Pirate Lore

Pirates may not have buried much treasure on deserted islands, cried “argh” when displeased, or forced their captives to walk the plank. (Argh!) But some pirate lore seems to be based on fact. Pirates actually had parrots for pets, wore eye patches, and flew the Jolly Roger. (Blimey!)

To celebrate National Talk Like a Pirate Day, read a pirate book or three. Discover interesting facts and popular pirate myths, and find out more about the seadogs, swashbucklers and scallywags who roamed the briny deep.

Pirate Pedro (Pedro) by Fran Manushkin

Poppy the Pirate Dog and the Missing Treasure (Poppy the Pirate Dog #3) by Liz Kessler

Jolly Regina (The Unintentional Adventures of the Bland Sisters #1) by Kara Lareau

Race to the Bottom of the Sea by Lindsay Eagar

Who Was Blackbeard? (Who Was?) by James Buckley

Pirates (Magic Tree House Fact Tracker #4) by Mary Pope Osborne

Pirates Magnified by David Long

Sea Queens: Woman Pirates Around the World by Jane Yolen

The Whydah: A Pirate Ship Feared, Wrecked, and Found by Martin W Sandler

Year on a Pirate Ship by Elizabeth Havercroft

You Wouldn't Want to Be a Pirate's Prisoner!: Horrible Things You'd Rather Not Know (Revised) by John Malam

How to Be a Pirate by Isaac Fitzgerald

It's Not a School Bus, It's a Pirate Ship (It's Not a Book Series, It's an Adventure) by Mickey Rapkin

Kindergarrrten Bus by Mike Ornstein

Shiver Me Timbers!: Pirate Poems & Paintings by Douglas Florian