Part of the story I never knew before: Crusoe’s defying his parents to go see the world, his time in Brazil before his shipwreck, and his trip back to England after his rescue. I was also very struck by the difficulty of shifting money from place to place and having someone to trust with finances. Not that our big banks have proven to be eminently trustworthy, but at least they have made international commerce less of a crap shoot than it used to be.

A novel created over 300 years ago, which still unconditionally excites its readers. I myself read it several times as a child and was amazed by the resourcefulness and survival skills of Robinson Crusoe, stranded on a lonely island after a fierce storm and shipwreck.

Many consider this the first English novel. It was published in 1719, and the setting was around 1650. But the amazing thing about this novel is that it's timeless. Being stranded on a deserted island would be much the same today as it was 350 years ago. It's a great tale though, one I grew up with, along with Treasure Island and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. The 18th century writing style is a negative for most kids today I would think.