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The gripping story of young Karana, who survives by herself for eighteen years on a deserted island off the California coast.
Left alone on a beautiful but isolated island off the coast of California, a young Indian girl spends eighteen years, not only merely surviving through her enormous courage and self-reliance, but also finding a measure of happiness in her solitary life.
"O'Dell tells the miraculous story of how Karana forages on land and in the ocean, clothes herself (in a green-cormorant skirt and an otter cape on special occasions), and secures shelter. Perhaps even more startlingly, she finds strength and serenity living alone on the island. This beautiful edition of Island of the Blue Dolphins is enriched with 12 full-page watercolor paintings by Ted Lewin, illustrator of more than 100 children's books, including Ali, Child of the Desert. A gripping story of battling wild dogs and sea elephants, this simply told, suspenseful tale of survival is also an uplifting adventure of the spirit." Amazon.com
An Excerpt from Island of the Blue Dolphins
There are no trees on the island except the small ones stunted by the
wind. When a log came ashore, as happened once in a long time, it was
always carried to the village and worked on where a chance wave could
not wash it away. That the men were sent to hollow out the log in the
cove, and to sleep beside it during the night, meant that they were there
to watch the Aleuts, to give the alarm should Captain Orlov try to sail
off without paying us for the otter skins.
Everyone was afraid he might, so besides the men in the cove who watch
the Aleut ship, others kept watch on the camp.
Every hour someone brought news. Ulape said that the Aleut woman spent
a whole afternoon cleaning her skin aprons, which she had not done before
while she had been there. Early one morning, Ramo said he had just seen
Captain Orlov carefully trimming his beard so that it looked the way it
did when he first came. The Aleuts who sharpened the log spears stopped
this work and gave all their time to skinning the otter which were brought
in at dusk.
We in the village of Ghalas-at knew that Captain Orlov and his hunters
were getting ready to leave the island. Would he pay us for the otter
he had slain or would he try to sneak away in the night? Would our men
have to fight for our rightful share?
These questions everyone asked while the Aleuts went about their preparations
—everyone except my father, who said nothing, but each night worked
on the new spear he was making.
Anonymous
Posted November 20, 2007
I read this book when I was in 4th grade. That was 15 years ago and I still remember the story from beginning to end. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys reading and the knowledge that can be gained from it.
40 out of 44 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted January 15, 2008
I remember reading Island of the Blue Dolphins when I was eleven. Recently I found my old copy, dusted it off, and started from the beginning. I could not put the book down. It was just as fresh to me as it was twenty-five years earlier. This is a book all ages can enjoy. I'm looking forward to reading it to my daughter in a few years. Scott O' Dell beautifully created a strong female protagonist that figured out a way to survive against the odds.
27 out of 30 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted September 26, 2000
Island of the Blue Dolphins is a very good book. I love books that have the ocean in them. The book tells the story of a girl named Karona. She is left on the island for 18 years. While she is waiting for a ship to come get her she must build shelter, gather and hunt food, and fight her enemies the wild dogs. I thought this book would be a regular old book with a beggining, middle, and an end. I sure was wrong! Karona even befriended a wild dog! I recomend this book for ages 9 and up. If you are younger than 9, and you like true stories you will enjoy this book.
19 out of 21 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.I often wonder why in the world certain books have won the prized golden sticker, aka, for all of you out there that dont know what i am talking about, the Newberry. the Oscars of the book world, minus the red carpet. Criss Cross is in my opinion, the best newberry ever, right up there with Holes and The Tale of Desperaux. The worst, is the blasted Witch of Blackbird Pond and...this one. This whole book, a Robinson Crusoe/Castaway tale of an Indian girl who is living alone at an island for 18 years, is mostly a tell book...the character, Karana, has no emotion, no feeling whatsoever. This is mostly what i hated about this novel. It's approx 200 pages felt like 2,000 pages becuase of how dull and lackluster it was. No emotion, no feeling. You would think the poor girl would be heartbroken, no? Well, she isnt at all. Every chapter is her making a speat or sewing a skirt or sailing down the river. This gets very dull after 100 pages of it. I was bored to death, sadly.
