
“Sir, with no intention to take offence, I deny your right to put words into my mouth.”― Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island
Prior to being published in 1883, author Robert Louis Stevenson wrote to one of his friends about the book and said, “If this don’t fetch the kids, why, they have gone rotten since my day. Will you be surprised to learn that it is about Buccaneers, that it begins in the Admiral Benbow public house on the Devon coast, that it’s all about a map and a treasure and a mutiny and a derelict ship… It’s quite silly and horrid fun – and what I want is the best book about Buccaneers that can be had.” Stevenson achieved his goal as this is coming of age story is one of the most popular and critically acclaimed adventure stories ever and continues to not only ‘fetch the kids’ but adults as well.
The narrator of the story is young Jim Hawkins whose mother runs the Admiral Benbow inn. After an old sailor dies at the inn, Jim finds an old treasure map showing the location of the infamous pirate Captain Flint’s buried treasure among his possessions. Jim along with Doctor Livesey and Squire Trelawney set sail to find the treasure. The crew of their ship, including one-legged Long John Silver, have their own ideas about the treasure, however, and Jim learns first hand how dangerous pirates can be.
This is a great story for anyone, young or old, who loves a good adventure.
Content Advisory: Death of a parent, violence, peril