I've owned this book for years and always meant to get around to reading it. What finally spurred me on was that I started watching The Mysteries Cities of Gold on Netflix. That show, created jointly by French and Japanese companies, was based on a Scott O'Dell novel called The King's Fifth. I love the show and the story and subject matter were fascinating, so it got me thinking about Scott O'Dell and how I'd never managed to read even his most famous work, Island of the Blue Dolphins.

Rather than dig out my own copy, I got a different edition out of the library, and I'm glad I did. This one featured absolutely beautiful illustrations by Ted Lewin. The story is compelling and Karana is just what current readers are always claiming they lack: a strong, smart, independent, capable female protagonist. And this was written in 1960! They're certainly around if you know where to look.

The detailed descriptions of how Karana builds her shelters and creates her tools are fascinating, although since there's not that much known about Karana's people, I don't know how historically accurate they are. The historical significance of the real Lost Woman's story, including her ultimate fate (Wikipedia it or something) is quite depressing, but at least she has this legacy of a book to get people to remember that she lived, and to think about her story. I am devastated that all the physical items she had with her upon her rescue have been destroyed or lost.

This is a great book for middle-level kids, maybe 10-14 or so - that tough level where a lot of the YA stuff is too old, but the younger-level stuff is too young.