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Silver: My Own Tale as Written by Me with a Goodly Amount of Murder
I am Silver, and there is no other pirate like me on these waters. . . .
This being the last testament of the infamous pirate Long John Silver, you would do well not to trust a word in its pages. Held captive aboard his own ship, the Linda Maria, he is to be taken to England, where he will hang at the King's pleasure. But he has another to exact revenge upon his captors by disclosing their secrets in a journal. It tells a tale of treason, murder, his own ascent from pickpocket street urchin to pirate captain, a lost treasure that would rival King George's own riches, and what really happened on Treasure Island. This book is that journal . . . but is Silver to be believed?
This being the last testament of the infamous pirate Long John Silver, you would do well not to trust a word in its pages. Held captive aboard his own ship, the Linda Maria, he is to be taken to England, where he will hang at the King's pleasure. But he has another to exact revenge upon his captors by disclosing their secrets in a journal. It tells a tale of treason, murder, his own ascent from pickpocket street urchin to pirate captain, a lost treasure that would rival King George's own riches, and what really happened on Treasure Island. This book is that journal . . . but is Silver to be believed?
288 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2008
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 44 reviews
September 24, 2015
Whew! Stayed up till 10:30 last night finishing this it was just so darn good!
First off a little about the story: It tells the tale, howbeit a little twisted, of the classic Treasure Island but from Long John Silver's point of view instead of the good guys. Silver, a devil through and through, has been captured by the Kings navy and is on his way to Londontown for hanging. On the way he decides to tell the tale of his life and so begins our exciting adventure as we follow him from being a lad in the streets of Bristol to the most famous and ruthless pirate captain to sail the high seas!
So there you have the jist of the story; there is a lot more to it but I fear that I will give away the twists and turns of the books so I will refrain from telling you any more.
I will tell you though that this was by far one of the best pirate books I have ever read!
All the characters, especially Silver, where vividly described and the scenery was so richly portrayed that I imagined myself right next to Silver himself on the decks of the Linda Maria the sea wind pulling at my face and the ocean spray sprinkling my hands. Ah but I get carried away.
This book was one of those books that for about 3/4 of the way through you are thinking that the author couldn't possibly tie everything together and make it plainly understood. Ah but you would be disappointed my hearties, (See I even start writing like a pirate, I told ya I get carried away) for at the very end of the book all the pieces like a giant jigsaw puzzle fall into place and you are like "Ahah! I get it!" and you go away satisfied with the story of Long John Silver and his tale.
Summarizing my review this book was a fantastically good swashbuckling tale with plenty of murder, treasure, pirate talk and high sea adventure for any that love a good hearty pirate tale!
Ahoy my hearties! I must needs be getting to reading another fine such pirate tale!
First off a little about the story: It tells the tale, howbeit a little twisted, of the classic Treasure Island but from Long John Silver's point of view instead of the good guys. Silver, a devil through and through, has been captured by the Kings navy and is on his way to Londontown for hanging. On the way he decides to tell the tale of his life and so begins our exciting adventure as we follow him from being a lad in the streets of Bristol to the most famous and ruthless pirate captain to sail the high seas!
So there you have the jist of the story; there is a lot more to it but I fear that I will give away the twists and turns of the books so I will refrain from telling you any more.
I will tell you though that this was by far one of the best pirate books I have ever read!
All the characters, especially Silver, where vividly described and the scenery was so richly portrayed that I imagined myself right next to Silver himself on the decks of the Linda Maria the sea wind pulling at my face and the ocean spray sprinkling my hands. Ah but I get carried away.
This book was one of those books that for about 3/4 of the way through you are thinking that the author couldn't possibly tie everything together and make it plainly understood. Ah but you would be disappointed my hearties, (See I even start writing like a pirate, I told ya I get carried away) for at the very end of the book all the pieces like a giant jigsaw puzzle fall into place and you are like "Ahah! I get it!" and you go away satisfied with the story of Long John Silver and his tale.
Summarizing my review this book was a fantastically good swashbuckling tale with plenty of murder, treasure, pirate talk and high sea adventure for any that love a good hearty pirate tale!
Ahoy my hearties! I must needs be getting to reading another fine such pirate tale!
