Robert Louis Stevenson

A thrilling coming-of-age novel about bravery, adventure, good and evil, Treasure Island is the story of young Jim Hawkins, who discovers a treasure map marked with an X. But Jim has no way of knowing that Long John Silver, his friendly new crew-mate on the quest for the buried hoard, is determined to keep the treasure for himself, at any cost. Treasure Island is paired here with Stevenson's extraordinary, savage late novella The Ebb-Tide, which features a tropical island and a ship with a wholly different crew.

Treasure Island and the Ebb-Tide

Laura Mauler

Second read: Treasure Island is just as fantastic a read the second time around. Great fun. I didn't even bother with The Ebb-Tide.

First read: I picked up Treasure Island randomly, or maybe because Neil Gaiman mentioned it in his collection of nonfiction, I can't really remember. Nothing targeted in my selection of the book, is the point, and I had only the vaguest idea of its contents. So I was surprised and delighted by the vivid images that Treasure Island conjured up in the first few paragraphs. I could really see Billy Bones and feel the salty breeze, and it was irritating to have to surface from this adventure long enough to pay for the book. It feels like ages since I've been so thoroughly swept away into a book. Fantastic read.

The Ebb-Tide is preachy and forgettable.

Treasure Island and the Ebb-Tide

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