When eleven-year-old Nicholas Young secretly boards Captain Cook’s ship Endeavor in Plymouth, England, he’s more than just a stowaway — he’s a runaway! To escape a violent employer and harsh father, Nick settles aboard Cook’s ship which is sailing to Australia. His secret hideaway is known only to a few seamen — bribed to keep silent. Inevitably, Nick is discovered, and he spends the rest of the journey proving he is an able-bodied seaman. Based on true accounts, Hesse carefully supports this 1768 historical novel with journal entries, real dates, and nautical terms. The seafaring setting and a plot including squalls, scurvy, slavery, and shipwreck anchor the novel’s unique characters. As the salty accounts of the trip crest, Nick learns the depth of his own character.