Treasure Island

I have toured the Stevenson House in Monterey, California where it is said Stevenson conceived the idea for “Kidnapped”. Stevenson said he got the basis for the story of “Treasure Island” after drawing a map of an imaginary island for his stepson but when he lived in Monterey the scenery triggered the story. I had read the book, years and years ago when in elementary school. I reread it in 1959 after first touring the Stevenson house. When Audible displayed the book I thought I would reread the classic even though it is a children’s story.

The story takes place in the mid 1700s, on the west coast of England. Our protagonist is Jim Hawkins, the son of an inn keeper. An old sailor “the Captain” Billy Bones is a logger at the inn and pays Jim to keep an eye out for a one legged seafaring man. Billy has a stroke and dies, and then Jim’s father dies. Jim and his mother open Billy’s sea chest and discover money, a journal and a map. The district Squire Trelawney obtains a ship and hires the local physician Dr. Livesy as the ship’s doctor and Jim as cabin boy. He hires a crew including Long John Silver as the cook along with his talking parrot. They sail off to find the pirate Captain Flint’s Treasure Island.

The story was published as seventeen weekly installments in the “Young Folks Magazine” from 1 October 1881 to 28 January 1882. It was later published as a book. Stevenson wrote “The “Amateur Emigrant,” “The Pavilion on the Links,” and “A Vendetta in the West” while living in Monterey. Stevenson said his time in Monterey influenced his writing in many ways, the scenery; the people of many nations living together gave him many ideas for stories. Needless to say the book is well written and Neil Hunt did a good job narrating the book. I read this as an audiobook downloaded from Audible.

★★★★★★★★☆☆[8/10]



When you encounter a haggard and bedraggled fellow in the middle of an uninhabited island that you have sailed to to find treasure, and the fellow in question claims that he is rich, you could undoubtedly decide that you have succeeded in your mission. Claim the prize. Flee the scene. End of the story.

Alas, that is not how Robert Louis Stevenson envisaged the ending. At this point, you have more than two thirds of the book to finish. Yet you carry on as if you haven't a clue about how the mariners who are on a death-mission will return absolutely unscathed, to enjoy the riches that the island bestowed upon them.
Yes, because it is Stevenson.

So, if you are not someone who is directionally- and spatially-challenged like me, and is fond of cursing like an old English sailor (or a buccaneer) (Anu, are you reading this? Man! That was seriously messed up even for dootiful followers of the parlance!), and utterly bored with life's real quests, then hop onto Captain Smollett's schooner and head for Treasure Island. Remember, you'll only have young Jim Hawkins to save your butt in case you get caught in trouble. And, may luck be with you. As for the sheer literary brilliance of the book, I leave it up to you to decide (I am not particularly partial to piratealect!).

[The only thing that troubles me is how people treat Long John Silver like a glorified villain. He stabbed a faithful seaman in cold blood at the first chance he got-- and there's no glory in that, I tell you. He is an oleaginous wretch as Jim Hawkins has rightly said, and I have only that much regard for him.]


(Can't say "no" to that, eh?)

Fifteen men after a dead man’s chest
Yo, ho, and a bucket of blood

What do pirates do? They drink one bottle of rum after another. They kill each other and anyone else they desire. They are also greedy and will steal the shirt off your back and the gold in your teeth.
They are vulgar in speech but forget the sex, because they are too busy drinking themselves to death. And they say that this is a children’s book.

I tried reading this book way over two years ago, and while I loved the beginning chapters, those at the Admiral Benbow Inn. After Jim and company arrived at Treasure Island and there was a mutiny, I put the book down. I hate battle scenes. Yet, I never forgot the scenes at the
Inn, which I thought contained the best writing of any author. I wanted to read it again, because it kept nagging at me to do so. This time I decided that I had to finish the book, battles and all.

It began with an old captain dragging a chest into the Admiral Benbow Inn, placing it in his room and hiding its key. The Inn was operated by Mr. and Mrs. Hawkins with the help of their young son, Jim. The captain asked Jim to keep an eye out for a one-legged man and to let him know immediately if he sees him. Next, the captain is creeping around, trying to see who is at the Inn at any given time. And he is eating large amounts of food and drinking rum, enough to fill a large barrel. You know, you have seen them at wineries, only those are not filled with rum. And what is it with rum? I thought that it was only good for making Rum Balls, those rum cookies that they make at Christmas, the ones that can also make you drunk. Or, perhaps, rum is used in fruit cakes to make them taste great. Of course, you add the rum after the cake is baked, and of course, and you do not bake the cookies at all.