March 5, 2024
I thought the idea for the book was a good one. Long John Silver is one of the great characters of literature, what more was there too his life? Cover and presentation tick, also the language and settings (although repetitive and harder to read through than Treasure Island) attempt best to be accurate.
However, this book didn't grab me, it d9esnt start strong with adventure or tension, rather it's Long John Silver writing in a slightly whinny tone about his predicament. it's longer than Treasure Island which isn't a great sign, and the use of new characters are humourus but besides that not so interesting.
But the greatest disappointment besides the lack of interest is the use of the current characters. Sadly, Long John Silver most of all, is not an engaging narrator and seems to just be another evil pirate character who likes to murder. I didn't read Long John Silver in Treasure Island as this one dimensional at all, in fact he doesn't enjoy murder for the sake of it, rather he is always calculating the best angle for him, charming when he needs to be, strong when he needs to be, smart when he needs to be and pitiful when he needs to be. The fact he fools a doctor to his character shows that Long John Silver is in many ways, a genius. The fact that (spoiler alert, although I assume you've read Treasure Island before attempting this book) Long John Silver gets away in the end is in keeping with his character, who always is thinks of ways to get ahead and inhabits completely at the right moment the character he needs to inhabit. I couldn't see the angle of writing his full confessional book while on the way to hang in keeping with his character.
Rather than working around the Treasure Island story, it seems to change it and the characters interactions, for a non satisfactory result.
However, this book didn't grab me, it d9esnt start strong with adventure or tension, rather it's Long John Silver writing in a slightly whinny tone about his predicament. it's longer than Treasure Island which isn't a great sign, and the use of new characters are humourus but besides that not so interesting.
But the greatest disappointment besides the lack of interest is the use of the current characters. Sadly, Long John Silver most of all, is not an engaging narrator and seems to just be another evil pirate character who likes to murder. I didn't read Long John Silver in Treasure Island as this one dimensional at all, in fact he doesn't enjoy murder for the sake of it, rather he is always calculating the best angle for him, charming when he needs to be, strong when he needs to be, smart when he needs to be and pitiful when he needs to be. The fact he fools a doctor to his character shows that Long John Silver is in many ways, a genius. The fact that (spoiler alert, although I assume you've read Treasure Island before attempting this book) Long John Silver gets away in the end is in keeping with his character, who always is thinks of ways to get ahead and inhabits completely at the right moment the character he needs to inhabit. I couldn't see the angle of writing his full confessional book while on the way to hang in keeping with his character.
Rather than working around the Treasure Island story, it seems to change it and the characters interactions, for a non satisfactory result.
September 12, 2015
Got to admit, I was disappointed by this. Why? Mainly because of this part of the back-of-book author's note:
"I could not have written an original novel had I incorporated large swaths of Stevenson's classic in my book. I could also not have satisfied the many, many lovers of Treasure Island if I did not include characters from that classic. I therefore used some of the characters from Treasure Island, changed their dispositions, placed them in different circumstances, and sent them on a different quest."
Fie on you, sir! If there's anything you proved in writing this book, it's that you COULD write an original novel...because you did. To call this book "the last testament of the infamous pirate Long John Silver" (phrasing admittedly probably written by the publisher) is false advertising of the grossest kind. There is almost nothing in here that ties the book to Stevenson's classic other than a few names, which in all honest does more discredit to the story than anything else. At least, in my opinion.
There are only two reasons I can see for keeping the tie to Treasure Island: first and foremost, marketing. People who love the original would obviously want to read this. Would they if there wasn't that tie? Hard to know. When I bought the book, I was trying not to buy any books published before 2013, which would have disqualified this 2008 book. I'm a huge fan of ships, seas, and swashbuckling, so it's very possible I would have held onto the book. Then again, maybe not.
The only other reason to keep the characters the same instead of striking out on his own is the plot, which could have been fixed relatively easily. We're not told much about Jim Hawkins because we're expected to know who he is already; this wouldn't have been difficult to change.
Basically, this book disappointed me because the author couldn't make up his mind between whether he was writing fanfiction or not. I would say that, in his defense, this book was published before the fanfiction publishing craze took off, but historically no one's been shy about publishing fanfiction of works in the public domain. Chupack didn't have to dance around newer works, the way Gregory Maguire did when he wrote Wicked , so there's really just no satisfactory explanation beyond marketing for why he didn't simply rename all his characters and cut ties with the original.
