Blackbeard is one of the most famous and yet most mysterious pirates of the seven seas. We know that he was real, but in the almost three centures since he lived, truth and myth have blended until now it is hard to tell which is which. In "Blackbeard the Pirate King," poet J. Patrick Lewis has gone back to the earliest known record of Blackbeard, researched the theories, myths and early tales, and captured the swashbuckling Captian Teach in a rousing blend of rhyme and wordplay that celebrates our fascination with the man and the myth. This lavishly illustrated hardcoer book will be released May 9, 2006.