The Swallows and Amazons are on a cruise around the world when their ship is sunk by a storm in the South China Sea. They escape with their lives only to be taken prisoner by Missee Lee, leader of the Three Island pirates.

The original cast of Swallows and Amazons is sailing under the command of Captain Flint in the South China Sea when Gibbet, their pet monkey, grabs the captain's cigar and drops it in the fuel tank. In minutes, the ship is ablaze (and doomed), and our seven luckless protagonists are adrift in two small boats. They make their way to land, only to find themselves the captives of one of the last remaining pirates operating off the China Coast. But Missee Lee, as it turns out, is no ordinary pirate; her father had sent her off to Cambridge University to prepare her for a life as a teacher. But when her father takes ill and dies, she finds herself struggling to hold together the Three Island Confederation he had created, and to be recognized as his legitimate heir and ruler of the Island Kingdom.

Ransome is, as always, the consummate storyteller. The Observer called this, "his best yet . . . a book to buy, to read, and to read again, not once but many times." The Guardian put Missee Lee "in a class by itself."

Friendship and resourcefulness, dangers and excitement: Arthur Ransome's Swallows and Amazons series has stood the test of time. More than just great stories, each one celebrates independence and initiative with a colorful, large cast of characters. Missee Lee (originally published in 1941) is the tenth title in the Swallows and Amazons series, books for children or grownups, anyone captivated by a world of adventure, exploration, and imagination.