Fanfiction is a crutch that many writers use to hone their talents. Many published writers have thrown aside the crutch and run off into originality, probably thinking that it's a sign of weakness or lack of talent. Many, however, have embraced the crutch and made it their own, fashioning it into something so delightful and new even in its referral to the original that it becomes a part of them--like the original Silver's deadly crutch or Disney's Treasure Planet's cyborg limbs.
So my problem with this book is that the crutch is so obvious and suggests some sort of shame: Chupack and his editor didn't embrace Treasure Island enough to make this a proper ode to the original or a sensible alternative universe. But they also didn't seem to trust the author--or, let's face it, this version of the titular character--to support a completely original work. Which is a terrible shame (to quote Tim Curry's Silver), given how much I enjoyed the story, the style, and the telling. I got as far as the last two chapters still waiting for Silver's lie to unravel, for the connection to the original Treasure Island to be exposed in a clever way that we couldn't help but love Silver for (that was, after all, a key part of what made him so dangerous). Having been told that this was Silver's story, my eagerness for the "a clef" part of the book took away from my satisfaction over what would have otherwise been a very satisfying reveal indeed.
I really wish there were half stars we could give. I don't quite want to give this one three, but I don't want to give it two either. I'm going with three just because I don't want GoodReads to think I don't like pirate stories.
As a standalone, Silver holds up pretty well--as I said, it wouldn't have been hard to make this its own book. In fact, Captain Flint is inexplicably recast as Black John, or so I presume. Clearly someone at some point thought renaming the characters might work well.
My favorite parts were Silver's interactions with other characters: With Mullet, with Mary, with Edward Peach. That's why I'm here after all: to watch Silver be his charming, conniving island unto himself.
My least favorite part was the endless repetition of the clues to the island. For all they were repeated over and over again, I never did understand how anyone figured them out, they were so random and obscure. I didn't even try to figure out the mystery, though the cover copy seemed to imply that it should have been possible. There were too many red herrings, too many leaps that seemed more like guesswork, that ultimately the endless repetition was more annoying than anything.
Finally, one last disappointing aspect of the book was the astounding lack of diversity. One of the best things about reading books about pirates is that they were such (relatively) progressive little microcosms: race (and sometimes gender) meant nothing if you could hold your own in battle, ships were relatively democratic, the injured were fairly compensated for their sacrifices, and there were even formal partnerships between people of the same sex. This book's diversity consists of: two captive women who aren't around long before they are back offstage and thoroughly fetishized ; men from different parts of *England* (was Ireland or Scotland even mentioned?); a mentally handicapped person treated like a subhuman beast; and a Jewish man who was really the only diverse character worth talking about. Even Silver's famously missing leg was written out of this book!
So yeah, while I did like a good pirate adventure story and appreciated all the new vocabulary I learned with a delightfully untrustworthy narrator, there were definite ways that this could have been a better book. Glad I read it, but it's another one for the charity shelf.
"I could not have written an original novel had I incorporated large swaths of Stevenson's classic in my book. I could also not have satisfied the many, many lovers of Treasure Island if I did not include characters from that classic. I therefore used some of the characters from Treasure Island, changed their dispositions, placed them in different circumstances, and sent them on a different quest."
Fie on you, sir! If there's anything you proved in writing this book, it's that you COULD write an original novel...because you did. To call this book "the last testament of the infamous pirate Long John Silver" (phrasing admittedly probably written by the publisher) is false advertising of the grossest kind. There is almost nothing in here that ties the book to Stevenson's classic other than a few names, which in all honest does more discredit to the story than anything else. At least, in my opinion.
There are only two reasons I can see for keeping the tie to Treasure Island: first and foremost, marketing. People who love the original would obviously want to read this. Would they if there wasn't that tie? Hard to know. When I bought the book, I was trying not to buy any books published before 2013, which would have disqualified this 2008 book. I'm a huge fan of ships, seas, and swashbuckling, so it's very possible I would have held onto the book. Then again, maybe not.
The only other reason to keep the characters the same instead of striking out on his own is the plot, which could have been fixed relatively easily. We're not told much about Jim Hawkins because we're expected to know who he is already; this wouldn't have been difficult to change.
