Treasure Island (World's Classics)

Rating:
Summary: Classic Adventure Novel
Review: "Treasure Island" is the classic adventure novel by Robert Louis Stevenson. Set on the high seas amid treasures and pirates, it is the story of a young boy's adventure. "Treasure Island" has been done by everyone from Disney to the Muppets. It's been imitated many times and influenced countless books and movies.

A mysterious pirate shows up at an inn owned by Jim Hawkin's mother. The pirate is killed by a gang of rogues, but Jim finds a treasure map belonging to the pirate. Jim then embarks on a journey to far away island to find the treasure. Of course, nobody can be trusted - especially the cook, Long John Silver. With his peg leg and parrot, Silver is the stereotypical pirate. Once the island is reached, sides are chosen - the mutinous pirates against the ship's crew. Jim goes on a journey within a journey on the island, going from one side to another, as the treasure is hunted for.

Everyone should read this book at some point. It's especially good for young boys, due to the fact that the main character (Jim) is a young boy. It's well crafted, and easy to read. And it's hard to put down once you get going. What else can you ask for?

Rating:
Summary: My ' nay' should not effect your ' ay- ay matey'
Review: At School 10 in Troy , New York many years ago Miss McGovern led her little mateys through a reading of this children's classic. I do not remember exactly what she had to say about Captain Silver and Jim Hawkins , whether she felt the cunning and dishonest old curmudgeon Silver was somehow a sympathetic soul, and young Mr. Hawkins was a very worthy and wily apprentice. I do know that around about the same time the Big Screen showed a version of this tale which brought it more vividly to life. As a child I could not exactly understand why Captain Silver had to be ' bad ' at all, and what exactly Mr.Stevenson wanted for us. The treasure , the map , the finding of booty did not appeal very much to my young soul, and to tell the truth the whole tale seemed more like yet another ' adult trick' to make ' children' feel interested in 'school'. The rousing yarn that has held the attention of so many largely confused me. In this one however my guess is my own childhood impressions are pretty well of the mark, and do little justice to a book which has given so much suspenseful pleasure to young readers.

Rating:
Summary: Yow!!!
Review: How can you even review the ultimate pirate book of all time? I read it when I was 9 and loved it. I read it again when I was 34 and loved it again! (Actually, I read it several times between, as well.) Long John Silver is arguably one of the most Macchiavellian characters you will ever find between the covers of a book. (I'm mainly reviewing it to raise the average rating. Anyone who thinks this book is boring has to have a screw loose!) From the arrival of the mysterious Billy Bones, to the attack on the inn, to the sea voyage, to the mutiny, to the battle for the island, to the treasure hunt, even to the final fate of John Silver, this book is a stunning rollercoaster of suspense and adventure! I'd give it ten stars if I could.

Here's a bit of information you other readers might enjoy: the meaning of the pirates' song--

Fifteen men on a dead man's chest Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum!

The real-life pirate, Edward Teach (Blackbeard the Pirate) once marooned 15 of his men on a small island named Dead Man's Chest. He put them ashore with no weapons, equipment or supplies--just a bottle of rum.

Rating:
Summary: Review
Review: I have never been very interested in pirates or plunder or the skull and crossbones flag until I read this book. Stevenson's "Treasure Island" is remarkably well written, containing fascinating bits of foreshadowing, a unique and captivating plot, and undying characters that will burn into your mind indefinitely. My personal favourite character is Long John Silver, who throughout the novel seems almost "two-faced". His one side is well mannered, charming and witty, while his other face is ruthless, sly and money-driven. However, he has been quite a fictional figure not only for my self but also for the world. In Part One, "The Old Buccaneer", the strange new pirate pays Jim Hawkins a gold piece daily "to watch out for a one-legged man hobbling down the street." The ending is perfectly crafted by Stevenson; it closes with Jim Hawkins describing his predictions for the destinies of the pirates he has travelled with. On the other hand, Jim Hawkins made the plotline a little too obvious at times. In one spot especially, he says that the apple barrel would in time save them all. In the end, it's an exceptional piece of work, but the author did make some unforgivable mistakes by making the plot too obvious so soon.

