On the day of his eighteenth birthday, midshipman cadet Chuck Dugan receives a startling letter, including a treasure map drawn by his late father and news that his mother is about to marry a rogue and scoundrel known as "the Admiral." When the Admiral warns Chuck away from his mother, and the Admiral's sons attack the young cadet, Chuck leaps into action, going AWOL from duty to stop the wedding and find the treasure. So begins this delightful illustrated novel and the thrilling adventures of Chuck Dugan?heroic, resourceful, a great swimmer, and master of disguise. In each cliffhanging chapter, Chuck must grapple with a new set of dangers, from sunken ships and buccaneers to survival on open water and a final race to the treasure ahead of the Admiral and his boys. Illuminated throughout with detailed maps of places, people, and things Chuck encounters along the way, and written with an electric sense of derring-do and whimsy, Eric Chase Anderson creates a totally original and captivating hero, and a swashbuckling adventure story for all ages.

"Anderson (brother of film director Wes Anderson) debuts with a whimsical little tale, which, though billed as fiction for grownups, falls into the no man's land between graphic novel and children's book. The story follows Naval Academy dropout, blueblood heir, junior inventor and master of disguise Chuck Dugan, 18, as he tries to stop his mother from marrying his father's arch-enemy, 'The Admiral,' and find the buried treasure his deceased father left for him. The pace is breathless, breaking only for quirky illustrations of a room, a character, a prop or an invention (the Powered Submersible Bicycle, for instance). Backstory — why would Chuck's mother want to marry the sociopathic Admiral? What is the buried treasure? — is largely ignored in favor of wacky forward momentum. Like a junior James Bond (minus the ladykiller business), Chuck wiggles his way out of messes just at the last minute: he escapes the Admiral's thugs via a propeller bike (which doesn't actually work) and narrowly avoids drowning when a pirated submarine rescues him. Silly, yes, amusing, yes — but it's also a little too lightweight and self-consciously cute. 35 color and b&w illus. Agent, Amanda Urban. (May)" Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Eric Anderson's art plays a key part in his brother Wes Anderson's films, most recently in "The Royal Tenenbaums. His first novel, "Chuck Dugan Is AWOL, chronicles the adventures of Chuck, a young naval officer who will stop at nothing to stop corruption. A tale of intrigue, lost treasure, and romance on the high seas and illustrated throughout with delightful and detailed map, Anderson creates a totally original and captivating hero, and an adventure story for all ages. Pulitzer prize winning novelist Michael Chabon raves. "Eric Chase Anderson's whimsical precise artwork reveals the world of Chuck Dugan to be an unflagging source of wonder and delight."