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Title: Robinson Crusoe (Everyman's Library (Cloth))
ISBN: 0679405852
Author:
Daniel Defoe
Publicate Date: 1992-11-03
Publish: 1992-11-03
List Price: $15.00
Average Customer Rating: 3.5
Format: Hardcover
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Amazon Lowest New Price: $28.35
Amazon Lowest Used Price: $1.48
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| Customer Review: |
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1: Beautiful book, but abridged
Scribner has created a beautiful book in this edition. The illustrations are on heavy glossy paper and are magnificent. There are very nice, free readings of this work online, and so I purchased the book for my young children to enjoy - to read while listening to the narrator. My only complaint is the book is abridged. This is not evident from the description. I think most editions of this work are abridged. When the book ended, I was left wondering what became of Friday, as he is not mentioned again after the final battle. The author did not seem like one who would leave out that detail, and so I discovered the unabridged story is longer. Still, the quality of the book and the beauty of the illustrations are so very nice that I cannot knock a star off my review.
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2: Classic, Kind of has a inner depth too.
"I came on shore here on the 30th of September, 1639." These words, these few words signified the beginning of a new life for Robinson Crusoe. In the timely classic Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe, a young boy becomes a man, after living alone on an island for 35 years. Set in the 1600's, our protagonist, Robinson Crusoe, is stranded on an isolated island after being shipwreck by a terrible storm. He has to learn anything and everything in order to survive on the island. At first, Robinson Crusoe struggles with the need of food, shelter, and protection. But most of all, Robinson Crusoe battles against the desperate need of company. Slowly, Crusoe starts to fall into a pattern: he built a sturdy fortress, raised up a good crop, managed to satisfy all his need with his own to hands, and took the Bible to his heart. Defoe wonderfully creates a realistic mental scene of all Robinson Crusoe dealt with while, the illustrator, N.C. Wyeth, visually portrays the moments of Crusoe's life vividly. The style of Robinson Crusoe switches between first person narrative and dairy format. The book is fast-paced, skimming years, while writes in detail on only the most important parts of his island survival. Defoe neatly described all aspects of Robinson Crusoe's life from religion to family. Finally, Defoe puts in, in my opinion, a theme of never giving up, no matter what the circumstances, for if you stack up the good against the battle, you will find the good shall always outweigh the bad.
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3: Shipwrecked-on-an-Island, a Wonderful Story
Note: Your "helpful" votes are appreciated. Thanks.
There are a lot of psychological and social theories about "Robinson Crusoe," but I just take it as a grand adventure. I loved all the details of how he survived after being shipwrecked on that island. Just remember that it was written in the seventeenth century so you have to get used to writing.
I have a warm place in my heart for Robinson Crusoe. Some fifty years ago in the second grade, my teacher read it to our class. Decades later, I told my wife about it, but she said that it was impossible. Robinson Crusoe is too difficult for a teacher to read to second graders.
Well, several years went by, and I was proved right. In a used bookstore, I bought a copy of "The Story of Robinson Crusoe in words of One Syllable," with "Colored Illustrations." The book was published in about 1900, and when my teacher read it to her class, the book was over fifty years old.
Since then I have collected paperback editions of "Robinson Crusoe" for their neat covers, and this one is really nice.
If you like shipwrecked-on-an-island stories, read Richard Laymon's "Island." It's a page-turner of a modern murder mystery.
Island
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4: The Best of the Robinson Crusoe readings.
Everyone knows the story...so the issue is who can read the
literature in a compelling way. Clearly, Martin Shaw has the touch. My only criticism is that this audio Cassette should be made into an audio CD for most modern listeners.
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5: An Affirmation of the Times
The century in which Robinson Crusoe had his adventures was a time of exploration and colonialism. Daniel Defoe's story is famous for many reasons. For one thing, it is one of the first books to be written in modern English. Secondly, the adventuristic appeal has won the hearts and interests of generations of readers. And thirdly, it is an affirmation of the culture and society of the times (in comparison with Gulliver's Travels, a book that was more a satire of the times).
The book is set up in three parts, those being Crusoe's exploration of the world, being cast away on the island, and the providential return to society. The three parts are used to establish the world he exists in, to defend the world he exists in, and then to return to it after he's been able to properly exist outside of it.
Many readers may find a lot of comfort in his story. His ingenuity, perseverence, and industry combine somewhat melodramatically with his humbleness and self-discovery of God, which he defends mightily throughout. The story on a whole is hopeful and endearing: work hard, respect God, and even the most unlucky of man will abide.
Unfortunately, his tale hasn't aged well. The use of cannibal savages, slaves, and the like throughout the novel might offend some people. The constant care for divinity is at first really refreshing, but becomes tedious as the book starts to fall into a pattern of comfort-discomfort-speculation-God-comfort which may have been very enriching on the time, but today gets tedious. I don't want to intone that piety and response to the Bible is bad, I'm just saying it's out of place in modern vernacular.
Defoe himself shows a comprehensive understanding of the language, the characters, and the times. It is, really, a remarkable piece of writing structurally. However, its themes have aged, making it less than Universal, and for that matter somewhat misunderstood with modern-day audiences.
I'd say get this, the Dover Thrift edition. It's cheap, unabridged, and includes a quick introduction that makes the reading experience vastly more enriching. Otherwise it may be time to set this story to rest.
--PolarisDiB
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