Robinson Crusoe

This is another one of those classics that I had been meaning to read for years. Over all it was an excellent book. Especially the first 3 quarters. Or even 5/6ths. But pretty much after he is "rescued" I lost interest. Also, I thought it was really annoying that each chapter begins with a overview of what happens in the chapter. For example "Friday tells me of the white mans in his country. I make a canoe. Keep another anniversary. The savages again land. We attack them and rescue a Spaniard. Friday finds his father." And then the chapter begins. What?! It gives away all the surprises. If I could only stop myself from reading those parts! My only other complaint is the end of the book. The last sentence is: "I sent them also from the Brazils five cows, three of them being big with calf, some sheep, and some hogs; which, when I came again, were considerably increased." So actually there is no ending.

I love the action in this book. It is very exciting and actually reminded me a lot of Fatu-Hiva by Thor Heyerdahl. Although that was a real reminiscence, they dealt with some of the same survival issues. I thought it was really funny the way he ends up describing how he built a canoe in great detail, but when he gets married it isn't really clear who the lucky lady is. I also thought it was funny the way you think through the whole book that he is just unlucky with the sea, but then the first time he travels by land he is attacked by wolves. So I think the moral of the story is: Stay home and listen to your parents. ( at least when they tell you that you are doomed to be lost at sea)