Basically, this book disappointed me because the author couldn't make up his mind between whether he was writing fanfiction or not. I would say that, in his defense, this book was published before the fanfiction publishing craze took off, but historically no one's been shy about publishing fanfiction of works in the public domain. Chupack didn't have to dance around newer works, the way Gregory Maguire did when he wrote Wicked , so there's really just no satisfactory explanation beyond marketing for why he didn't simply rename all his characters and cut ties with the original.
Fanfiction is a crutch that many writers use to hone their talents. Many published writers have thrown aside the crutch and run off into originality, probably thinking that it's a sign of weakness or lack of talent. Many, however, have embraced the crutch and made it their own, fashioning it into something so delightful and new even in its referral to the original that it becomes a part of them--like the original Silver's deadly crutch or Disney's Treasure Planet's cyborg limbs.
So my problem with this book is that the crutch is so obvious and suggests some sort of shame: Chupack and his editor didn't embrace Treasure Island enough to make this a proper ode to the original or a sensible alternative universe. But they also didn't seem to trust the author--or, let's face it, this version of the titular character--to support a completely original work. Which is a terrible shame (to quote Tim Curry's Silver), given how much I enjoyed the story, the style, and the telling. I got as far as the last two chapters still waiting for Silver's lie to unravel, for the connection to the original Treasure Island to be exposed in a clever way that we couldn't help but love Silver for (that was, after all, a key part of what made him so dangerous). Having been told that this was Silver's story, my eagerness for the "a clef" part of the book took away from my satisfaction over what would have otherwise been a very satisfying reveal indeed.
I really wish there were half stars we could give. I don't quite want to give this one three, but I don't want to give it two either. I'm going with three just because I don't want GoodReads to think I don't like pirate stories.
As a standalone, Silver holds up pretty well--as I said, it wouldn't have been hard to make this its own book. In fact, Captain Flint is inexplicably recast as Black John, or so I presume. Clearly someone at some point thought renaming the characters might work well.
My favorite parts were Silver's interactions with other characters: With Mullet, with Mary, with Edward Peach. That's why I'm here after all: to watch Silver be his charming, conniving island unto himself.
My least favorite part was the endless repetition of the clues to the island. For all they were repeated over and over again, I never did understand how anyone figured them out, they were so random and obscure. I didn't even try to figure out the mystery, though the cover copy seemed to imply that it should have been possible. There were too many red herrings, too many leaps that seemed more like guesswork, that ultimately the endless repetition was more annoying than anything.
Finally, one last disappointing aspect of the book was the astounding lack of diversity. One of the best things about reading books about pirates is that they were such (relatively) progressive little microcosms: race (and sometimes gender) meant nothing if you could hold your own in battle, ships were relatively democratic, the injured were fairly compensated for their sacrifices, and there were even formal partnerships between people of the same sex. This book's diversity consists of: two captive women who aren't around long before they are back offstage and thoroughly fetishized ; men from different parts of *England* (was Ireland or Scotland even mentioned?); a mentally handicapped person treated like a subhuman beast; and a Jewish man who was really the only diverse character worth talking about. Even Silver's famously missing leg was written out of this book!
So yeah, while I did like a good pirate adventure story and appreciated all the new vocabulary I learned with a delightfully untrustworthy narrator, there were definite ways that this could have been a better book. Glad I read it, but it's another one for the charity shelf.
Read
February 11, 2023I'm so torn, the writing was fabulous, I loved the narrator's voice, but nothing about this felt like Silver, felt like Stevenson. I wish it had been entirely original instead of merely lifting the names from the original.
December 18, 2018
First book this year I couldn’t finish. Ugh
September 2, 2024
Very mid. Great conversations between pirates, who are always bluffing and lying to some extent, but I felt a little let down by the coded clues, but that may be because I was not dedicated enough
July 30, 2012
This is the story of Long John Silver, the pirate captain, in Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island. The subtitle, "My Own Tale as Written by Me with a Goodly Amount of Murder," is an understatement. Silver knows nothing of his parents, and if they are lucky, they know nothing of him. He spends his early years living with an innkeeper in Bristol, England without a name, without a conscience, and without a soul, and that is before he meets pirate captain, Black John, and is taken aboard his ship.