This time around, I am not reading this book, instead I am listening to it on my BARD app, and the narrator is great. His name is Erik Sandvold and not the same narrator as who you get on Audible. on. He sounds like a pirate when speaking those parts, I should say, what people imagine pirates to sound like. I found myself almost as fascinated with his different voices as I did with the book. Not really. And what is more, I could see the Inn, the island, and the skeletons, even the buckets of blood. I could even almost hear the captain singing “Fifteen men on a dead man’s chest, Yo, ho, and a bottle of rum.” Well, now that I think of it, it was sung aloud by the narrator. Last of all, I even saw the ships shelves with bottles of rum and wanted to grab a few to make Rum Balls.

So now, you know that I have read the battles on the island, and I learned its secrets, but if I tell you anymore, you will have the story spoiled for you. So, I will leave you with this recipe:

No Bake Rum Balls

1 cup finely crushed vanilla wafers
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup finely chopped walnuts or pecans
1 cup, rum, bourbon or brandy
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons light corn syrup

Mix all in a bowl and shape into balls. Store in an air tight container. Makes 3 dozen.

THE Pirate Adventure by Excellence.

18th century, Bristol Channel. Jim Hawkins is the young son of the innkeeper of the Admiral Benbow Inn. One day an old suspiciously wary sailor makes his entrance and lodges for a time. After his untimely death due to a stroke, revising his belongings, Jim finds a map revealing what could be the possible location of a treasure hidden by the infamous pirate Captain Flint and his gang. With the help of Dr. Livesey, John Trelawney, Captain Smollett and cook Long John Silver, they arm the schooner Hispaniola with enough crew members and resources to make an expedition to the island in search of the treasure.

This one is by all accounts the most famous pirate story ever written, spawning countless of adaptations and retellings in books, films, plays, and whatnot.

It’s been ages since I read it, and at the time for me this was just another classic book like any other. I remember enjoying it enough, the plot everything you can expect from a pirate story, the characters not great but very memorable, like the iconic one-legged eye-patched pirate with the parrot on the shoulder. So classic! The pacing somewhat slow but not enough to be bothersome. Decently easy to read, considering, although that may be because I read it in spanish. I wouldn’t mind rereading it someday to admire it in its full splendor a second time around, savouring now everything with full knowledge of its literary importance, and in its original language.

A true immortal classic like few others. 3.5 rounded up for legendary status. A must read, if only to know the original work that inspired so many others after. Recommendable.

It’s public domain. You can find it  HERE.

Still remaining, the movie (1950) and (1990)



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n  PERSONAL NOTEn:
[1882] [311p] [Classics] [3.5] [Conditional Recommendable] [“X never, ever marks the spot.”]
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★★★★☆  Treasure Island  [3.5]
★★★☆☆  Olalla

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LA Aventura de Piratas por Excelencia.

Siglo XVIII, Canal de Bristol. Jim Hawkins es el joven hijo del dueño de la Posada Almirante Benbow. Un día un viejo y sospechoso marinero hace su entrada y se hospeda por un tiempo. Luego de una infortunada muerte a causa de un derrame, revisando sus pertenencias, Jim encuentra un mapa revelando lo que podría ser la posible ubicación de un tesoro escondido por el infame pirata Capitán Flint y su banda. Con la ayuda del Dr. Livesey, John Trelawney, Capitán Smollett y el cocinero Long John Silver, arman la goleta Hispaniola con suficientes tripulantes y recursos para hacer una expedición a la isla en búsqueda del tesoro.

Esta es a todas cuentas la más famosa historia de piratas jamás escrita, generando un sinfín de adaptaciones y recreaciones en libros, filmes, teatro y que no.

Hace demasiado que leí esto, y en su tiempo para mí sólo fue otro libro clásico como cualquier otro. Recuerdo disfrutarlo lo suficiente, la trama todo lo que uno puede esperar de una historia de piratas, los personajes no geniales pero sí muy memorables, como el icónico pirata cojo con parche de ojo y loro en el hombro. ¡Tan clásico! El ritmo algo lento pero no lo suficiente para ser molesto. Decentemente fácil de leer, considerando, aunque tal vez eso se deba a que lo leí en español. No me molestaría releerlo algún día para admirarlo en todo su esplendor una segunda vez, saboreando ahora todo con pleno conocimiento de su importancia literaria, y en su lenguaje original.

