Owen is looking forward to the week when his parents go away to a convention of marina owners. He plans to find something exciting to do on this island where there are no young people. He and his parents moved here after an incident with his brother, which left his parents fearing that Owen would eventually fall prey to the same negative influences. When a storm comes and strands a boat at the marina for the night, Owen sees an opportunity to make friends with the yacht's first mate, Arturo and stowaway before they leave. Little does he know that Arturo is less than a first mate and more like a slave to the captain who is taking boys escaping from Columbia to Canada for a price. Once Owen discovers them, he becomes a liability to the captain, leading to the possibility that he might not make it back home.
Stowaway is an adventure story with a lesson about taking life for granted. The story alternates perspective from Owen to Arturo. Owen seems ridiculously naive to Arturo's worldliness which works well to contrast the two main characters and challenges the reader to root for at least one of them. A fairly simple and predictable story makes this a short, easy read with little depth or profound ideas. ( )

Told from the perspectives of the 2 main characters; Owen, a Canadian boy on a lonely island with a hidden secret, and Arturo, a first mate on a people smuggling boat from Guatamala who was once a street kid.
Owen is left by his parents to look after the island marina one weekend while they are away.
Arturo and his horrible captain are forced to berth at Owen's marina to escape a terrible storm. Owen admires their boat and after befriending Artudo thinks he can stow away and pop out to surprise them when they leave the harbour but it doesn't turn out that way.
Unfortunately, he stumbles across 7 hidden school boys on the yacht. There is piracy ( the people smugglers themselves are robbed) and violence. At one stage Arturo is whipped by the captain, and in an effort to get money from the smuggled boys and Owen, they are forced into a tree planting slavery racket where they are kept in filthy conditions awaiting a ransom payment from their parents.
There is a lot of betrayal and plot twists and turns as Owen is caught in a situation where he can trust no-one. It is told in alternating chapters between Owen & Arturo, with the latter suffering from Stockholm Syndrome and believing he is an unworthy person.
Lots of suspense and adventure that boys will love. ( )