The Anti-Pirate Potato Cannon

The big fireworks shows don’t start until Monday so what are you going to do with the kids all weekend? It’d be a shame if they played video games and Facebooked the whole time when the weather forecast is calling for the mid-80s over the next several days. Instead, try creating an underwater viewer from an old bucket or two-liter soda bottle, signaling shore with a CD, warding off scurvy dogs with an anti-pirate potato cannon, or even building a boat.

All of these projects, along with 95 others, can be found in David Seidman and Jeff Hemmel’s book The Anti-Pirate Potato Cannon & 101 Other Things for Young Mariners to Build, Try & Do on the Water. We don’t review very many books, but we think this is a great book for seafarers — and wannabe seafarers — of all ages. You can learn to navigate like ancient mariners, how to tie a monkey’s fist and heaving line, the best way to ride out a hurricane, and how to read clouds (not that you’ll have much practice this weekend). You can find the book at online retailers but it won’t arrive till next week so try calling your local brick-and-mortar stores if you’d like to have a little seafaring family fun this weekend.