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The Swiss Family Robinson
The Robinson family—shipwrecked on a desert island—must discover hidden strength in themselves to survive! Watch as they defend themselves against wild beasts, learn to hunt and fish, and to find shelter. As time passes, they grow to love the wild beauty of their island home, filled with rare animals, exotic birds and fragrant wild flowers. When a ship sails into their bay they must ask themselves if they really want to go home? This timeless story of inner resources and family love has thrilled and delighted young readers for over a hundred years!
240 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2008
35 people are currently reading
814 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 138 reviews
March 30, 2021
I recently ordered a lot of 20 of these Great Illustrated Classics. I owned the small paperbacks when I was a child and would read and reread over and over. I bought these in anticipation of grandchildren someday but decided to read them again, and I am so glad I did!
First, the illustrations. Earl Norem illustrates in such a distinctive way. He also did illustrations for magazines and Marvel. Looking at these makes me feel incredible nostalgia. Not only does he capture the story perfectly, but in just a few lines he is able to tell the same story. These little books are so perfect for introducing little ones to literature.
I've read the full version of this novel, but it was decades ago. What I remembered was a fun adventure, lots of animals and ingenuity. Even in this abbreviated form, specifically meant for a younger audience, there was so much violence and death. I don't know that this adaptation would have made it by the well-meaning, but ill-informed, self-appointed censors of today. A monkey is killed and eaten by dogs, and her baby is raised by the family. Many other animals are killed, and while this is certainly what would happen, our current society seems to want to pasteurize and homogenize everything our children read. I think they should be reading things more like this.
This book is about thinking outside the box, resourcefulness, ingenuity, and plain old hard work! It's written in a way that makes it all seem fun. That's a lesson we could all stand to absorb.
First, the illustrations. Earl Norem illustrates in such a distinctive way. He also did illustrations for magazines and Marvel. Looking at these makes me feel incredible nostalgia. Not only does he capture the story perfectly, but in just a few lines he is able to tell the same story. These little books are so perfect for introducing little ones to literature.
I've read the full version of this novel, but it was decades ago. What I remembered was a fun adventure, lots of animals and ingenuity. Even in this abbreviated form, specifically meant for a younger audience, there was so much violence and death. I don't know that this adaptation would have made it by the well-meaning, but ill-informed, self-appointed censors of today. A monkey is killed and eaten by dogs, and her baby is raised by the family. Many other animals are killed, and while this is certainly what would happen, our current society seems to want to pasteurize and homogenize everything our children read. I think they should be reading things more like this.
This book is about thinking outside the box, resourcefulness, ingenuity, and plain old hard work! It's written in a way that makes it all seem fun. That's a lesson we could all stand to absorb.
July 31, 2015
While the writing is somewhat dated the story is still great adventure tale. Very good family classic. Recommended
May 15, 2014
This book is a bloodbath!
March 16, 2016
The Swiss Family Robinson is about the Robinson family. They were traveling to New Guinea to set up a colony. On their journey they hit a rock during a storm and got stranded. They tried to get to the lifeboats but when they got to the top deck the crew had already abandoned ship. They decided it would be better to stay on the ship than jump off, so they waited out the storm. In the morning the sun was shining and they could see an island. They started to make a lifeboat out of barrels that were on the ship. Then they hauled up all of the animals and supplies onto their boat and set out for the island. Once they got to shore they built a temporary home. After exploring they decided it would be best to build a home in the trees. That way predators couldn't get them. The Robinson family then had to make it with things they could find on the island and the few supplies they got off the ship. Will the Robinson family make it off the island or will they all die trying to survive?
I thought that The Swiss Family Robinson was a really good book I liked the adventure and the survival stuff in the book. Some parts seemed to drag on and I didn't really like that. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes adventure or survival stories.
I thought that The Swiss Family Robinson was a really good book I liked the adventure and the survival stuff in the book. Some parts seemed to drag on and I didn't really like that. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes adventure or survival stories.
