Here are some of the characters in my books:
Captain Clawbeak
I’m a very bright macaw, and I’m not just talking about the colour of my feathers. Actually, I’m a loudmouthed salty macaw, which is an endangered species. I’ve been knocking around the high seas for longer than anyone can remember and nobody knows just how old I am. I recently escaped from the pirate ship Red Herring and ran away to land to live with young Jack Dawkins and his family.
Jack
Jack is the boy I adopted when I ran away from the Pirate Ship Red Herring. Jack can be a bit shy and underconfident, but when he gets into a scrape (which he often does) he shows just how brave and smart and loyal he really is. Jack dreams of sailing around the world in his dad’s yacht, the Stormie Lou, which looks just like a little pirate ship.
Joey
Joey Spratt is Jack’s best friend, after me of course. He comes from a big family and has a crazy imagination. In fact Joey often gets swept away by his imagination and takes Jack along for the ride.
Doc Debbie
Jack’s mum. She’s a vet so she loves animals, of course, and she’s very smart and fearless. She’s not even scared of Daggers Diehard (well, not as scared as Jack or me, anyway. Doc Debbie’s not bad at soccer either. I call her ‘me charming lass’ and give her lots of kisses, so she’ll give me lots of Pirates’ Treasure bird seed.
Sinbad
Jack’s dad, also known as Dan Dawkins. He used to be a sailor but now he’s a stay-at-home dad. His hobbies are boat-building and roaring at Jack. I call him 'Sinbad' and enjoy stirring him up with my salty old pirate talk.
Daggers Diehard
A nasty, ghastly pirate from the pirate ship Red Herring. Daggers’ breath smells like dead fish that’s been left in the sun too long and his favourite animal is Fang, the revolting ship’s cat. Watch out for Daggers, because the Red Herring’s last cabin boy just turned 65 and has just run away to land, so he’s on the lookout for more cabin boys. Daggers and Fang have a secret hideout in a cave above the blow hole at Blind Man’s Bluff.
Fang
Fang has a voice like a rusty dentist’s drill and her favourite saying is NEYEOOOOWWWWWWWWWL.
She loves black jelly beans and only had one fang until Doc Debbie yanked it out (Well done, Doc Debbie, me charming lass!).
Big Bertha
A huge saltwater crocodile that lives in the zoo at Pirates Bay.
Whippersnapper
Son of Big Bertha. He was only an egg, when I stole him from the zoo. Somehow I hoped he’d turn into a loudmouthed salty macaw so I could be a dad, but instead he turned into a saltwater croc, and caused a very disturbing incident at Jack’s school.
Mildred Marlinspike.
My lovely partner, Mildred. She’s been around and seen it all. She lives at the Pirates Bay Zoo because she likes insulting visitors, but picks the lock whenever she likes and comes to visit me at Jack’s home. She’s good, that girl.
The Flying Dutchman.
Some call him Captain Van Den Decker. Others call him Captain Van Der Decken. Once a free trader who was sailed around the Cape of Good Hope towards to the Spice Islands, the Flying Dutchman is now doomed to sail the seas forever, scaring the wits out of people and parrots alike.
Stormie Lou
When she was a baby, Stormie Lou was rescued at sea by the pirates Cockroach Kate and Gloria Sunset. Stormie Lou lives in a driftwood hut on Ariel Island. She builds kayaks and rescues sailors in distress and dreams of running a pirate radio station. She’s the only person who thinks the Flying Dutchman is cute. Ooooh Stormie Lou!!!!
Sky
This is Jack’s little sister. Sky thinks she’s a baby parrot, and I’ve taught her to flaps her arms and beg for worms. I’m teaching her some juicy pirate talk, but don’t tell Sinbad that or he’ll have me feathers for dusters. When Sky laughs, the sun comes out, but you wouldn't want to make her cry unless you want to end a drought.Check out what other kids have said about Clawbeak.
Would you like your class to do a project based on the Clawbeak books? Your whole class could dress as pirates, read pirate books, write pirate diaries and recipes for pirate food, fill treasure chests, make a map and hide the chests, make model sailing ships and ghostly galleons, play pirate games, put on puppet shows, and learn some pirate songs and dances?
Then tell your teacher to check out some the Clawbeak Classroom Activities
Do it soon or I’ll make you walk the plank over the washing machine – on full spin cycle!