The Adventures of Juan Ortiz: Explorer, Captive, Interpreter is a captivating story of a fifteen year-old noble who left Seville, Spain, to explore the New World. This engaging story is based on Juan's real-life experiences. He left Spain to seek excitement and unexpectedly found more than he anticipated. During his journeys, Juan experienced the life as an explorer on a Spanish galleon crossing the Atlantic Ocean. He was then taken captive by a Calusa Indian village in Southwest Florida and then lived with another village for nine years. Juan was later found by Hernando de Soto and served as his interpreter, translating the Indians languages into Spanish. Readers of The Adventures of Juan Ortiz will be riveted by the fast-paced action as Juan transforms from a spoiled noble into a compassionate explorer who is torn between two cultures and must ultimately decide how to use the skills he's learned to do what is right for the people he has grown to respect.