Why a Booktrail?
1960s: What’s life like on a barge?
The Skipper’s Child
Why a Booktrail?
1960s: What’s life like on a barge?
What you need to know before your trail
For Arie Kornet, School holidays on his family’s barge, the Rival, are more than tedious. His father is a Dutch commercial skipper, and all they do is travel from one place to another on the European waterways, delivering and taking on goods. His deaf mother and his two sisters accept the lifestyle, but Arie is intensely frustrated with it all – especially as it is December and Christmas is coming. It seems there is nothing for him to do on board, and no escape. That is, until an unexpected stowaway, a frightening encounter with Russian secret agents and an alarming international plot bring him far more excitement than he has ever bargained for. Suddenly, his own life, and those of his entire beloved family, are in danger. Forced in to a new and adult role, Arie is faced with difficult decisions to make, and even more difficult actions to take.The Skipper’s Child is an exciting story of adventure and suspense set in the evocative world of the commercial waterways during the coldest winter of the Cold War.
Locations
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Discover the waterways of Belgium, Netherlands and France BookTrail style
This is a story set on the waterways of Belgium, Netherlands and France where we meet a boy, Arie, and his father delivering wool from the Netherlands to France. However, this journey takes a turn when they discover young Dmitri, a Russian stowaway on board.
Arie’s family have to do what they can to protect Dmitri against the authorities who are keen to capture him. They are exposed travelling through the waterways during war time as this was a time where the waterways were busy with transportation of goods as well as people. The Germans were keen to track anyone trying to escape!
BookTrail Boarding Pass: The Skipper’s Child
Destination: Belgium, France, Netherlands Author/guide: Valerie Poore Departure Time: 1960s
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