Mercan Adası

by R.M. Ballantyne

Ralph, sevimli bir balıkçı kasabasında küçük bir evde gözlerini dünyaya açar. Kuşaklar boyunca yalnızca denizcilikle yaşamlarını kazanan bir ailenin çocuğu olan Ralph, her gün macera dolu deniz hikâyeleri dinleyerek büyür. Anlatılacak o kadar çok macera vardır ki, bunları dinledikçe Ralph’in denize olan özlemi daha da artar. Denize açılacağı günün hayallerini kurar. On beş yaşına geldiğinde Ralph hayallerine kavuşur. The Arrow adlı gemide miçodur artık… Gemide iki miço daha vardır: Jack ve Peterkin…
Tropik rüzgârları arkasına alan Arrow, Büyük Okyanus’a doğru açılır. Onların da anlatacakları macera başlamıştır artık… Ne yazık ki, gemileri fırtınaya yakalanınca, kayalıklara sürüklenip parçalanır. Kazadan yalnızca, dalgaların bir mercan adasının kıyısına sürüklediği üç arkadaş kurtulur. Hayatta kalmanın sevinciyle gözlerini açtıklarında, kendilerini bu adada bekleyen zor günlerden habersizdirler.
Mercan Adası, İskoç macera kitapları yazarı Robert Micahel Ballantyne’ın (1825-1894) en önemli yapıtlarındandır.

Genres: Classics, Fiction, Adventure, Historical Fiction, Childrens, 19th Century, Young Adult

234 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1857

About the author

R. M. Ballantyne was a Scottish writer of juvenile fiction.

Born Robert Michael Ballantyne in Edinburgh, he was part of a famous family of printers and publishers. At the age of 16 he went to Canada and where he served for six years with the Hudson's Bay Company. He returned to Scotland in 1847, and published his first book the following year, Hudson's Bay: or Life in the Wilds of North America. For some time he was employed by Messrs Constable, the publishers, but in 1856 he gave up business for literature, and began the series of adventure stories for the young with which his name is popularly associated.

Reviews

[Petra X · Rating 5 out of 5]

I went to primary school at four and a half, into Mrs. Whitcombe's class. Everything was miniature, including Mrs. Whitcombe who was a little person. We sat on our little chairs at our little desks and got out our little books. Janet and John. It was quite glorious except that I had read the whole year's Janet and John primers by morning break (a very little bottle of milk and a digestive biscuit).

The only other books in the classroom were Treasure Island, Swiss Family Robinson and Coral Island. So for the rest of the term while all the other little children were learning to read, I was immersed in tales of the far away. Far, far away from the little Welsh village I lived in into a big, big world full of treasures and exploration. I was hooked on reading from then on.

[PirateSteve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tis a story of 3 shipwrecked teen aged English lads. While the tale is fun for young and old alike, I think it 's target readership would be in the tween(“between” childhood and the teenage) range.
As the story unfolds the reader finds them-self on an educational journey in the islands of the South Pacific.
Strong Christian beliefs are exhibited as the 3 young men display good moral character in their survival against nature, native cannibals and pirates.

[Ruby Granger · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was one of the first children's books for boys -- you can definitely see it setting the tradition of Treasure Island, and drawing on those from Gulliver's Travels. It was fast-paced and engaging and there were some lovely descriptions of their island. Also a striking focus on rationalising and scientifically analysing aspects of the island (in the tradition of the Enlightenment period).
The second half was, however, very difficult to read because it is so incredibly racist. The second half of this book is effectively a propagandistic call for missionaries to go and convert indigenous people. The language and narrative of this is disturbing, especially when you know that this material was being given to young and impressionable children...

[Carolee Wheeler · Rating 2 out of 5]

So let me get this straight.