Content....everything is okey dokey. No sex or language. There is some mild violence and thematic elements.
This could have been such a great novel. But This book lacked depth, and the most important ingredient in every children's book...a little spice called feeling. without that one thing, everything else just comes out tasteless and burnt.
**Thanks for reading my review! Please mark it as helpful and check out my other reviews! Thanks so much and God bless!**
17 out of 60 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.David_Bremmerton
Posted March 9, 2011
I Also Recommend:
Author Scott O'Dell tells the story of Karana, an Indian girl living alone on the Island of Blue Dolphins. It is a fantastic story of survival as we travel with Karana on her quest to survive, forge for food, clothe herself, and seek shelter on the beautiful island. A very good read. Definitely recommended. Perfect for passing the time.
15 out of 18 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted January 5, 2012
An amazing book !
9 out of 20 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.My favorite book from childhood, based on the true story of a young American-Indian marooned on a deserted island for 18 years. Her resourcefulness, strength and keen observation of nature make this book a must read! Enjoyable for all ages!
9 out of 12 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted January 24, 2012
This book is about a Indian Princess who was left behind when the rest of her village left after a terrible tragidy toke thelives of many of the braves (men) inclouding her father the chief. She learn how to survive on her own wether she is rescued from the island is for you to find out. Injoy the book I know I did. Island of The Blue Dolfins is a very good book for teenagers, young adults, and kids. This is a book with no bad language curseing swearing or anything that a parent would not approve of there kid reading, I myself being a
6 out of 9 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted December 1, 2011
It was a really fun true story this girl has to survive by herself on a island for 18 years I absoulutely LOVE IT !!!!!! please read it it is totally whorth it
6 out of 10 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted November 6, 2011
To people who say this book is bad STOP IT NOW. Anyhow this book is so great i had to say that
5 out of 9 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted December 6, 2012
I love this book. It is one of the best books ive ever read and I have read a lot of books!
4 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted January 5, 2012
this book is amazing read it please you will love and im 11
3 out of 6 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted January 1, 2012
I had chosen this book to read for school and i compleatly regreted it i was forgeting what i was reading! But by the time i was inn the middle it was ok but not a real page turner so i recommend this to ppl who really x5 like reading
3 out of 8 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted December 27, 2011
I love i you need to read this.
3 out of 6 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted December 26, 2011
I read this already it is a great book ! The book is really good it is a little sad but still excellent !
3 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted November 20, 2011
Best Book Eva!!!!
3 out of 6 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted February 10, 2011
This book is a good read for people who like survival books. I liked it because it had fights and hope. The main character is trying to live on a island by her self. It does not work when bad people come and try to take her. She has to fight wild animals and some of them killed her brother.
I give this book 4 stars but the ending was poor. If the ending was a little better it was 5 stars. This book is good for people who like animals and survival stories.
3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted September 5, 2010
It was a good book. I enjoyed it a lot. Every word I read I became more intrigued into the story.
3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted October 25, 2012
...That all the tweenie-boppers saying they hate this book spell every other word wrong? Maybe they should spend a little more time reading - having a preschooler's grasp of grammar is only okay if you're a preschooler. Food for thought. Anyway, this book is beautifully written, and will surely sing to your heart. All about growing up and having a will to fight in order to live.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Posted October 13, 2012
Each year at Christmas I give the grandkids a book I read growing up. This is one of those books. It is a great read if you are looking for adventure and appreciate the resilience of the human spirit. I would recommend this book to young and old alike.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Overview
The gripping story of young Karana, who survives by herself for eighteen years on a deserted island off the California coast.
Left alone on a beautiful but isolated island off the coast of California, a young Indian girl spends eighteen years, not only merely surviving through her enormous courage and self-reliance, but also finding a measure of happiness in her solitary life.