ROBINSON CRUSOE by DANIEL DEFOE

TITLE: Robinson Crusoe

AUTHOR: Daniel Defoe

REWIED BY: Vidhi Sethi (12 yrs.)

The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe is a wonderful book. It starts with a father not allowing his son to become a sailor. But set on his goal, Robinson Crusoe made his maiden voyage to Hull in London with his friends. This was a big turn in his life.

Adventurous as he was, he made his next voyage with another friend of his who was the captain of a ship going to guinea in Africa. Further he went to Brazil and started living with a sugar planter’s family. He bought a plantation of his own. But when a group of them asked if he could journey to Guinea he could not resist the call of an adventure and agreed to go. Little did he know that this journey wasn’t a normal one. It would lead him to a completely new life on an uninhabited island.

Struggling for supplies with failures and successes for twelve years he began to lead a comfortable life. But one day when he saw a man’s footprint and then human skin, flesh and bones he was filled with great fear and anxiety. He tried all possible ways to make his existence a secret. Everything became peaceful once again. Twenty-three years had passed since he had come on this island.

But when one December morning he saw from his window smoke rising somewhere he was filled with dread. Soon after that he came across cannibals and after fighting with them he freed a man who was kept as a prisoner. He named him Friday as he had got him on a Friday.

Friday was a faithful and cheerful person. He told Robinson about his land and his people. But when savages, cannibals and mutineers entered into their life everything is changed. The story then goes on with Robinson capturing the mutineers with eleven other people on his side and then finally in 1686 he left the island after spending twenty-seven years, two months and nineteen days. In June, 1687 he returned to England his hometown and started leading a new life.

This book is the author's first novel and is one of the best known adventure stories in the world. It is a story which thrills all the readers alike, with wonderful events like shipwreck, a young man alone on an uninhabited island, storms, dangers, cannibals, mutineers and finally a glorious home coming.

It is a must read for young readers. Happy Reading!!!