Silver soon proves his worth. He cooks for Black John, he fights for Black Jack, and eventually he murders Black John. Once he becomes captain of the "Linda Maria," he sails the seven seas doing all the things that pirates do and doing it well. This is the pirate version of an adventure movie. Instead of bad guys driving fast cars, they are pirates sailing on fast ships who know how to get the job done, which includes capturing a ship, murdering all the crew, ransoming all those who can be ransomed, and killing all of those who can't.
Long John Silver, now a prisoner and suffering from a raging fever, is being transported back to England to be hanged. He has been given quill and ink to set down his exploits, and hopefully, in his delirium, to leave clues as to where his fabulous treasure lay hidden. Silver is written entirely in pirate language. It is one page after another of amusing dialog that keeps you from losing your lunch when you read about another bad guy being run through with a sword. The key to the story is the mystery of the ciphers and symbols, and although they are often dangled in front of you, they are never close enough to draw you in. The ciphers appear and then disappear for a couple of chapters, and, when they return, you are none the wiser, and back you go for more murder and mayhem.
This book is a good read because the writing itself is so clever. The ending has an interesting twist to it, one involving Stevenson's Jim Hawkins. As long as you do not place too much emphasis on decoding the ciphers and interpreting the symbols, you will enjoy this book, me hearties.
Book was provided by the Publisher.
Silver soon proves his worth. He cooks for Black John, he fights for Black Jack, and eventually he murders Black John. Once he becomes captain of the "Linda Maria," he sails the seven seas doing all the things that pirates do and doing it well. This is the pirate version of an adventure movie. Instead of bad guys driving fast cars, they are pirates sailing on fast ships who know how to get the job done, which includes capturing a ship, murdering all the crew, ransoming all those who can be ransomed, and killing all of those who can't.
Long John Silver, now a prisoner and suffering from a raging fever, is being transported back to England to be hanged. He has been given quill and ink to set down his exploits, and hopefully, in his delirium, to leave clues as to where his fabulous treasure lay hidden. Silver is written entirely in pirate language. It is one page after another of amusing dialog that keeps you from losing your lunch when you read about another bad guy being run through with a sword. The key to the story is the mystery of the ciphers and symbols, and although they are often dangled in front of you, they are never close enough to draw you in. The ciphers appear and then disappear for a couple of chapters, and, when they return, you are none the wiser, and back you go for more murder and mayhem.
This book is a good read because the writing itself is so clever. The ending has an interesting twist to it, one involving Stevenson's Jim Hawkins. As long as you do not place too much emphasis on decoding the ciphers and interpreting the symbols, you will enjoy this book, me hearties.
Book was provided by the Publisher.
November 26, 2012
After reading Treasure Island for the first time, not long ago, I decided to go back and re-read this tale inspired by Stevenson’s pirate novel. I was surprised to discover that it doesn’t really join up with Treasure Island; something like the events of that novel occur toward the end of Silver, but in an alternate form, so the result is neither prequel nor companion novel, precisely. Which is fine; the tale of Long John Silver’s early years is certainly still plausible as an origin for either version of the pirate, and more importantly the book is highly entertaining on its own merits, anyway.
The differences between Silver and Treasure Island do, however, highlight what I felt to be the most fascinating traits of Stevenson’s Long John Silver, which Chupack’s version loses. In Treasure Island, Long John Silver fascinates because he’s so complex. A ruthless, violent pirate, who must hobble around on crutches; one minute he’s a pitiless bandit confident in his total mastery of the situation, the next he’s a humble and desperate survivor looking for friends wherever he can find them. The “real” Long John Silver is elusive, and might better be named “Quicksilver;” indeed one is left with the suspicion that he may well be completely sincere in any of his identities at the moment it’s in use. Chupack’s Long John Silver is, by contrast, more like an 18th century Brick Top; villainous and entertaining, but somewhat simpler as a character all the same.