Rating:
Summary: Treasure
Review: J M Barrie said "Over Treasure Island I let my fire die in winter without knowing I was freezing." This is a captivating book that will make you forget little things like freezing to death. A well written story of pirates, buried treasure, sailing ships, and adventure, Treasure Island is also a soaring effort in the literary world. Stevenson deftly creates a whole Piratical lingo for this tale.
Parts of the book stick with you like Jim Hawkins meeting marooned Ben Gunn. Ben tells him "Marooned three years agone," he continued, "and lived on goats since then, and berries, and oysters. Wherever a man is, says I, a man can do for himself. But, mate, my heart is sore for Christian diet. You mightn't happen to have a piece of cheese about you, now? No? Well, many's the long night I've dreamed of cheese--toasted, mostly--and woke up again, and here I were."
How can we ever forget Long John Silver's parrot Cap'n Flint crying pieces of eight! pieces of eight! until Silver throws his handkerchief over the cage. You may even hear the surf booming about the coasts of Treasure Island in your dreams. Long John beckons to Jim during the voyage "Come away, Hawkins," he would say; "come and have a yarn with John. Nobody more welcome than yourself, my son." and so Silver welcomes us all into this splendid yarn.

Rating:
Summary: Treasure Island
Review: The book Treasure Island is an adventure book, and for good reasons. This action packed story takes place hundreds of years ago and the setting goes from a dangerous home, to the sea, and finally to an island. In the story Jim Hawkins finds a treasure map and he says in the book that he will try to get the treasure. The main characters are Jim Hawkins, the young lad pursuing treasure, Long John Silver, the experienced sailor who is the cook, and one of the bad guys blind Pew. This is a book that kids would like but is probably recommended for older people due to its reading difficulty. The sailors and Jim Hawkins try to find an island with buried treasure but first they must overcome many treacherous obstacles. The reason this book blows away the competition is because you will always wonder what will happen on the open seas were rules hardly apply. I cannot be sure of the way sailors used to talk but from what I know the author rights it exactly as it would have been said. The reviewers say, "masterfully crafted" which is only one of many phrases that can portray the excellence of the book. You have to read this slowly, page by page because it has a lot of information on each page and if you read it to quickly you won't understand what just happened. This is not a book you can read right before bed because it's hard to put it down and you might end up reading all night. This book is like Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter because people are out to kill you and this book shows many scenes were the characters make narrow escapes, but sometimes they don't. When you read this book you wonder is like a mix of fiction, non- fiction, and science fiction because the adventures are so detailed you might think you are there but it has many surprising scenes that you wonder if that could happen. Although the author has a slow pace it shows every last repetitive thing you have to do at sea. The author also is good at making it feel real, like you are really there. In away this book is like Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate where at the very beginning the characters are pretty happy but then someone comes and ruins it then that person keeps going at the people for the money that is rightfully theirs. Basically what I have been saying about Treasure Island is that you should read it.

-Kyle Watson


Rating:
Summary: Children's Classic
Review: Though some people may not find much that this book offers in comparison to more recent books, I think that it meets the goals of its author very well. The book is simply something that has stood the test of time because it is a very simple story. There are no major plot twists or complexities. It is something that could be read to a child (And as a side note, the alchohol mentioned was a common practice of pirates and fully helps to show the baseness of them and show them as having no standards whatsoever, also it was more common in the time period written of that people drank alchohol rather than water for various reasons. The mear fact of that is something that adds an historical aspect to the story). The wording of everything also lends both atmosphere and a chance for a story-teller to embelish on accents and such. Overall, with this book being compared to any of the Treasure Island movies or remakes, you can't beat the original. This story, almost by itself it seems to me, created the entire Pirate Archetype in literature. All the aspects of language set in this book have been followed by later books and movies. So to say this book isn't worth reading is simply a lack of (or for that matter, an excessive ammount of pride in one's) intelligence. It is a simple, good book that is quite a page turner in my oppinion.

Rating:
Summary: One of the greatest pirate stories of all time
Review: Treasure Island is arguably one of the greatest works of storytelling in the English language. Stevenson created other novels, with greater depth and insight, but the highlight of Treasure Island is the combination of color and poetic prose that distinguishes his tale of piracy and boyhood adventure from the rest of the field of other adventure books. The title alone paints an image of suspense, and salty pirates battling over great riches. Most people tend to view Treasure Island as a story for children, but it can be enjoyed by anyone longing for a rollicking adventure. Like so many stories from the 1800s, each chapter ends with a cliffhanger, and once you get used to the language the author's humor shines through.

Rating:
Summary: Treasure!
Review: Who doesn't love the story of Treasure Island? I think it's a great book. Some people say it is not very good because of the "ancient" way it is written. Just goes to show how dumb modern man is. Buy it and maybe get a better vocabulary.