You're a teenage sailor, shipwrecked with 2 buddies on a pacific island. You get along pretty well, and are fairly happy with your lot there, but one day you see a big ship arrive and you flag it down, but O NOES it's Pirates. The pirate ship captures one of you, and sails away with you, and you are treated to all sorts of horrors including cannibalism. Nobody is any good except this one other guy, and then one day you have a chance to fool all the bad guys and you do, and they get captured by the savage cannibals (or is it cannibal savages?) and while the savages are dancing and whooping around their tied-up bodies, the Good Guy and you escape on the nice big pirate ship. But the good guy is mortally wounded, and he dies. Nevertheless, you keep going, returning to the island where you last saw your buddies. You find them! Hurrah! Also you have a boat! So you load it up with more provisions (because it's already pretty sweet, being a real live pirate ship) and you could head back to civilization or England or wherever it was you came from, but your buddy says HOLD ON A MINUTE THERE'S ONE LAST THING WE NEED TO DO. So you head off to an island where you try to save -one- island girl from being married to a guy she doesn't want to be married to. YOU COULD SAVE YOURSELVES, YOU HAVE A BOAT, BUT INSTEAD okay anyway, they're tremendously thwarted in their attempts, and it's lucky they don't end up "long pigs" on the cannibal fire, but instead they're just in prison for a few months, by which I mean a cave. Probably the whole time thinking, WE HAD A BOAT, GODDAMN IT.

Of course it all ends up ok, because one day they're led from prison and their bonds are cut and it's all because a really convincing missionary (separate from the existing Island Missionary, who I guess didn't have the chops) showed up and convinced the Chief to convert to Christianity and he builds a church and lets the Island Girl love who she pleases. And she gets to marry her Christian chief and the guys say "Phew, I guess we can go home now."

Praise Jesus.

[Rob · Rating 1 out of 5]

I understand why William Golding hated this book so much that, in response, he wrote "Lord of the Flies", taking the character names Jack and Ralph with him.

Roses grow from shit.

[Ivy-Mabel Fling · Rating 5 out of 5]

Living in post-Brexit Britain, the incredible smugness of this story was hard to take. One could have laughed it off if it had not come back to haunt us. Rule Britannia! And thank goodness the gods are on our side and wear our type of clothing!

[Yuki · Rating 1 out of 5]

Starts off as a sweet children book, ends with too abrupt of a didactic tone along with mildly annoying instances of casual racism.

[Rohan · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's always tricky assessing Victorian youth fiction in the light of our current postcolonial period, and all of the necessary revaluations that has entailed. The Coral Island: A Tale of the Pacific does have some horrendously condescending views upon the age-old moral dichotomy of 'savagery v. civility'. However, R.M. Ballantyne is a relatively unusual author for his period. Edinburgh-born Ballantyne clearly had a strongly evangelical Protestant morality, but this was also tempered with a clear-sighted and scientifically rational-observational mindset. Rather than glory in the military might and commercial prowess of empire, attempting to paint a thin veneer of moral purpose over Britain's overseas ventures, Ballantyne instead chooses to render the exotic, faraway islands of the South Pacific in minute detail, seemingly for the purpose of promoting the Christian Missionary cause, as well as telling a damned good tale of derring-do.

The novel is narrated by the mature figure of Ralph Rover, who reflects back on his early adventures as a young man marooned upon a coral island in the Pacific Ocean. Two other young men, Peterkin Gay and Jack Martin, manage to survive the wreck of the trading ship, which Rover was set to sea aboard. These three boys on the cusp of manhood, bring different skills and abilities to their island prison/paradise. Jack is the oldest and strongest of the boys. He has a keen sense of bravery and proves adept at mechanical design and manipulation. Peterkin is the youngest and smallest of the boys. Unlike, Jack and Ralph he seems to lack a certain quality of upbringing and education. However his speed and agility make him an excellent hunter. Peterkin is also the clown of the group, frequently entertaining the other two and keeping the trio's spirits buoyant. Ralph, meanwhile, is the most obviously religious of the group, as well as the most cerebral. Many times throughout the novel he claims to be observing, or contemplating, something that he has come across, as if he can only conceive of the entirety of something through reflecting upon it. As Ralph is the narrator we have to take him at his word, yet there is the distinct possibility that his present age - when narrating - has allowed him to place certain, more obviously academic and spiritual, concerns upon the events of his youth.

