Told from the point of view of Jim Hawkins, Treasure Island is about sailing on the high seas in search of buried treasure. Jim recounts the tale of meeting an old pirate, Billy Bones, who stayed at his parents’ inn and getting dragged into pirate affairs. When Billy Bones dies, Jim is sent on a quest to go after treasure left on an undisclosed island which Jim refers to as the “Isle of Treasure” and “Treasure Island”. The crew selected for the expedition turns out to be an unsavory bunch of characters who have other ideas for this treasure hunt.
The reader follows Jim along for a pirate adventure rife with mutiny, battles, and treasure hunting.
This is the first book by Robert Louis Stevenson that I’ve read. I enjoyed it for the most part. There were times where the language and pirate-speak kind of made me zone out but overall I thought it was a good story. It was fast-paced. The description wasn’t overly done but there was enough to help me see the events unfolding. (Though I do tend to have problems with imaging spaces and sizes, so I probably didn’t image the Hispaniola in its appropriate size.) I tend to prefer description like this where there is more action to follow. I find that if there is too much description in a novel, especially when there is an event happening in a very short amount of time, the story slows down too much. I would definitely read another book by Robert Louis Stevenson.
Have any of you read this or any other books by Robert Louis Stevenson? What are your thoughts?
