Robinson Crusoe

Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe is one of the original adventure books. Written in 1719 it still holds its own with high sea adventure tales of today.

Crusoe, being told by his father that the best life to have is one of the lower of the upper class, cannot content himself with sitting idly by in a life in the country. He must make an effort to explore the world.

On his first trip aboard a ship, a storm hits and the ship is sunk. But does he take this as a hint that maybe a seafaring life is not for him? Nope. He sets sail again. In his further voyages he is captured as a slave, escapes, buys land but realizes he is living the life his father suggested, sails again and is marooned on an island for 28 (!) years.

Defoe writes in a matter of fact way that makes the story both remarkable and commonplace. And somehow he makes Crusoe's life on a tropical island sound like the perfect life (if only a new box of books would appear every few months).

Defoe, Daniel. (2003). Robinson Crusoe. New York: Barnes and Noble Classics.