June 20, 2015
This is one of the few times I will say that I prefer what Disney did with the story. Perhaps, it was because the book was the abridged adaptation, but the family seems thrilled to have been shipwrecked and can't wait to set up a homestead. That would have still made for a delightful story if they hadn't shot something in every single chapter. All of the boys have guns and they shoot first and regret later, especially when they shoot, for no good reason, beasts of burdens or other creatures that could be used by the family in other ways. They even shoot a shark (spoilers!) Alice wasn't quite old enough to follow the story and really only got into it during the scary bits with the boa constrictor and the goat.
January 17, 2012
This book was lame. I haven't seen the movie so I can't compare it to that, though I have heard the movie is better. There was no plot to this book, just a bunch of Look What We Killed Today, And This Is What We Can Turn It Into. This family was stranded, yet they eat better each night than most people I know. I would like to have seen some character developement here. They each age 10 years, but they don't change. Lame. The kids liked it okay. They kept asking to see the pictures of the dead animals. Hmm...
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February 6, 2013I am almost finished reading the book The Swiss Family Robinson By: Johann Wyss I have really been enjoying this book because it is very interesting and really shows the characters feelings and thoughts. The main idea of this story is about a family who was on a cruise and the ship wrecked and every one was split apart but somehow the Robinson family managed to stay together. They where stranded on an island. It is interesting to see all the adventures that they go through like making there own house and hunting for their own food. Even though the trip didn’t go as planned they got to have more family bonding time and had to work together as a team.
This book relates to me because when I lived in California I had to leave my friends and that was tough but somehow I managed to push through it and move on. Now I have a lot of friends here in Austin. So if something doesn’t go your way there will most likely be something good that will come out of it even though it is tough, just like what the Robinson family had to go through.
I think the overall theme of this story is, “Things might not be easy but you can make something good come out of it”. The Robinson family had to go through a lot of hard things but they managed to make the best of a bad situation.
September 11, 2020
This book was okay. I think my daughters might give it a 4... but I am tempted to give it a 3. I should think the unabridged version would be better but we did enjoy the illustrations, also. The story is quite idealized in that for all they go through, they have a lot of easy and successful efforts and cheery attitudes. My daughters (ages 10 & 8) would chuckle over how unprobable things were at times (like they make a big welcome sign at one point but my girls were wondering where they found or what they used for a writing utensil). My daughters and I also chuckled at times because the things the boys said sounded like something my son would say. I think jr would be especially popular with young boys, though my girls liked it, as well. It’s an enjoyable, light adventure read whose original reasons for being written (writing down imagined bedtime tales by the author’s father) are readily apparent. We enjoyed the read, despite or maybe because of the saccharine storyline wherein there was almost exclusively great joy and delight on the part of abandoned and shipwrecked upper class English men. This version was quite short and to the point. I’d be curious to compare it to the original.
August 26, 2021
I realize this is a children's classic, however I did not care for the story. First of all, I was horrified at all the animals that are killed, really many times for no reason or without feeling. Yes, maybe they need to kill an animal to eat, but they had plenty of food and the attitude seemed to be shoot first and ask questions (think) later. It didn't always make sense to me. Secondly, the father in the story was a preacher, but seems to also have an advanced PHD in mechanical engineering with all the rigging he does with ordinary materials. I found it unbelievable. There was also a typo in the edition I read. I AM glad I read it, being it's a classic and I've always wanted to know the story.
September 13, 2023
So much is wrong in this book. I know it was written before much exploration had been done but the idea of so many different animals all on this one island (kangaroos, elephants, lions, penguins, etc) is ludicrous. Also, there was so much killing of animals - it seemed heartless. Especially the iguana 🦎.
It read like the box car children. Very little sadness and concern over their situation, just cheerfulness and patient perseverance.
It read like the box car children. Very little sadness and concern over their situation, just cheerfulness and patient perseverance.