Un verdadero clásico inmortal como pocos otros. 3.5 redondeado para arriba por status legendario. Una lectura obligada, aunque sea sólo para conocer la obra original que inspiró a tantas otras después. Recomendable.

Es dominio público, lo pueden encontrar  ACA.

Queda pendiente, la película (1950) y (1990)



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n  NOTA PERSONALn:
[1882] [311p] [Clásicos] [3.5] [Recomendable Condicional] [“X nunca, jamás marca el lugar.”]
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There are a lot of Sea Stories out there, and this is one of the better-known, but it hardly outshines its genre. I found myself missing the humor and vivid characterization of Conrad, not to mention the insightful philosophical asides. I also found it somewhat lacking as an adventure story, as the plot was somewhat simplistic and contrived, following the empty avatar of a narrator through various vicarious thrills.

There's nothing wrong with an escapist yarn, but a good one keeps you riveted with twists and turns, alternating verisimilitude and the unlikely. It's not as if it's a problem of period, either, since The Three Musketeers is one of the most rollicking and engrossing adventure stories ever written.

One must take into consideration the fact that Treasure Island is one of those genre-defining works which has been rehashed and plundered by a thousand authors since, until it is ingrained in our culture as The representation of piratical life. Like Neuromancer, many of the tropes and plot points might seem unoriginal, but that's only because they have been copied so frequently that we are no longer capable of recognizing their origin.

Yet, this isn't the case for all genre-defining works. The Virginian still stands out when compared with any other Western and The Moonstone remains unique despite all the Mysteries that have dutifully followed it. The difference is the author's verve and style, because even if later authors can copy his ideas, copying his style will prove beyond their skill. An author who is good enough to recreate another author's style already has a unique voice of their own.

It's curious to compare this with Poe's sole outing in the novel, The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket, which has the voice and unpredictability Treasure Island lacks, but doesn't provide the same lilting tone or straightforward plot, leaving each as interesting artifacts in the genre, even if neither can claim to be a complete vision.

But then, it is often incomplete visions that provide the greatest inspiration, since they illuminate flaws and pitfalls, providing an outline for later authors and a caution of what should be avoided. Few people have come away from a book they couldn't possibly outdo feeling inspired to create, whereas reading a flawed but entertaining book can be the perfect jolt to a prospective author. But then, a book that inspires other authors to write could hardly help being the influential anchor from which the rest of a genre depends, so such flaws end up serving a purpose, if inadvertently.

What drew me to this book, more than anything, is my desire to understand the unique literary mind of Mervyn Peake, one of the most powerful authors in the English language. Peake often invoked this as a favorite book, and produced a powerful series of illustrations for it. In these illustratios, one begins to see what Peake took away from Stevenson, as an author.

While this is, to some degree, a story about simple characters, particularly the narrator, it is also a very dark tale, particularly for a children's classic. The death and deceit of the tale come out in Peake's drawings, as does the grotequerie.

This darkness is undeniably there, but truthfully, I barely noted it until I looked at Peake's vision. To some degree, Sea Stories always bear this kind of horror, a world of conflict, the unforgiving sea, headhunting cannibals, and death a cheap thing. Poe and Conrad each outdo Stevenson in unsettlement, but in different ways.

Poe's tends to be more purely visual, as is always his obsession in writing. It is the languid, lingering description that Poe gives to the leering face of a gull-bitten corpse that drives home the darkness of this life.

Conrad, on the other hand, gives us horror in the eyes of his characters. He doesn't shy away from the pure physicality of the unpleasant world, but where it lingers is in the mind's eye; visions which can never be erased, which will forever taint our everyday actions.

But Stevenson gives us neither. His adventure tale holds plenty of fear, but when young Jim murders a pirate, gruesome as it is, it rarely lingers either as vignette or psychological crack. Of course, he had a different notion of the maturity of a ten-year-old than we do today, where childhood lasts into the twenties, but we don't get the psychological progression we expect from a man coming to terms with death.

These moments and reflections are not entirely absent, but they tend to get lost in the fleeting, episodic style of the story. But I'm glad for Treasure Island, if only because it inspired Peake to expand upon this tale of a precocious boy drawn inexorably into a dark world of grotesque characters in his unfinished magnum opus, the Gormenghast series.