The following collection of thematically related readings is available in The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle and Related Readings in McDougal Littell's Literature Connections series.

Mary Patten by Linda Grant De Pauw
(from Seafaring Women, © 1982)
Summary: This excerpt from real-life stories about seafaring women tells why Mary Patten was hailed in the 1850s as "living proof that there was nothing women could not do." When her husband falls ill, Mary takes command of his ship and successfully rounds the challenging Cape Horn.

Excerpt from Two Years Before the Mast by Richard Henry Dana
Summary: In this excerpt from his famous personal narrative, Dana describes a sea captain as cruel as Jaggery and a crew as cohesive and victimized as that of the Seahawk.

Walking the Trestle by Jay Parini
(from Anthracite Country, © 1976)
Summary: In this poem, the speaker describes the experience of walking across a railroad trestle perched 40 feet above a river.

Excerpt from The Princess and the Admiral by Charlotte Pomerantz, © 1974
Summary: This Vietnamese tale tells how Mat Mat, the ruling princess of the Tiny Kingdom, outsmarts an invader to preserve her country's 100 years of peace.

This Morning There Were Rainbows in the Sprinklers by Lorna Dee Cervantes
(from Kikiriki, © 1990)
Summary: The speaker in this poem expresses the emotions of someone who has taken control of his or her destiny.