January 12, 2016
My mom read it to me as a kid for the first time and then I read it when I was a bit older. What a great fun story. I absolutely loved it. I dreamed of being marooned on an island and living in a tree house. Really what could be more fun?
December 15, 2023
This was such a good read-aloud for my kids and me. Just the right length. We flew through it with my 9-year-old son repeatedly asking for more and more chapters each day. Next up, we’re doing a family movie night. It will be fun to compare how they are different and the same.
September 14, 2017
Eli loved it
April 8, 2019
happy and sad these castaways are a amzing story
May 9, 2021
Read to my 3rd and 4th graders
January 27, 2024
Read out loud to my 4 year old Malachi and he gobbled it right up! More animal killing in this book than I remembered though. We are on to our next illustrated classic!
January 9, 2026
read with wesley! I loved the pictures and general story!Such fun adventure and resourcefulness. but WAY too much of unnecessary animal killing. I understand the need to defend against dangerous animals, but EVERY single new animal they found they killed. It was tricky censoring because these animals were often in the pictures. not sure I’d read to a four year old again :/
January 9, 2026
Loved reading this as a tween!
November 16, 2025
Maybe it was because it was a read aloud for the kids, maybe it was because it was simplified, maybe it just wasn’t my thing. I didn’t like it.
June 14, 2014
All in all I really liked this book. It was a real page turner, from the start I could not put it down. My favorite parts of the book were when the family had constructed their home and had worked together to solve their problems the mom had said “If it be the will of God," said my wife, "to leave us alone on this solitary place, let us be content; and rejoice that we are all together in safety.” showing that she had took it as a blessing that they where left on this island. The purpose of the author writing to book was to show how all of the troubles that the family faced that as long as they had stayed together. That mixed with adventure and action made for a great story.
This book has had an every lasting impact on the audience and will leave a lasting impact on me. As you can tell by how old the book is it had left and active impact on young readers and lets the mind of them run wild.I had really enjoyed the book and i would recommend it to a friend or family member. I would do this because i had thought that it was a real adventure book that could capture the minds of young readers everywhere.“It was one of those happy days that God grants us sometimes on earth to give us an idea of the bliss of heaven.” Looking back at how the family had blessed every day as if it was their last.
The book was written very well and I love how the author had incorporated all of the extra elements to make it just that much better. the way the family had stuck together and worked their way out of it till they were rescued was what the real way to show how to stay together when thing are against you. Something i thought that was weak about the book was they had some unrealistic animals in the area and it didn't take anything away from it, i just thought it would make it better.
I did think that the book was captivating and that i could relate to one of the characters. For starter i could most relate to Fritz because he is the oldest boy and was the one that had assisted he dad the most. My favorite section with Fritz in it was when they where bringing back the animals from the ship to the shore and the sharks trying to get to the animals. I love the way he had acted around others and the way he developed as a character as time had went on.
This book has had an every lasting impact on the audience and will leave a lasting impact on me. As you can tell by how old the book is it had left and active impact on young readers and lets the mind of them run wild.I had really enjoyed the book and i would recommend it to a friend or family member. I would do this because i had thought that it was a real adventure book that could capture the minds of young readers everywhere.“It was one of those happy days that God grants us sometimes on earth to give us an idea of the bliss of heaven.” Looking back at how the family had blessed every day as if it was their last.
The book was written very well and I love how the author had incorporated all of the extra elements to make it just that much better. the way the family had stuck together and worked their way out of it till they were rescued was what the real way to show how to stay together when thing are against you. Something i thought that was weak about the book was they had some unrealistic animals in the area and it didn't take anything away from it, i just thought it would make it better.
I did think that the book was captivating and that i could relate to one of the characters. For starter i could most relate to Fritz because he is the oldest boy and was the one that had assisted he dad the most. My favorite section with Fritz in it was when they where bringing back the animals from the ship to the shore and the sharks trying to get to the animals. I love the way he had acted around others and the way he developed as a character as time had went on.
