Peter Duck [ペーパーバック]

Though listed as the third volume in Arthur Ransome's *Swallows and Amazons* series, *Peter Duck* is chronologically the second adventure of this group of four plus two children, taking place in the Winter of 1930/31, a few months after the events narrated in *Swallows and Amazons*.

As its subtitle indicates - "A Treasure Hunt in the Caribbees" - *Peter Duck* is a book of much greater geographical scope than the first volume: instead of merely pretending to be explorers and pirates, the six children, accompanied by the Amazons' uncle, Captain Flint, and a benevolent sea dog, Peter Duck, cross the Atlantic in search of a real treasure really buried by real pirates.

Every single event in the first book seems to be reproduced here, but on a much greater scale: the ships are now full-sized, the lake is drowned in an ocean, the island can no longer be swimmed around, the petty thieves have turned into murdering thugs, and England's summer rains are drenched by a tropical storm.

Even though the plot is more contrived and far-fatched, with the elements playing a rather providential - and therefore improbable - role, the tone is generally more realistic, as the children are no longer shielded from the more dangerous forces at work in the world. They even befriend a young, abused pauper, Bill, whom Ransome, in a Dickensian vein, portrays more lovingly than any of the recurring characters. And quite significantly, instead of referring to such novels as *Robinson Crusoe* or *Treasure Island*, the children (and especially the one I identify with the most, Titty) are now enthralled by Hakluyt's and Columbus's accounts of their voyages.

*Peter Duck* may lack the simplicity and freshness of the first volume, as well as the feeling that nothing serious could happen to the children, but it is a wonderful adventure story which I wish I had read (or been read) as a child. And for those who don't know Jack about sailing, it is also very didactic, containing several explanatory illustrations and footnotes by Captain Nancy herself.

Despite its somewhat fanciful content, Ransome keeps the tale eminently believable and builds the excitement gradually, drawing the reader inexorably into the events that unfold. You really do just have to keep turning the pages to find out what happens next! By the latter stages, it becomes impossible to put down.

Sprinkled with numerous delightful pen and ink illustrations (charmingly credited to the Swallows and Amazons themselves!) this book is a lovely production. In short, it is nothing short of a little masterpiece that should be on everyone's reading list.

Re-reading the series as an adult, however, I see this in a whole new perspective. Simply put the actual story, and the story-telling, racks amongst the highest in the series. The scope of the book, running from the mouth of the broads which we come to love later in the series, right down to Crab Island in the Caribbean is wonderful. The intrigue and adventure is at a higher level to match too.

Arthur Ransome is one of the story tellers who believes in dealing with "bad people" head on - and in this tale, Black Jake and his crew are really some of the most despicable characters in children's literature. We always hope they will meet a sticky end. However, the writing is a little out of date now in terms of some derogatory words used for black people and Spaniards. I believe such language can be used as an important educational tool to explain why we no longer use these words (it should be noted that it is the rough characters that use these terms).

The book never comments on this as being "fictional". Of course they are all fictional tales, but this is fiction within fiction because we find out in other books that this was a tale made up by everyone. However, it is still written very realisitically and anyone with a love for sailing will find the chapters about the setup of the boat or the sailing down the North Sea and the English Channel wonderful.