The Wreckers [Paperback]

Iain Lawrence (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: A Yearling Book (1998)
• ASIN: B0013WJU1E
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (45 customer reviews)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thrilling adventure, February 23, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Wreckers (High Seas Trilogy) (Paperback)

Seventh grade English teacher here. I was looking for some extra reading to follow up a class read of Treasure Island. Although some of my students would have difficulty with the language in The Wreckers, I know many of them would love it. I was intrigued with the way Lawrence cast suspicion on all the characters so I didn't know who was trustworthy and who intended evil. In fact, I almost sneaked a peak at the end of the book because I was ao anxious to find out how the story ended. I'm planning to add this title to my classroom library.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great story but...too much technical terminology, December 26, 1999

By 

Educator, Lifelong Learner (SF Bay Area, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Wreckers (High Seas Trilogy) (Paperback)

Fifth grade teacher here: I read this on recommendation from another adult and I admit that the plot is tense, exciting and makes you want to read more! HOWEVER, there are long passages where a person could be discouraged by amount of sailing and seafaring terms that are foreign to the rest of us. There are sections where I just checked out -- I couldn't pick up what exactly was going on because there was too much technical lexicon -- I don't know what jibs, mizzens and such are. Another curious aspect of the author's craft is how he gives juicy description to locations, but rushes through extraordinary plot events. The moors are given paragraphs of description, yet in a blink of an eye a person is murdered and the characters move on. It was unsettling and made me re-read sections again to be sure I'd gotten it. Try this book if you like sailing, pirates, old sea stories. Be prepared for the difficult vocabulary. Not a good read aloud for kids without a lot of words in their lexicon.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Has the feel of a classic., September 8, 2001

By 

MLPlayfair (Ravenna, OH) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Wreckers (High Seas Trilogy) (Paperback)

"The Wreckers" is the first of a series of adventure books for "young people." I'm not a member of the "young people" set anymore, but I still found it an enjoyable read. The author sets the mood and sense of place very well. The locale and the action are easy to see in the reader's mind. In fact, the whole story provides excellent fodder for the imagination. But it's NOT pretty. This is some scary stuff. It could have been a little longer to explain things more thoroughly, but I can understand wanting to keep it clipped short to move things along. I suggest that if you buy it for your "young people" you sneak a peek at it yourself!