December 16, 2017
Review by James, age 8, 12/16/17
This book starts out on a ship that gets caught in a storm and is shipwrecked. All the lifeboats are gotten before the family can get their kids off and so they miss the lifeboats and so they make boat-ish things out of barrels and paddle them to the shore.
They end up on an uninhabited island, but they don't know it at the time.
They make a tent. The next day they take supplies from the ship. But soon they found the tent is unsafe because of the wild animals. So they built a tree house - a huge one. It started out small but then they make it bigger.
They made candles and the dad constructed a spinning wheel. They found lots of supplies on the island: they found rubber (from a tree) and other things. But they felt like prisoners in winter so when spring finally arrived they started digging a cellar. One of the boys' pickaxes broke the crust, revealing a huge salt cave. And so they decided to make this salt cave a winter settlement area. The papa took bamboo and created a pipeline that went between the treehouse and the winter settlement. It used vacuum to pump the water up. Now they had running water, and so they added in things like a library, and dug out more salt cave.
The book ended when a ship found the island and was going to claim the island as theirs and named it, but instead the family came out and said "no, we already have three settlements." Some of the family went home with the ship but others liked it so much they stayed and now there is a small town on the island.
Three things I liked about this book: (1) The adventure, (2) the inventions, (3) the miraculous brother who was able to tame pretty much anything.
Q: Would you live on their island? A: That's a tricky question, because I'm really used to our modern life at home. Fine, I would live on their island if I lived in their time. Because they didn't have modern technology at the time and their island would probably be a better place to live. Not to mention we could construct a good house of our choice and we wouldn't have to pay taxes to the wicked king.
This book starts out on a ship that gets caught in a storm and is shipwrecked. All the lifeboats are gotten before the family can get their kids off and so they miss the lifeboats and so they make boat-ish things out of barrels and paddle them to the shore.
They end up on an uninhabited island, but they don't know it at the time.
They make a tent. The next day they take supplies from the ship. But soon they found the tent is unsafe because of the wild animals. So they built a tree house - a huge one. It started out small but then they make it bigger.
They made candles and the dad constructed a spinning wheel. They found lots of supplies on the island: they found rubber (from a tree) and other things. But they felt like prisoners in winter so when spring finally arrived they started digging a cellar. One of the boys' pickaxes broke the crust, revealing a huge salt cave. And so they decided to make this salt cave a winter settlement area. The papa took bamboo and created a pipeline that went between the treehouse and the winter settlement. It used vacuum to pump the water up. Now they had running water, and so they added in things like a library, and dug out more salt cave.
The book ended when a ship found the island and was going to claim the island as theirs and named it, but instead the family came out and said "no, we already have three settlements." Some of the family went home with the ship but others liked it so much they stayed and now there is a small town on the island.
Three things I liked about this book: (1) The adventure, (2) the inventions, (3) the miraculous brother who was able to tame pretty much anything.
Q: Would you live on their island? A: That's a tricky question, because I'm really used to our modern life at home. Fine, I would live on their island if I lived in their time. Because they didn't have modern technology at the time and their island would probably be a better place to live. Not to mention we could construct a good house of our choice and we wouldn't have to pay taxes to the wicked king.
January 24, 2021
The book review I left:
Yes, while I don't usually read books like The Swiss Family Robinson I came across this one on my shelf, intrigued by the story of a family trapped on an island.
Lets just say that it did not disappoint, it kept me on the edge of my chair at all times as the stranded family constantly escaped danger.
In addition the story never seemed slow or fast paced, everything was moving along nicely and it had great character development.
I saw Ashley leave a review were she stated that ¨the boys tend to shoot and ask questions
later¨ which I disagree with because I never recall the boys making many impulsive decisions.
The three main reasons that I liked the book were subject matter,character development and the plot.
The subject matter was interesting because it seemed as though the story was always action packed.
The plot was an interesting one because of the whole family being shipwrecked on a deserted island and them having to find their way off while being able to work together and combat whatever they may face.
The third reason was character development when the story started off the mom Elizabeth wasn't really featured much but as the story progressed she played more and more of a prominent role.
