About the Author
Pat Gantz lives with her husband, Ken, in Prescott, Arizona. As a child, Pat
became the proverbial bookworm and developed a fondness for historical fiction. This love of reading later extended to collecting books, especially from bookstores and museums during her travels. Pat utilized her books and experiences for research in writing her Sailing the High Seas series.
How did Pat choose this topic? In seaport museums from Australia to Mystic Seaport, Pat discovered something amiss, a lack of historical fiction during the Age of Sail for middle-grade readers. Inspired by tall mast ships that she explored and sailed on, Pat embarked on imaginary voyages. So vivid were the images, that the writing bug bit and those excursions turned into short stories. But, as Pat reasoned, the kids still needed full size novels. Below is a list of the short stories that she turned into full length historical fiction.
Pat’s Sailing the High Seas series include:
Searching for Dad, Lost at Sea, 1780
Rendezvous with Grandmother, A Pirate Queen, 1781
In Hot Pursuit of Justice, 1782
Pat earned both of her degrees at Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana.
Bachelor of Science degree:
Major: Social Studies – 1. U.S. History 2. World History
Minor: Teaching the Deaf
Master of Arts degree:
Major: Special Education (Deaf)
Minor: American History
Obviously, Pat’s love of history carried on to college. But why the interest in deaf education? Check out her her blog on this website.
Read them and ye shall see.
A sailor is not defined by how many seas he has sailed but how many storms overcome. This is true for any of us.
In book one Searching for Dad, Lost at Sea, Logan is determined to find his dad. His cousin Blair wants to help and stows away on the ship. But, in the midst of sailing the ocean blue, pirates kidnap Uncle Ronnie and Logan for their medical expertise. Logan and Blair learn that sailing is not for the faint of heart, yet Blair chooses to risk her own life to maintain the search. Ye shall see if they succeed in finding Logan’s dad.
In book two Rendezvous with Grandmother, A Pirate Queen, Madam Quing wants her grandson, Jian to be her heir. However, the Secret Tiger Society will stop at nothing to capture Jian and seize the Dragon Woman’s pirate kingdom in the South China Sea. Logan, Blair, and Sea Eagle’s crew must rescue Jian from one peril after another. Their meeting with grandmother, she of the dark soul, ends with a stunning revelation.
In book three In Hot Pursuit of Justice sees Logan, Blair, and Uncle Ronnie chasing the pirate captain, Grayson under a Letter of Marque. The lad, Eli, and Logan possess secret weapons to outwit Grayson, that is, if they can board his sloop…Before they can do battle, however, Grayson’s latest scheme is one they never considered, FIRESHIP! Will Minerva explode?