This is one of those books where the real story is in the pictures and not the text, which is something that can work really well (e.g. in Rosie's Walk, right?). But there are so many things I dislike about this book. The plot in the pictures is weird and vaguely unsettling, the text is boring when it's trying to be deep. I would especially guard against doing this at a story time. ( )

Tough Boris is everything one would expect out of a pirate in a children's book. When Boris's parrot dies, he crys. He cries because he is human and is is okay for humans to cry. This book is short and sweet and to the point. This should be an enjoyable book for young children considering the pirates, while leaving them with a message (whether they realize it or not) that it is okay to cry. ( )

A rollicking adventure about a tough pirate with a heart of gold.

It has full page illustrations with minimal text. Why the text tells a story, the illustration tell the same story and more. There is a part where his parrot dies just as a heads up if doing in a storytime. The format of the story is making a statement followed by an absolute. "Tough Boris is scruffy. All pirates are scruffy." I think it would work great when reading with a child and talking about emotions felt and expressed being all right - that everyone experiences that. ( )

No matter what you are, male, female, pirate, etc. it is always okay to show your feelings and others should respect that. I like this book because the theme of the story is a very strong one that I agree with 100%. I think the reading age is 1st-3rd grade.