Elizabeth as stated before wasn't talked about much at the beginning of the story but went on to be essential to the families survival.
One example of this is food she was able to cook which is important because without food you can not survive.
One final reason why Elizabeth is my favorite character is leadership. Throughout the story she had a powerful voice in the household and was able to guide her family in their quest to survive.
¨Elizabeth and I have no desire to return to Europe.¨ this is my favorite quote because when I was reading it really threw me off guard because from day one their mission had been to return to Europe but along the way they simply fell in love with the place that they now call home.
Yes, while I don't usually read books like The Swiss Family Robinson I came across this one on my shelf, intrigued by the story of a family trapped on an island.
Lets just say that it did not disappoint, it kept me on the edge of my chair at all times as the stranded family constantly escaped danger.
In addition the story never seemed slow or fast paced, everything was moving along nicely and it had great character development.
I saw Ashley leave a review were she stated that ¨the boys tend to shoot and ask questions
later¨ which I disagree with because I never recall the boys making many impulsive decisions.
The three main reasons that I liked the book were subject matter,character development and the plot.
The subject matter was interesting because it seemed as though the story was always action packed.
The plot was an interesting one because of the whole family being shipwrecked on a deserted island and them having to find their way off while being able to work together and combat whatever they may face.
The third reason was character development when the story started off the mom Elizabeth wasn't really featured much but as the story progressed she played more and more of a prominent role.
Elizabeth as stated before wasn't talked about much at the beginning of the story but went on to be essential to the families survival.
One example of this is food she was able to cook which is important because without food you can not survive.
One final reason why Elizabeth is my favorite character is leadership. Throughout the story she had a powerful voice in the household and was able to guide her family in their quest to survive.
¨Elizabeth and I have no desire to return to Europe.¨ this is my favorite quote because when I was reading it really threw me off guard because from day one their mission had been to return to Europe but along the way they simply fell in love with the place that they now call home.
December 7, 2017
The Swiss Family Robinson is an amazing book that is written by Johann Wyss about a family named the Robinsons who gets in a shipwreck and find a deserted island to live on. The Robinsons are trying to go to Switzerland by ship, but a huge storm comes and breaks the ship. Everyone else is lost but the Robinsons and they find and island with lots of food, animals, and supplies. Over the 10 years they are stuck there they have a lot of ups and downs, but a lot of adventures. They explore most of the island and find a lot of stuff that's worth a lot of money. People later find them and they return to Switzerland. I liked this book a lot because of all of the cool stuff they find like pearls, animals and other things. At first, I thought this book was super lame and thought is was going to be boring but then I got really into it and it was awesome. The interesting part about the book was that they went on so many adventures on the island and there are some dangerous things like huge snakes, and quicksand which made you wonder what was going to happen next. It was a little boring in some of the parts because they didn’t do anything except just keep finding animals, killing them, and eating them. There is a really sad part though that I didn’t like that much when a big boa constrictor gets a donkey and squeezes it to death and then eats it. I still think it is a really good book and recommend it to anyone. I think the theme of the book is you can find joy in anything, because the Robinsons lost almost everything their boat, valuables,people, and other things and they were still happy even though they were sad.
February 22, 2013
I thought it was funny that they found all sorts of weird animals. I thought it was weird that wherever they went, they named it after the animals they saw there.
The Robinsons were a family from Switzerland that came on a boat to set up a new colony in America. On their boat, there was only the family, the sailors, and the captain. On their journey, a giant storm came and the sailors took all the life boats and took off. The boat broke to pieces, but then the family built themselves little boats out of the broken boat then sailed ashore to an island they saw.
They lived in a tent for a few days. Then they made a tree house and they called it the falcon's nest. They built another house out of a salt mine. Then a giant storm came and they passed though it unharmed because of their salt mine house.
Then a boa constrictor comes. They try to shoot at it, but they can't. Then their goat escapes and gets killed by the boa constrictor. Then they kill the snake.
