Hunting the Dragon

by Peter Dixon

Overview

Billy Crawford is a blond, eighteen-year-old surfer from Southern California, working in Fiji as a surfing instructor. But when he gets fired for leading his students into some dangerous surf, his endless summer seems to be over, and he decides that it's time to get a real job. He comes across a tuna clipper called Lucky Dragon whose crew is short a boatman, and the first mate offers him a job. What Billy doesn't know is that the clipper finds tuna by following dolphins. When Lucky Dragon sets its net for the first time, Billy witnesses a harrowing sight—dolphins being killed by the Dragon's money-hungry pirates. When he attempts to save a dolphin who is caught in the tuna net, the Dragon's captain tosses Billy and his belongings—including his surfboard—into the ocean and leaves.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781423147381
Publisher:	Disney Press
Publication date:	07/23/2010
Sold by:	DISNEY PUBLISHING WORLDWIDE -EBKS
Format:	eBook
File size:	408 KB
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

About the Author

Peter Dixon helped to shape a culture of ocean enthusiasts. He was one of the creators of Flipper the dolphin, and wrote the first episode of the popular TV series. He is also the author of the biggest-selling surf book worldwide, The Complete Book of Surfing. Peter has written many other books and produced several documentaries. After meeting Phil Eastly-one of the first to dive into a tuna net to rescue trapped dolphins-Peter was inspired to write Hunting the Dragon.

Editorial Reviews

Gr 8 Up—Billy Crawford, 18, is working his way around the world pursuing his passion for surfing. In Fiji, he loses his job shepherding around surfing-camp guests as a result of his own irresponsibility. Running low on funds, he signs aboard a pirate tuna clipper, where he is shocked to discover that dolphins are being caught and drowned in the nets used to harvest the tuna. When he jumps in to help a trapped dolphin escape, the evil captain abandons him in the middle of the ocean. With the help of the dolphin he saved, Billy makes it to land, then joins forces with Benny, a wildlife activist who hopes to ram and sink the Lucky Dragon. He also starts a romance with Benny's beautiful young assistant. In an action-packed climax, Billy and Benny disable the tuna clipper and capture the captain. While the novel has clear echoes of Melville's Billy Budd, readers need not recognize the literary allusions to appreciate the story. The book should have some appeal to naturalists and animal-rights advocates, even if Billy's relationship with the dolphin strains credibility.—Richard Luzer, Fair Haven Union High School, VT

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