What Ballantyne's novel successfully presents is an adventure story, very much of the ripping yarn variety, that is both exciting and relatively plausible. The immense detail that is poured into precise descriptions of coral constructions, sea-life, plants and vegetation, maritime equipment and the conditions of 'native' peoples, gives the novel the veracity of a travelogue. Ballantyne was a great believer in writing about what one has seen with ones own eyes and in The Coral Reef, this is an oft-repeated mantra of Ralph's.

The book falters a little in the final third when the boys come across a Missionary outpost. At this point Ballantyne's prose seems to slip into a sermonising, or eulogising, mode of discourse, that wishes to convince not just the boys, but the readers also, of the merits of the Christian Mission. Until this part of the novel Ballantyne managed to marshal his narrative with expert pacing and a keen eye for wondrous detail, which although weakened in these closing sections, still manages to maintain reader interest.

It is easy to imagine what kind of impact this book would have had on young imaginations back in the 1850's and must be seen as the inspiration for a fair few maritime careers in the latter half of the 19th century. Ballantyne's fellow Edinburgh native Robert Louis Stevenson clearly utilises many of the mechanical elements of Ballantyne's plot for his own high-seas masterpiece Treasure Island. Despite being a novel aimed at youngsters, and crammed full of all the various forms of Victorian moral improvement, The Coral Reef also manages to inject moments of startling brutality into many scenes, that even by today's jaded standards would seem horrific. That said, perhaps the novel's most admirable quality is the way in which its central characters find a means to co-operate effectively with one another for the betterment of all.

At his very best Ballantyne manages to meld together progressivist scientific rationalism, the core civil decencies of Christianity and an exceptional ability for narrative pacing that makes books like this a joy to read, and not just a historic curio. Hidden away in the depths of Ralph Rover's reminisces there are profound and beautiful passages such as this from the closing chapter of the novel:-

"To part is the lot of all mankind. The world is a scene of constant leave-taking, and the hands that grasp in cordial greeting to-day are doomed ere long to unite for the last time, when the quivering lips pronounce the word --"Farewell"... if we realised more fully the shortness of the fleeting intercourse that we have in this world with many of our fellow-men, we would try more earnestly to do them good, to give them a friendly smile, as it were, in passing (for the longest intercourse on earth is little more than a passing word and glance), and show that we have sympathy with them in the short, quick struggle of life, by our kindly words and looks and actions."

More than anything it is this strength of fellow-feeling, that is depicted with such genuine charm, dignity and grace, that will continue to commend The Coral Reef as a literary adventure worth undertaking.

[Deb Omnivorous Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a quintessential boys adventure story: Ralph goes to sea as a cabin boy, almost as soon as they 'round Cape Horn and enter the Pacific ocean a storm sinks their ship marooning him and his two friends on a coral island on which they have wonderful adventures before escaping the island.

This book is in fact a prototype of several story genera, Ballantyne was a prolific writer of stories for young people, publishing over 100 between 1847 and his death in 1894. The Coral Island is considered his most successful in that it has never been out of print since it was published in 1858. Surely that is some kind of record in print for almost 160 years!

One of the writers influenced by him was Robert Louis Stevenson, who was so influenced by The Coral Island, that he based portions of Treasure Island on it. Also, The Coral Island can be considered one forerunner of the genera of 'deserted on a desert island' that is a hugely influential literary theme.

I was especially excited to find it in Little Dragon format, hands up who remembers the little dragons? These children's books are practically historical their own right these days and this one was published in 1966, a 'Red Dragon For boys and girls (8-12 years). Price 2'6.

As excited as I was to read it, I was a little disconcerted by the superficiality of the beginning in which less than a page of introduction passes before our narrator was at sea and less than three before the shipwreck. The writing also, seemed superficial and unsatisfying compared to my expectations. Then I was sucked into the story and didn't really emerge until the end when the writing again was choppy, the story unlikely, and the ending astonishingly abrupt.

And then, of course, I realised that the little dragons of my childhood, like readers digests, must have aimed to give the story, stripped down for kids. This book says that it is 'a tale based on...' and as such a lot must have been edited out. Despite this it was a fun, fun story. An innocent, childlike and occasionally childish adventure of three impossibly nice and kindly boys between 14-18 years old that ends impossibly happily.

