrations come together again in a brilliant book, which is guaranteed to fly off bookshelves and library shelves around the world.' -NetGalley Reviewer Write your own recipe for pirate stew – you could include some things from the story and add more of your own and illustrate your recipe. Draw your own pirate crew Born and raised in England, Neil Gaiman now lives near Minneapolis, Minnesota. He has somehow reached his forties and still tends to need a haircut. Riddell said:“What a pleasure it has been setting sail with Captain Gaiman on another of his amazing voyages. I loved assembling a pirate crew and enlisting some old friends from our previous adventure Fortunately, the Milk.” From the multi-award-winning Neil Gaiman comes the biggest picture book of the year: a joyfully riotous, brilliantly anarchic, deliciously rhyming adventure, with glorious piratical illustrations by Chris RiddellJacob enjoyed creating his own version of the cover – he loves drawing and painting and I was amazed at the amount of detail he noticed.' Fans of Neil Gaiman and Chris Riddell are going to love this. Funny and magical and bound to be a great story before bedtime.' -NetGalley Reviewer

Oh, now this is a fun picture book. Gaiman is a consistent writer of course (one of my favorites) and he's excellent at both children's books and adult fiction. That said, while I loved Blueberry Girl, it was very much written as a children's book, but intended for adults. My daughter tolerated it, liked the pictures, but if I didn't read it again, she likely wouldn't care that much.Neil Gaiman, σε εικονογράφηση Chris Riddell, ταξιδεύουμε μαζί με δύο παιδιά και την νταντά τους, τον Λονγκ Τζον Μακαρόν, που είναι μάγειρας σε ένα πειρατικό πλοίο. Η αποστολή του; Η προετοιμασία ενός νόστιμου γεύματος για τα δύο αυτά παιδιά. Pirate Stew! Pirate Stew! Pirate Stew for me and you! Pirate Stew, Pirate Stew Eat it and you won't be blue You can be a pirate too! an anarchical rhyming romp that will keep you Yo Ho Ho-ing on every reading ... Mad and magnificent.' -Daily Mail Highly enjoyable ... the perfect ingredient for a raucous read-aloud. Riddell's predictably fabulous illustrations are ablaze with colour and detail.' -Booklist

Mum and Dad are going out for the evening and have booked a babysitter for a little boy and his sister, yet when the babysitter arrives, it turns out to be a huge, bearded pirate called Long John McRon – a ship’s cook. Clever writing, fun lines, great art (Chris Riddell is consistently wonderful as an artist) all around I personally enjoyed it and it's gotten a ton of laughs from my daughter (especially if read in a pirate voice). This one is a lot sillier and thus likely a bigger hit with the kids, it's just a fun story about a pirate cook who happens to be babysitting two kids, and the ridiculous nature is likely to delight.

Graphic Novels

Although no magic was used in the test kitchen, the uproarious song that accompanies the addition of ingredients to the pot sounds suspiciously like something a coven of witches would chant brewing up a potion. The last line, “You’ll become a pirate too” makes little sister, who is no fool, put two and two together. They prudently go without dinner. A lushly illustrated homage to librarians who provide a welcome and a home away from home for all who enter. Gaiman’s fiction has steadily encompassed ever more creative territory, with the author turning his hand to an elaborate collection of fantasy novels and short stories including Stardust, Anansi Boys, The Ocean at the End of the Lane and Smoke and Mirrors as well as a recent return to gods behaving badly for his reimagining of Norse Mythology. This has come alongside popular books for children ranging from gothic delights The Graveyard Book (for which he won the prestigious Carnegie Medal) and Coraline to illustrated fairy tales Odd and the Frost Giants and The Sleeper and The Spindle. When children are familiar with the story they will enjoy joining in (loudly!) with the chorus and might enjoy taking turns for sections such as the wonderful list of ingredients in the pirate stew. Talk about the story

Who is the children’s babysitter? Long John McRon, Ship’s Cook is most peculiar! Furthermore, it isn’t long after Mum and Dad leave for their night out, that Long John opens the door to a pirate crew who are definitely ‘ not tame’. Bestselling author Neil Gaiman has long been one of the top writers in modern comics, as well as writing books for readers of all ages. He is listed in the Dictionary of Literary Biography as one of the top ten living post-modern writers, and is a prolific creator of works of prose, poetry, film, journalism, comics, song lyrics, and drama.And that is how those two old heads on young shoulders come to be pressed on board the pirate ship… Pirate Stew began in early 2009, when I scribbled a handful of lines of a poem about the sorts of ingredients that would go into a Pirate Stew down on a scrap of paper,” said Gaiman. “I kept the scrap of paper in my wallet as the years went by, and would look at it and feel guilty. And then my son was two, and I thought I should write a book I can read to him when he’s older. I remembered the scrap of paper, and knew that it was time to tell that story.” If you were a pirate captain who would you have in your crew? Children could draw their crew on a large piece of paper giving each of them a name and a specific job on the pirate ship. Make a pirate treasure map Neil uses prose, but it doesn't rhyme. You can tell he does this on purpose. He simply has such a way with words, which is why he is the author he is. See Neil speaking about his new novel, Fortunately, the Milk, a time-travelling adventure for young readers featuring aliens, dinosaurs, volcano gods and a pint of milk that saves the universe!