At last, a decent summer read!
Last night I finished The Curse of Treasure Island. Written by Frank Delaney under the pen name, Francis Bryan, this book was a pleasure to read. With pirates, treasure, a secret mission, a chase on the high seas, and the mystery solved in the very end, what more could I ask for in a summer read?
The book did get a little thin in places, but overall it was good. It had no objectionable words or situations - I can recommend this to anyone, especially my children.
The story opens at the Admiral Benbow Inn about seven or so years after the events recorded in Stevenson's book, Treasure Island. Jim Hawkins narrates the entire story, so yeah, we know he'll survive all the harrowing adventures he encounters. A lovely young woman with a young son in tow asks Jim to take her to Treasure Island to find the pirate Joseph Tait. The woman, Grace Richardson, won't divulge the reason she needs to find Joseph Tait, who may or may not still be alive after being marooned seven years ago. Jim is smitten by Grace's loveliness and likes her son, Louis, well enough that he agrees to help her. Lots of the original characters make appearances: Squire Trelawney, Dr. Livesey, Ben Gunn, and Long John Silver. Jim even uses the Hispaniola to get back to the island. The island is still a sinister place, and there's lots of danger for Jim to face. The ending surprised me a bit - it surprised Jim Hawkins, too! But it wasn't a bad ending, and I am glad to have found this book and will buy it for us to keep and reread.
The book did get a little thin in places, but overall it was good. It had no objectionable words or situations - I can recommend this to anyone, especially my children.
The story opens at the Admiral Benbow Inn about seven or so years after the events recorded in Stevenson's book, Treasure Island. Jim Hawkins narrates the entire story, so yeah, we know he'll survive all the harrowing adventures he encounters. A lovely young woman with a young son in tow asks Jim to take her to Treasure Island to find the pirate Joseph Tait. The woman, Grace Richardson, won't divulge the reason she needs to find Joseph Tait, who may or may not still be alive after being marooned seven years ago. Jim is smitten by Grace's loveliness and likes her son, Louis, well enough that he agrees to help her. Lots of the original characters make appearances: Squire Trelawney, Dr. Livesey, Ben Gunn, and Long John Silver. Jim even uses the Hispaniola to get back to the island. The island is still a sinister place, and there's lots of danger for Jim to face. The ending surprised me a bit - it surprised Jim Hawkins, too! But it wasn't a bad ending, and I am glad to have found this book and will buy it for us to keep and reread.
Labels: books, children's books
posted by Laura at
11:26 AM
6 Comments:
Woohoo! Good books are hard to find. This one sounds pretty interesting. How did you find it?
I wish I could remember! I need to start making a note of *why* I request from the library the books I request. I think it was on a suggested summer reading book list I either saw in the newspaper or saw online.
Years ago I read a different sequel, "Flint's Island" by Leonard Wibberley. It was published in 1972 and I came across a copy at a library sale a couple years ago. Someday I'll reread it--maybe after I read "Treasure Island" to the little boys.
Hey! I have that book, too, but I've never read it! Maybe I should dig it out and put it in the "summer reading" pile....
Guess where I was the day before you wrote this? In RLS's house in Monterey! I got to see his favorite writing chair and his smoking jacket. I brought home a couple of his books, too! Pictures in a couple days.
Carmon, I just saw your pictures from Day One of your trip and was so happy to see the hill that was possibly the inspiration for Spyglass Hill! I'm looking forward to seeing the rest of your pictures.
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