They find a sailor stranded on the island and save her. Then a boat arrives with people looking for her, and she goes on the ship with them. Two of the children that want to see Switzerland go on the boat with the girl. But, the parents love the island too much to leave. Some of the people on the boat, want to start a colony with the family on the island.
The Robinsons were a family from Switzerland that came on a boat to set up a new colony in America. On their boat, there was only the family, the sailors, and the captain. On their journey, a giant storm came and the sailors took all the life boats and took off. The boat broke to pieces, but then the family built themselves little boats out of the broken boat then sailed ashore to an island they saw.
They lived in a tent for a few days. Then they made a tree house and they called it the falcon's nest. They built another house out of a salt mine. Then a giant storm came and they passed though it unharmed because of their salt mine house.
Then a boa constrictor comes. They try to shoot at it, but they can't. Then their goat escapes and gets killed by the boa constrictor. Then they kill the snake.
They find a sailor stranded on the island and save her. Then a boat arrives with people looking for her, and she goes on the ship with them. Two of the children that want to see Switzerland go on the boat with the girl. But, the parents love the island too much to leave. Some of the people on the boat, want to start a colony with the family on the island.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 9, 2013
This is a version adapted for kids. I've never read the full story, but this is a review of this abridged version. It was an interested story, and lots of exciting things happened, but it just all happened too fast, and it didn't go into detail about anything, it just said 'this thing happened, that thing happened', and it all happened rather quickly. I guess it was meant for kids after all. Timothy seems to like it just fine. I did read a small excerpt of the full-length book, and I think I'd like that a lot better. This almost seemed like just a very long summary of what happened on the island.
One thing to note, is that there's a LOT of hunting and capturing of wild animals to tame them. I realize I'm biased against the killing of animals, even though I know that yes, I eat meat, which is killing animals, so it's irrational for me to be bothered by it. I don't know if it's the bluntness of how it's told in this adaptation, but I felt horrible every time another animal was shot or captured. I think at the time it was written, there probably wasn't reason to NOT kill an animal, it was perfectly normal to do so, so I had to keep reminding myself of that. I think in our current culture, with all the cute stuffed animals, and zoos, and cartoons and books about animal families, it's a little harder to deal with all the hunting.
One thing to note, is that there's a LOT of hunting and capturing of wild animals to tame them. I realize I'm biased against the killing of animals, even though I know that yes, I eat meat, which is killing animals, so it's irrational for me to be bothered by it. I don't know if it's the bluntness of how it's told in this adaptation, but I felt horrible every time another animal was shot or captured. I think at the time it was written, there probably wasn't reason to NOT kill an animal, it was perfectly normal to do so, so I had to keep reminding myself of that. I think in our current culture, with all the cute stuffed animals, and zoos, and cartoons and books about animal families, it's a little harder to deal with all the hunting.
June 7, 2016
This book is about the family's adventure on there way to New Guinea to form a colony.The story is told from the fathers point of view. On the way to New Guinea the boat they traveled on encountered a storm and the boat crashes. The family must live on the island and wait for help so they can get back to Switzerland.The family does miss their home country but they very quickly adapt to life on the island. The group is very likely to survive do to good relationships among the family. This is an epic adventure book that shows how the family must work together to survive.This is a very interesting book and I would recommend that anyone who likes adventure books reads this. The book was so interesting I sat down one weekend and read the whole thing. The book pushes the reader through many emotions such as sorrow, joy ,and anxiety at what would attack on the next page.
The author of The Swiss Family Robinson Johann David Wyss is mainly remembered for this book which is believed to be inspired by Robinson Crusoe. He was born in Berne, Switzerland on May 28,1743 and died on January 11,1818. Hearing the book from the point of view of the father is very interesting. It sounds like a grandfather telling stories to his young grand children and it seems that some of what he says is an exaggeration. I recommend that you read this book and hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
The author of The Swiss Family Robinson Johann David Wyss is mainly remembered for this book which is believed to be inspired by Robinson Crusoe. He was born in Berne, Switzerland on May 28,1743 and died on January 11,1818. Hearing the book from the point of view of the father is very interesting. It sounds like a grandfather telling stories to his young grand children and it seems that some of what he says is an exaggeration. I recommend that you read this book and hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
July 12, 2023
Meh...
