I’m no longer a Midshipman; having completed my first book for the Seafaring Challenge, I’m now a Lieutenant!  Yesterday, I finished Avi’s The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle.

 (As a quick aside, this Friday is the deadline for submissions to the latest Bookworm’s Carnival. The theme is short stories, and you should send your submissions to armenianodar at yahoo dot com. Next month, I’m hosting it with the theme of non-fiction. So, be thinking about that as well!)

 I grabbed this from my library after reading Susan’s glowing review. I hadn’t heard of Avi before, but after reading this he’s on my list for YA authors!

Charlotte Doyle is a thirteen year old American who has lived in Britain for the past seven years.  In 1832, her father is transferred back to Rhode Island; while the rest of her family goes ahead, Charlotte is left to finish out her school year before making the Atlantic crossing. This crossing was supposed to be simple: the ship belonged to her father’s company, and two other families had agreed to chaperone Charlotte. But that would hardly make for a good story. Instead, the two families are detained, and Charlotte finds herself alone on a ship, The Seahawk, where all is not right.

What follows is more than a fun adventure across the ocean; at its heart, this book is about the transformation of Charlotte from a sheltered, snobbish, dependent girl into a strong, independent young woman who trusts her own judgement rather than the prejudices of her time. While most of the storyline would be predictable to an adult reader, it’s still fun and satisfying. I’ve given this four stars for what it is: a well-written YA romp with a moral attached. It was a great way to start off my Seafaring adventure.