Treasure Island (Ags Illustrated Classics)

When a foul-tempered old sailor, takes up residence at his parents' inn, young Jim Hawkins little realizes that the man is on the run. But, when the Captain dies with a group of pirates closing in, Jim ends up with a map to a huge pirate treasure in his hands. Now, together with Dr. Livesey and Squire Trelawney, the three find themselves a ship, and set out to find this marvelous treasure island. But there's dirty work afoot, and it will take all of Jim pluck and daring if he is going to win through to the treasure...or even just to stay alive!

Well, I have seen a number of movies based on this true classic of Western literature, but I have finally read the original story. As for me, I found it to be quite entertaining - filled with lots of danger and daring-do. I have read a lot of late 19th/early 20th century boy's book, and this one is the king of the genre. No yucky romance, indeed, little in the way of females at all. It's muscular fiction, of the sort that boys have read for many generations.

I must say that I really liked Mr. Stevenson's portrayal of the pirate life - trying to maintain order and discipline amongst a violent and highly-individualized crew, and so forth. I found the book to be very realistic, and all the more entertaining for that.

This is a great book, one that has stood the test of time and truly deserves to be called a classic. I highly recommend this book to all boys, and all men who are boys at heart! (And, to all girls who like muscular fiction!)

I've actually never read this before, but since I could get it for free on my Kindle, I thought it was worth a try. So right! It deserves its reputation. A swashbuckling tale of intrigue and fun. Truly worth the time it took to read it.

Avast, me hearties!

Capt Flint, th' most feared buccanneer on th' high sea be dead, an' Billy Bones, his first mate knows 'ere Flint buried his booty. Bones be a buccanneer who loves his rum an' when he drinks hisself t' Davy Jones' locker, 12-year-old Jim Hawkins comes upon Flint's map. Jim an' his shipmates Doctor Livsey an' Mr. Trelawny, set sail fer riches an' adventure. But shi'er me timbers, thar's treachery afoot. Long John Silver, th' one legged buccanneer wi' a heart as black as a bilge rat's belly, be plottin' a mutiny. Jim an' his shipmates must look sharp an' fight t' stay alive on Booty Isle, arrr!

[...]

The pirate theme has always been one of my favorite. I'm a big fan of the Goonies and Peter Pan may be my favorite Disney animation. I even enjoyed the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie, the other two... not so much. The pirate genre didn't start with Robert Lewis Stevenson's classic novel but his is probably the most influential. Treasure Island was written in the later half of the 1800's before `Shiver Me Timbers' and `Pieces of Eight' became overused pirate phrases and `Dead Man's Chest' became the traditional anthem of movie pirates.

It isn't a deep engaging story that makes Treasure Island such a classic. Quite frankly it's a pretty straight forward tale involving a treasure hunt and a mutineering crew of pirates. What makes this story a classic is in the storytelling and Mr. Stevenson makes it seem effortless. When I read books of lesser quality I can sense the author chiseling out the words rather than letting them flow. Books shouldn't feel crafted they should immerse the reader to the point where you forget there's even an author behind the story. Movie scripts are particularly egregious in trying to pound out a catch phrase to stick in the audiences mind but I see it in books also. Without even trying Stevenson created or popularized half a dozen or more sayings that have survived for over a century. With Long John Silver he essentially created the pirate template that has been used endlessly from Captain Barbossa to Spongebob Squarepants', Patchy the Pirate. Just don't blame Stevenson for the fact that John Stevens has become a cliché.


Young Bill Hawkins is the main protagonist in the story but Long John Silver steals the show. Silver is a wonderful multi-faceted anti-hero that you can't help but root for by the end of the book. This is the kind of book anyone can read but the target audience is probably teen and preteen boys. In fact it is probably the quintessential example of a book that targets young males, a genre that has essentially withered away from its hay day in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. Perhaps books like this could inspire younger male audiences to read more than just comic books and video games cheat codes (not that there is anything at all wrong with either pastime). Let me reiterate that if you are not young or male I still recommend this fantastic book. Treasure Island is definitely a story that exceeded my expectations and lives up to the title of classic.

I really liked treasure island but their is one thing: it's not a book for four year olds. it has a lot of people dieing an d getting injured in that book. I would say you could give treasure island to a 6-13 year olds.
enjoy!