The differences between Silver and Treasure Island do, however, highlight what I felt to be the most fascinating traits of Stevenson’s Long John Silver, which Chupack’s version loses. In Treasure Island, Long John Silver fascinates because he’s so complex. A ruthless, violent pirate, who must hobble around on crutches; one minute he’s a pitiless bandit confident in his total mastery of the situation, the next he’s a humble and desperate survivor looking for friends wherever he can find them. The “real” Long John Silver is elusive, and might better be named “Quicksilver;” indeed one is left with the suspicion that he may well be completely sincere in any of his identities at the moment it’s in use. Chupack’s Long John Silver is, by contrast, more like an 18th century Brick Top; villainous and entertaining, but somewhat simpler as a character all the same.
April 28, 2022
So, I did something with this book that I promised myself I'd never do. I was really struggling with it, so I went and read the reviews to see if it was just me or if I was completely missing something. I was rewarded with confirmation that this book is awful, the character is awful, and, were I so inclined, I would be completely justified in not finishing it. I was NOT about to let a book get the best of me, no matter how terrible though, so I did, indeed suffer through it.
Long John Silver, is a long winded, repetitive, narcissistic, fever-crazed pirate, making him a completely unreliable narrator and unbearable as a reader. He jumps all over the place, admittedly probably due to the fever he's suffering from while a prisoner on his own ship en route to his execution by hanging. It is nearly impossible to follow his train of thought, which makes reading this take a bit of time. I found myself re-reading pages at a time, partially because I got so distracted by all of his jumping around and partially because I couldn't be bothered to keep track of where he was trying to go in the first place, since it changed 6 times in a paragraph.
The ending felt... odd. It was one of those that you saw coming, but also didn't. It's difficult to explain. In all honesty, I was just pleased as punch that it was finally over. I will NOT be reading this again or recommending it to anyone who is not a complete masochist.
Long John Silver, is a long winded, repetitive, narcissistic, fever-crazed pirate, making him a completely unreliable narrator and unbearable as a reader. He jumps all over the place, admittedly probably due to the fever he's suffering from while a prisoner on his own ship en route to his execution by hanging. It is nearly impossible to follow his train of thought, which makes reading this take a bit of time. I found myself re-reading pages at a time, partially because I got so distracted by all of his jumping around and partially because I couldn't be bothered to keep track of where he was trying to go in the first place, since it changed 6 times in a paragraph.
The ending felt... odd. It was one of those that you saw coming, but also didn't. It's difficult to explain. In all honesty, I was just pleased as punch that it was finally over. I will NOT be reading this again or recommending it to anyone who is not a complete masochist.
June 8, 2015
Middling first effort by Chupack is too obscure for its own good. Very loosely wrapped around Stevenson's classic tale "Treasure Island," Chupack does a good job of shading a malevolent Long John Silver and giving him the back story he deserves.
But the accounts of cyphers and hidden treasures are too obscure to really engage the reader in the resolution of the mystery, and the framework of the tale (Silver's written account of his life as he is being taken back to England as a prisoner) is too limiting to enable the story to really find life. Silver masks his violent character and treacherous disposition in a sense of humor that sometimes seems too modern for the tale, as if he were winking at the reader over the centuries since.
One positive of Chupack's story is that most of the violence and adult language one would expect from a pirate is portrayed by implication and obscure turns of phrase so that the story can safely be read by the younger readers who might enjoy this as a followup and companion to Stevenson's original classic.
But the accounts of cyphers and hidden treasures are too obscure to really engage the reader in the resolution of the mystery, and the framework of the tale (Silver's written account of his life as he is being taken back to England as a prisoner) is too limiting to enable the story to really find life. Silver masks his violent character and treacherous disposition in a sense of humor that sometimes seems too modern for the tale, as if he were winking at the reader over the centuries since.
One positive of Chupack's story is that most of the violence and adult language one would expect from a pirate is portrayed by implication and obscure turns of phrase so that the story can safely be read by the younger readers who might enjoy this as a followup and companion to Stevenson's original classic.
March 21, 2013
A bloody tale of the rise of the legendary Long John Silver and his adventures and misfurtunes bringing us up to date with his capture from the Tresure Island story and his demise.
Captain Long John Silver has been captured and is locked in his own bunk as his captors man his own ship the Linda Maria. We discover what has transpired in Johns life from his days as a nameless street rat to the captain his is today, through his writings to the captain who now sails the lady Linda Maria and his words with Mullet.