We did this one as a read-aloud in family (various ages from 5 to 40 years olds). Though in general kids enjoyed and they could relate with all the excitment, fear, adventure and laughter that the story portraits, I finished the book with a feeling of meh...
I don't know if it's because this is a adaptation (not the original classic), but I couldn't discern how to read it, was it a realistic fiction? os it pure fantasy? The story doesn't hold as either? It doesn't make sense to have kangaroos, elefphants, lions, bears and walrusses all in the same enviroment... it does not stick the fact that they still had gun powder and amunition even after 10 years of isolation in an island and shooting everything they saw everyday of their lives... I could ride on if it was clear fantasy, but it seems to stand as realistic, and because of that I couldn't relate to the characters... I really wish I had liked it more, and maybe if someone can clarify that to me I'll be able to enjoy more?
We did this one as a read-aloud in family (various ages from 5 to 40 years olds). Though in general kids enjoyed and they could relate with all the excitment, fear, adventure and laughter that the story portraits, I finished the book with a feeling of meh...
I don't know if it's because this is a adaptation (not the original classic), but I couldn't discern how to read it, was it a realistic fiction? os it pure fantasy? The story doesn't hold as either? It doesn't make sense to have kangaroos, elefphants, lions, bears and walrusses all in the same enviroment... it does not stick the fact that they still had gun powder and amunition even after 10 years of isolation in an island and shooting everything they saw everyday of their lives... I could ride on if it was clear fantasy, but it seems to stand as realistic, and because of that I couldn't relate to the characters... I really wish I had liked it more, and maybe if someone can clarify that to me I'll be able to enjoy more?
April 1, 2015
I thought this was a really cool book with exciting details. The Robinson family crashed their boat while in a storm at sea, and came to a deserted island to stay. They quickly made a shelter, and discovered many creatures. They also killed basically any animal in sight. They then stayed at the island for a very long ten years, adventuring a lot throughout that time. They even had a pet eagle, who killed an ostrich for them. After the ten years, they soon discovered another sailor, who was a girl, who was also stranded at an island nearby. A European ship soon came, and offered to take them home to Switzerland. The dad, mom, and two sons wanted to stay at their tropical paradise home, but the other two sons and the girl sailor wanted to return to Europe. So they gave their family farewells, and sailed off. It was a cool book, and I rated it five stars.
January 28, 2021
I never read the original, only some overhearing as it was read to my younger siblings, but the Disney movie of this is a great one, so I was really looking forward to reading this to my two young boys (4 and 3). It’s good, but it seems like the abridging took a lot of the point of the original out. This shipwreck island is obviously impossible — it has native kangaroos, ostriches, boas, donkeys, cotton plants, fig trees, is described as a desert island yet is full of flora and fauna — and the point of the original seems to have sort of an instruction manual on how to build and harvest various things in order to survive in various shipwreck type situations. This version of the book doesn’t have much of that in-depth instruction. But it’s not boring and the boys liked it, so I would still recommend it for young readers.
January 31, 2023
I just read this to my 8, 6 and 4 year olds. The original is so much better but this one is specific for younger audiences and the illustrations helped younger ones stay engaged. Yes, it’s a bloodbath, (something dies or is killed on almost every page it feels like - but that’s the reality of a life lived like this) and no, there isn’t an incredible amount of in depth plot like the original, but it’s a good intro for younger kids to this story of hard work, family cooperation, ingenuity and skill. Also this book covers ten years of life on the island so this adapted version is pretty much a brief overview of their life. To get the real view of values, hard work and every day life - read the original. All in all - it did what it was supposed to do - be an intro for younger readers and keep their attention. It did that!
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