Racking my brain

I read part of a book a couple of years ago, and I've been trying for months to track it down. It is a novel - part of a series, I think - about a girl who has adventures on the high seas. I thought it might have been The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, but having read a snippet, I'm certain it isn't.

What do I remember? The girl had an unusual name, a connection to the Cape (or near the Cape) and of course an adventure on the ocean(s). Oh, and that the books are well-written. Last time this happened, it took me years (and finally, very good luck) to track down a book. I hope this time isn't as difficult.

10 books in a row

On one of my shelves:

The Sea of Trolls - Nancy Farmer
Mind of the Raven - Bernd Heinrich
Kanji & Kana - Hadamitzky & Spahn
A book entirely in Japanese, indecipherable at the moment
Kyo Noren - Takai Kiyoshi
Godless Morality - Richard Holloway
The Communist Manifesto - Marx & Engels (oooh, *that* communist manifesto!)
The Killer Angels - Michael Shaara
The Next Million Years - Charles Galton Darwin
Forgotten Kingdom - Peter Goullart

Minor beef with book dealers

I found three kinds of product descriptions today while prowling the used book shelves at amazon.com for Spanish grammar workbooks.

Exhibit A:

• Comments: Some shelf wear to edges of cover, pages yellowed a bit, otherwise good.
• Comments: Bought but never used. Shelf wear. Shipping from MA.
• Comments: about half the book has writing

Exhibit B:

• Comments: Go with the name you can trust: Thriftbooks has the HIGHEST star rating of ALL high-volume sellers! Read More. Spend Less. Your Satisfaction is Guaranteed!

Exhibit C:

• Comments: minor shelfwear; clean pages Average used book, may have price sticker on front cover, shelfwear. BUY WITH CONFIDENCE: 99% Positive feedback. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed!!!!! Compare our prices and service to the competition!
• Comments: Book shows some use, cover is a bit worn, but pages are clean and book is solid. Some writing in first few pages. A great addition to your library!

It's pretty easy for me to ignore the books in Exhibit B, and some of the books in Exhibit A don't work for me (I prefer a workbook that hasn't already had someone write in answers). The listings in Exhibit C annoy me.

I already am comparing the prices. I think that's why Amazon puts them in order. Buy with confidence? Well, maybe now that this is in all caps, sure. A great addition to my library? How would you know? I just want pertinent information, damn it, but these listings leave me doubtful.

"Average used book, may have price sticker on front cover, shelfwear" and "Book shows some use, cover is a bit worn, but pages are clean and book is solid" look like boilerplate, so I am skeptical about "clean pages" and the second listing's bit about "Some writing in first few pages" makes me think "pages are clean" is maybe not accurate. Just possibly.

Grumble.