Its a rocketing romp through a pirates life and a bit of fun to read though the narrative can be a little annoying at times. John Silver has a tendancy to ramble and much of what he says is repeated, even in his younger years. This only gets worse as the fever takes him. In some parts two whole pages are read and nothing has really been said.
Still a fun read for those who love a good pirates tale.
Captain Long John Silver has been captured and is locked in his own bunk as his captors man his own ship the Linda Maria. We discover what has transpired in Johns life from his days as a nameless street rat to the captain his is today, through his writings to the captain who now sails the lady Linda Maria and his words with Mullet.
Its a rocketing romp through a pirates life and a bit of fun to read though the narrative can be a little annoying at times. John Silver has a tendancy to ramble and much of what he says is repeated, even in his younger years. This only gets worse as the fever takes him. In some parts two whole pages are read and nothing has really been said.
Still a fun read for those who love a good pirates tale.
April 24, 2008
Huge disappointment for me. I was really excited about this book due to the excellent style. Edward Chupack really does a fantastic job of finding and maintaining Long John Silver's voice within a modern narrative. Sadly, the writing style is the only thing this book has to recommend. The storytelling is awful. Characters are introduced (or not) in a sloppy and unsatisfying manner. I actually felt like chapters were missing from the book.
Worst of all is the tedious amount of attention paid to a series of puzzles written into an old Bible that leads to a treasure. By the end of this book, I felt like I was listening to a long winded kid describing each and every puzzle in that video game Myst.
Worst of all is the tedious amount of attention paid to a series of puzzles written into an old Bible that leads to a treasure. By the end of this book, I felt like I was listening to a long winded kid describing each and every puzzle in that video game Myst.
May 29, 2008
Great cover. I saw this novel in the bookstore and had to read it because I loved the cover.
The premise isn't bad either. This is the story of Long John Silver, of Treasure Island fame. Though I haven't read Treasure Island, I can still appreciate a decent pirate yarn. And this one is pretty engaging.
Told by LJS himself, the novel covers his introduction to the pirate scene through his dying days. Along the way, he kills a lot of people and steals a lot of treasure. But there is one treasure with which he is obsessed: the crown jewels. He will stop at nothing to find this treasure, allegedly buried on Treasure Island.
The pacing is good, the language is wonderful (who doesn't love pirate lingo?!), and I enjoyed the whole concept of LJS telling his own story.
The premise isn't bad either. This is the story of Long John Silver, of Treasure Island fame. Though I haven't read Treasure Island, I can still appreciate a decent pirate yarn. And this one is pretty engaging.
Told by LJS himself, the novel covers his introduction to the pirate scene through his dying days. Along the way, he kills a lot of people and steals a lot of treasure. But there is one treasure with which he is obsessed: the crown jewels. He will stop at nothing to find this treasure, allegedly buried on Treasure Island.
The pacing is good, the language is wonderful (who doesn't love pirate lingo?!), and I enjoyed the whole concept of LJS telling his own story.
July 2, 2010
When Long John Silver writes his final testament, a history of his years at sea pursuing the treasure, he warns you right in the title that there's a "goodly amount of murder". Man, he doesn't lie.
This was a fascinating autobiography of a fictional dastard, blackguard, scoundrel, and all-round murderous motherless son of the sea. Pursuing a treasure for decades, goaded on by clues in a Bible -- including the word "BLOOD" written in red ink -- Silver finds time to take command of a ship, woo a woman, and make hostages of those that might, for now, be of more use to him alive than dead.
Also, he's got time for murder.
This was a fascinating autobiography of a fictional dastard, blackguard, scoundrel, and all-round murderous motherless son of the sea. Pursuing a treasure for decades, goaded on by clues in a Bible -- including the word "BLOOD" written in red ink -- Silver finds time to take command of a ship, woo a woman, and make hostages of those that might, for now, be of more use to him alive than dead.
Also, he's got time for murder.
August 10, 2011
I like pirates. I like pirate stories.
Silver is my exception.
This book had an interesting narrative, told in the voice of Long John Silver. That was about all I found interesting. The story-telling lacks greatly, and coupled with Silver's way-of-speech it just becomes confusing. What could be said in a couple sentences takes pages to express. And there was a goodly amount of speech circles to tread around, as well.
When I find myself reading the same paragraph over and over and I am only 3 chapters into a book I have been trying to read for weeks... I know it's time to call it quits.
