Set sail with Stephen Oh-O’Driscoll as he fulfills his wish of becoming a piventurate in Angela Ahn’s newest middle grade novel, Double O Stephen and the Ghostly Realm.

Stephen Oh-O’Driscoll is all about pirates. He dresses like one, he practices his sword fighting at recess with his best friend Brandon and even carries around his own Jolly Roger in his back pocket. It’s not something his mother has encouraged. In fact, she downright disapproves of all the pirate talk. When Stephen comes face-to-face with an actual pirate captain, he unlocks some intriguing family secrets.

An engaging story from front to back! Angela Ahn writes really strong characters that you just can’t help rooting for. I absolutely loved Stephen and his buddy Brandon. Angela has written two characters that are strong in their interests. They love pirates and no matter what others say, including the adults in their lives, they will continue to live by their piventurate code. They don’t second guess themselves and are great examples of kind, compassionate children. I also really liked the way she has written Stephen’s mom. She is NOT a likable character in the slightest, kind of a straight up jerk and really has very little redemption throughout the story. Readers do get some resolution to the parent child tension with an explanation of why she feels the way she does but it doesn’t change her attitude towards Stephen and pirates in general. It felt very realistic. There are parents who will not understand nor like their children’s choices when it comes to their likes. Stephen’s mom lets her displeasure be known quite forcefully. Through his mother’s disdain for the piventurate life, readers get the chance to see a child who pushes back against their parents and other adults, who is true to themselves no matter what. 

Angela Ahn has filled the story with a lot of humour as well. Middle grade readers will enjoy the interactions between Stephen, Brandon, his mom and the pirates. There is a little bit of spooky suspense just to keep readers on their toes and so much heart. She also dips a toe into Korean shamanism and although there is much more to it than what the book contains, readers get a sample of spirituality from another culture, or perhaps their own culture which always serves to develop understanding, empathy and connection.

Also, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the fabulous cover art by Erin Joo. The cover art will intrigue readers and force them to pick up the story and give it a go.