Awhile after I had made Margaret’s Butterflies and The Popcorn Farmer storybooks, some of my nieces and nephews wanted a paper children’s storybook featuring themselves. Well, of course, I’ll make them a book featuring them as the main characters!
So we started planning our story. The kids decided we were all pirates that searched for treasures and fought sharks. Obviously. We came up with hilarious pirate names: I am Captain Pink Beard, then there’s “Shark-Attack Sue,” “Two-Eyed Jack” who wore an eye patch (haaa), “Sharkbait” who has a pegleg, and “Horseshoe Harry” the good luck charm. The story is based on a game we play whenever we are together.
It was so fun to plan and put this book together. It was definitely more intense than the last two books I made! A lot more cutting! And a whole lot more glitter! Yaaas!
The Story
The cover of the book, featuring an overflowing treasure chest.
The Golden Ship, by Megan McGrath
The Flying Fish sailed swiftly through the sea. An adventure was happening that’s a guarantee. Captain Pink Beard ordered the crew to keep a lookout. She was hoping they were on a treasure route!
The crew consisted of four special pirates, Who all knew they were each the Captain’s favorite. The First Mate was Shark Attack Sue, Who defended the crew against all creatures in the great big blue.
Then there was Two-eyed Jack. He wore an eye patch. With a sword, he had a knack. No one was his match.
Next was a wee one they called Sharkbait, who now was missing a leg. All thanks to a shark they named Craig.
Then last, but certainly not least, was Horseshoe Harry. He was the Ship’s good luck charm–always as happy as a canary.
Suddenly, Shark Attack Sue yelled, while pointing at the horizon, “Look there, a bottle floating on the sea! I hope it’s not filled with poison!”
Two-eyed Jack fished the bottle out of the ocean. Said he, “Well, ‘tis not a bottle of lotion!”
Captain Pink Beard gave it a close inspection, and then made a loud clap. “Ye skallywags! This bottle contains a treasure map!”
So the crew sailed the Flying Fish to the small treasure island. The trip was much longer than they planned. All the while, the shark called Craig kept pace. Little human legs had become his preferred taste.
The ship set anchor in the island’s bay, They packed up their gear and headed down the gangway.
Captain Pink Beard led the crew through the jungle, Until they reached four rocks in the shape of a rectangle.
The crew dug, and dug and dug, and dug, until they heard a dull thud.
Crowns, and jewels, and pearls, and coins were passed all around. There was so much treasure in the ground!
Shark attack Sue yelled, “Hooray! We found the treasure!” Two-eyed Jack added, “Now we can live a life of leisure!”
Heaps of wealth were piled in the rowboat, weighing it down. They could not wait to spend the treasure in the next town.
Craig the Shark saw this as his invite. He raced up to little ol’ Sharkbait and tried to take a big, BIG bite.
Shark Attack Sue and Two-eyed Jack stepped into action. Beating Craig back till he hightailed it in a different direction.
Now with their foe defeated, and their treasure stores no longer depleted, They decorated the Flying Fish with gold and jewels that were beaded.
They sailed away in their golden ship shining and shimmering in the sun. And now this tale with pirates, sharks, and discovered gold is done. The End.
Some fun facts about the book:
It took so long to write the actual story! I love rhyming books and so I wanted this book to rhyme. Turns out it’s harder to do than it seems!
The waves are all glitter cardstock. I cut over 60 waves for this book. Whew. The waves were then inked along the edge with a darker blue ink to give them some depth.
The planks on the ship were all individually cut, inked, and glued in place. Easily the most time-consuming part! I even added little nail marks. Yes, it’s okay to roll your eyes.
I had to design the railing along the edge of the ship. It was a bit tricky to do the angled one so the ship had depth, like on page 1.
My favorite page is when the shark is trying to take a bite of Sharkbait. I think it’s such a funny page. I used the trace feature in the Silhouette Design Studio to create the shark.
The sunset on the last page is all inked in. I wish the shimmery ink translated better in the photos. The original is quite pretty.
Since this was such an imaginary story, I felt like I could go crazy with the gold foil, glitter, shimmer, and sparkle. Including the Pink Glitter Beard. 😂😂
The kids looove their story and we regularly play their special game and talk about the story often. I can’t wait till the rest of my nieces and nephew are a little older so I can make a special paper children’s storybook just for them.
Do you have a fun, special game or tradition in your family? How have you documented and recorded it?
Megan
Megan is a chronic crafter, writer, and an advocate for those with invisible diseases, particularly Mast Cell Diseases. She has Mast Cell Activation Syndrome, along with other conditions. Find her crafty projects (her form of therapy) and experiences with MCAS at www.luckystarsstudio.com.
