"The colonizing of Pitcairn Island, subsequent to the mutiny of the Bounty, forms one of the most romantic chapters of maritime history. My tale is founded on the facts connected therewith. It is essentially a "true story," the merest spider-web of fiction having been employed to bind it together. Its object is to show the remarkable manner in which it has pleased God, in connection with this event, to bring light out of darkness, good out of evil, by means of the Bible, without note, comment, or preacher, and to raise up a community which was, and still is, altogether unique in its rise, progress, and Christian character." R. M. Ballantyne

About the Ballantyne Series:

Do all boys hate to read? Forget snips and snails and puppy dog tails; boys today are lured by DVDs, computer games, paintball, 4-wheeling, and a host of other entertainment-driven activities. To harness them to a couch to read a book can be a headache few parents want to face. Let us make it easier for all of you.

R. M. Ballantyne, an 1800s adventurer who was also able to write, will mesmerize your sons with subjects as wide-ranging as the exploits and trials of the Scottish Covenanters, the lifestyle of the Cornish Miners, the discovery of the North Pole, the horrors of the pirate city of Algiers, the exploration of Africa, adventures in Brazil, and even the story of the fur traders on our own continent.

Annoyed by a mistake he made in an earlier book and determined to never let it happen again, Ballantyne dedicated himself to travel to gain first-hand knowledge. He always researched his books very carefully - if he wanted to write about the life of a tin-miner, he would spend time living and working as a tin-miner.

Ballantyne's engaging, memorable style on a wide variety of subjects shows his knack for depicting people of other lands in a descriptive, fullbodied style; these books are remarkably real. This means that the horrors of cultures which have not heard the gospel are clearly presented. Ballantyne communicates these from the perspective that he clearly dislikes what he is disclosing; yet he does not shy back from revealing sad and occasionally gruesome scenes. The accounts ring true and will provide you with springboards for discussion as your children grapple with these realities.

While each of these books is a gem, Joy, our reviewer for this series, was especially mesmerized with The Coral Island. In the context of a thrilling and intriguing tale, Ballantyne does an eye-opening and heart-wrenching job of bringing out the horror of a culture without Christ. By contrasting the cannibalistic culture of the Pacific islands and the greedy nature of the pirates with the godly, Christ-honoring hearts of the heroic young lads, the gospel is seen clearly without preaching.

The cloth covers in this series are color-coded to represent the geographic region of each story. The regions and their respective colors are as follows:

North America -- Forest Green
South America -- Wheat
South Pacific -- Light Blue
Arctic Regions -- Grey
Europe -- Navy Blue
Africa -- Sienna
Asia -- Red

Note: in accordance with the period in which they were written, you will find places where an occasional derogatory term is used. It is the lingo of the times, yet unnecessarily inflammatory and distracting for today's readers. Our friends at Vision Forum have attempted to pull out most of these words, but you may find it best to preview the books with a bottle of white-out, or train your eldest to search out these problems and eradicate them.

We are selling Ballantyne's books bundled as three different sets for the best value but they are also available individually. Set A includes:Blue Lights, The Coral Island, Deep Down, The Giant of the North, The Gorilla Hunters, Hunted and Harried, Martin Rattler, The Pirate City, Red Rooney, and The Young Fur Traders. Set B includes: Post Haste, The Cannibal Islands/Fighting the Whales, The Lonely Island, Fighting the Flames, Gascoyne, The Pioneers/Fast in the Ice, Ungava, The Dog Crusoe, The Island Queen, and The Norsemen in the West. Set C combines sets A and B for an extra special value.

In this story, the follow-up look at what happened with the escaped mutineers of the famous ship the H.M.S. Bounty. It begins with a recounting of the famous mutiny and the casting adrift of Captain Bligh instigated by Fletcher Christian and his comrades due to severe treatment of the men by the infamous Captain. After a brief stay on the island of Otaheite the “mutineers” finally resolve to find an uninhabited remote island to spend the rest of their days hopefully without being found, enjoying peace and quiet.

This being decided, the men and their Otaheitian wives, along with six native men, left in search of an island to colonize. For more than 20 years they remained on the island and were not heard of. The choice for their settlement was Pitcairn's Island, far off the beaten sailing routes of ships at sea.

In this intriguing story, learn about what befell these men, their settlement, the consequences of their actions, and how men without a reliance and faith in Jesus Christ, left to their own devises, will not experience peace and success. But, when the powerful work of God begins, change is remarkable: a 20-year redemption story in the making.

“So the good seed sown under such peculiar circumstances at the beginning of the century continues to grow and spread and flourish, bringing forth fruit to the glory of God. Thus He causes light to spring out of darkness, good to arise out of evil, and The Lonely Island, once an almost unknown rock in the Pacific Ocean, was made a center of blessed Christian influence soon after the time when it became—the refuge of the mutineers.” R. M. Ballantyne