Peter and the Sword of Mercy (Starcatchers Series #4)

by Dave Barry, Ridley Pearson, Greg Call (Illustrator)

Overview

The year is 1901—it's been twenty-three years since Peter and the Lost Boys returned from Rundoon. Since then, nobody on the island has grown a day older, and the Lost Boys continue their friendship with the Mollusk tribe, and their rivalry with Captain Hook.


Meanwhile in London, Molly has married George Darling and is raising three children: Wendy, Michael, and John. One night a visitor appears at her door; it's James, one of Peter's original Lost Boys. He is now working for Scotland Yard and suspects that the heir to England's throne, Prince Albert Edward, is under the influence of shadow creatures. These shadow creatures are determined to find a secret cache of startstuff which fell to London many centuries ago. The starstuff is hidden in an underground vault which has only one key: the Sword of Mercy, a legendary weapon kept with the Crown Jewels. Molly is determined to help, but when she suddenly goes missing, it is up to her eleven-year-old daughter, Wendy, to keep the starstuff out of the Others' clutches. She has heard her mother's stories of a flying boy named Peter Pan, and he may be her only hope in saving the world from a shadowy doom...

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781423130703
Publisher:	Disney Publishing Group
Publication date:	01/18/2011
Series:	Starcatchers Series , #4
Pages:	528
Sales rank:	201,781
Product dimensions:	5.10(w) x 7.50(h) x 1.20(d)
Lexile:	710L (what's this?)
Age Range:	9 - 12 Years

About the Author

Dave Barry is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author of more than a dozen books, including Dave Barry's History of the Millennium (So Far); The Shepherd, the Angel, and Walter the Christmas Miracle Dog; Dave Barry's Money Secrets; and Big Trouble. Along with Ridley Pearson, he is the co-author of Peter and the Starcatchers, Peter and the Shadow Thieves, Peter and the Secret of Rundoon, Escape from the Carnivale, Cave of the Dark Wind, Blood Tide, and Science Fair.

Ridley Pearson, in addition to the Peter and the Starcatchers series with Dave Barry, is the award-winning author of Kingdom Keepers: Disney After Dark, Kingdom Keepers: Disney At Dawn, Kingdom Keepers: Disney in Shadow, Steel Trapp: The Challenge, and Steel Trapp: The Academy. He has also written more than twenty best-selling crime novels, including Killer View and Killer Weekend. He was the first American to be awarded the Raymond Chandler/Fulbright Fellowship in Detective Fiction at Oxford University.



Greg Call studied graphic design at the Colorado Institute of Art in Denver. After graduating in 1983, he worked as an Art Director at the Colorado Institute of Art until the desire to do more illustrative work found him in Pasadena, California, attending The Art Center College of Design. Upon graduation in 1988, he began working freelance for clients in music, entertainment, and publishing. Greg has been recognized for his work repeatedly, including awards from the Society of Illustrators and Addy awards among others.

Hometown:

Miami, Florida

Date of Birth:

July 3, 1947

Place of Birth:

Armonk, New York

Education:

B.A. in English, Haverford College, 1969

Website:

http://www.davebarry.com

Editorial Reviews

This Peter & The Star Catchers novel involves a secret cache of starstuff, an underground vault, a legendary sword, and a kidnapped woman. Wendy, the daughter of the missing woman, believes that only a flying boy named Peter Pan can rescue her mother and save the world. A swashbuckling adventure series with an enviable flair.

Gr 5–8—Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson's fourth prequel (Hyperion, 2009) to J. M. Barrie's Peter Pan is set in 1902, 23 years after Molly Aster's last adventure with Peter, the Lost Boys, and Captain Hook. There is a new danger facing the heir to England's throne. When Molly tries to investigate and is kidnapped, her daughter Wendy must set out to find the mysterious Peter, who may be the only one who can rescue Molly and save the throne. This is a thrilling adventure with an overseas flight on a makeshift helicopter, constant escapes from crooked authorities and pirates, exciting flights with Peter, and loyal friendship and familial love. Grammy-winning Jim Dale's narration is pure magic. While the first three books in the series form a coherent trilogy, this volume can stand alone for listeners unfamiliar with the previous titles. An excellent addition to library collections.—Jessica Miller, New Britain Public Library, CT

School Library Journal

In the fourth prequel to J.M. Barrie's classic PETER PAN, the boy who never grew up is not quite the flying superhero of memory (although he does rescue Wendy three times). This is a complex caper involving several grown-up Lost Boys, Captain Hook, Mollusk Island, the imprisoned Darling parents, mermaids, pirates, porpoises, steamships, flying trains, and a sword that could be the key to opening a magical cache of "star stuff." It’s an appealing tale, made more so by the voice of the amazing Jim Dale. Whether he's voicing dithering Uncle Neville or gruff Karl the Bear, Dale brings each character to life. He highlights the humor of Tinker Bell's snide asides to Peter and gives the evil Lord Ombra a whispery, sinister scariness that helps us understand Peter's fear. Dale's voice has its own Peter Pan quality, never aging and always ready to leap to a challenge. M.M.C. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine

DECEMBER 2009 - AudioFile