Silver is my exception.
This book had an interesting narrative, told in the voice of Long John Silver. That was about all I found interesting. The story-telling lacks greatly, and coupled with Silver's way-of-speech it just becomes confusing. What could be said in a couple sentences takes pages to express. And there was a goodly amount of speech circles to tread around, as well.
When I find myself reading the same paragraph over and over and I am only 3 chapters into a book I have been trying to read for weeks... I know it's time to call it quits.
May 11, 2008
Well...
It was OK. It took me about 5 1/2 weeks to read, and I'm not sure that it was really worth it. There is some interesting puzzle stuff, and the book was well researched (it does a good job of describing life on a pirate ship and life in England).
The language was antiquated and that was part of the reason that it took so long. There are some compelling twists and turns and hints to a puzzle that isn't discussed at all in the story (but I'm not sure if that puzzle actually exists at all).
Anyway, It's OK, and I'm not too sure whether or not it's worth the read.
It was OK. It took me about 5 1/2 weeks to read, and I'm not sure that it was really worth it. There is some interesting puzzle stuff, and the book was well researched (it does a good job of describing life on a pirate ship and life in England).
The language was antiquated and that was part of the reason that it took so long. There are some compelling twists and turns and hints to a puzzle that isn't discussed at all in the story (but I'm not sure if that puzzle actually exists at all).
Anyway, It's OK, and I'm not too sure whether or not it's worth the read.
August 15, 2011
The book was written i the voice of the character John Silver. It was very tedious to read. I wanted to put the book down, but kept reading in the hopes the writing style would settle down. The story was choppy, and inconsistent. The writing style tended to be a long read. A story that could be told in 3 pages was written in 20. This book is not worth the read and I would not recommend it. The book editior's needed to do a better job.
July 23, 2008
this is a book much more about the voice of long john silver than anything else. the plot, well, the plot is fine, but mostly we hear the good captain menacing the cabin boy and telling his story. the voice is really first-rate -- it's blustery and loud and piratical all to heck, and it's what makes the novel.
August 15, 2008
I know I read part of an abridged version of Treasure Island when I was a kid, but I'm pretty sure I didn't finish it. I considered reading it for context when I started this, but I don't think I'd enjoy it half so much as Silver, so I let it go. This is a rollicking good yarn, funny but meaty, not over the top as the title might lead you to believe.
November 3, 2016
I wish I could give negative stars... I really tried to like this book... the concept was good... but the writing style was awful... every sentence ended with me hearty which is annoying... no one speaks like that even pirates.... and it ruined the book for me... there is a better option called "flint & silver" telling the same tale of pre treasure island long john silver...
August 11, 2008
Though Silver isn’t the quick read that you might expect from a pirate story, it’s an engaging one nonetheless. It’s filled with adventure and obsession—and, most importantly, mystery.
Read the full review at http://www.nightsandweekends.com/arti...
Read the full review at http://www.nightsandweekends.com/arti...
September 16, 2009
I tried to like the book. I just could not get into it. I finished Flint and Silver right before I started this one and maybe it biased me, but this book was just not captivating. I eventually gave up. I might try it again later, if I run out of books on my to read shelf.
July 15, 2010
This book provided an intersting perspective on Robert Louis Stevenson's famous character from Treasure Island.; however, there were references to that adventure which were inconsistent with the original text.
September 16, 2012
A continuation of one of the most interesting characters cannot be all bad. The plot and other aspects leaves much to be desired. The voice in this book is unmatched. I would recommend this read to anyone that wants to see a real talent in showing a truly unique character voice.
September 29, 2008
Loved this "autobiography" of Long John Silver. A truly adventuresome tale, with lots of good historical accuracy and a bit of a treasure hiding thrown in for good measure.
May 22, 2008
I had a lot of fun reading this. Was it amazing? Life-altering? No. But it damned good time it was, says me.
June 12, 2008
You can't see it, but the cover is pretty compelling.
May 6, 2008
Authentic language and a new viewpoint of life on the high seas. I enjoyed the book. One with a yen for things piratical would get much more out of it.
August 7, 2010
Wouldn't really recommend it.
February 1, 2009
This book totally satisfied my Pirate fascination
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