Total suspension of disbelief is needed for it: the author had clearly no idea what coconuts were like, had never seen a coral atoll and possibly not even the Pacific ocean. The fact that Ballantyne was an educated man, familiar with the writings of Darwin and Wallace and very well read on 'current' subjects relating to the tropics does come through but it is an idealised fantasy island he has created. Also, writing as a 1880's man, it is imperialist and racist, though the missionaries have been carefully and entirely deleted from this book there are enough other references to ruffle the feathers of a modern reader. I will not go into too many of them, but the notion that Islanders are less capable of emotions than 'white men' is pervasive and has to be read with a strong awareness that this is an actual historical novel if you have any chance of enjoying it. The idea that a 18 year old cabin boy with a tree branch can defeat a grown man who is a practiced warrior by virtue of his 'white superiority' left me with tears of laughter in my eyes. Also, the 1880's were convinced that every black race were inveterate, persistent cannibals and that element is strongly part of our youthful heros adventure's.

Our young hero Ralph and his friends, Jack Martin and Peterkin Gay (no, I kid you not!) are impossibly nice children as seen suitable for the reading of 'juveniles' in the 1880's. They have no sex drive, they never swear, they are completely moral and never hurt each other beyond the occasional very mild prank. They are utterly unbelievable and yet strangely likable in their unreality.

Despite the innocence and fun of the story, In my view at least, it is no longer suitable for children, not even "Older boys and girls (12-15 years)" let alone ones 8-12, that are the Red Dragon's target market. I very strongly feel the the phenomenal levels of racism are unsuited to non adults in the 2000's. The very idea of having to explain to my 13 year old godson with his many Fijian friends, why the book is claiming they are all cannibals who kill each other without mercy or compassion gives me cold shudders.

But it has whetted my appetite for reading the whole, unabridged story that Ballantyne wrote, for sure!

[Rick Silva · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't tend to reread very many books, but this was one that I loved when I read it (as a pre-teen). I decided to try reading it to my son in chapters.

First half was great. Classic adventure story with three teenaged boys shipwrecked on the iconic deserted island in the South Pacific. Their story of survival together is perhaps a bit overly optimistic, but it's still great fun.

When the book moves into its second act, and pirates and Pacific Islander natives become involved, it takes a turn into some pretty graphic violence, and I found myself having to skip a lot when reading to my son just because it really wasn't appropriate for his age. It also presents a lot of severe racial stereotypes and inaccuracies, probably typical for its genre and time of writing, but no less disturbing.

Interestly, this book (almost certainly more so than the similarly-themed Robinson Crusoe) was obviously a strong influence on Golding's Lord of the Flies.

One aspect that I did really like in this story was the loyalty between the three boys, and their readiness to express their love for each other and their fears when things go wrong. The range of emotion is missing from a lot of more current adventure stories featuring boys, and it was a nice recurring theme, especially in the first half.

I had very little memory of the negative aspects of this book from my original reading of it, so it was an interesting experience to revisit it with a few decades of additional life experience.

[Leila · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book as a child lots of times and really loved it. I read it again when I bought it during 2014 and finished it some time later that year, I cannot remember it well enough now to write a worthwhile review except to remember the magic in the story that lifted me and transported me into another world.

A boy named Ralph and his two friends Peterkin and and Jack, were shipwrecked and managed to get to a coral island. After that there had many adventures. The book always transported me to another world. It is a book to excite the heart of any child with a good imagination and a definite taste for adventure and had a simplicity that is rarely found in the ore modern children's books. I read it again as an adult for nostalgia. Coral Island, Treasure Island, The Sea of Adventure, The Hornblower books and films ... Add to that a fondness for the sea shanty songs we sang at school - Bobby Shafto and another one I loved to sing. It began 'On Friday Morn as we set sail and the chorus was something about 'And the land lubbers lying down below' Plus a childhood in Runswick Bay often sailing in my uncle's fishing Coble.... Perhaps I should have become a sailor!!!!! Apologies for not remembering the fine details of Coral Island but a book to delight if you love islands and the sea whatever age.

[Pramod Nair · Rating 4 out of 5]

I still remember the glow i felt as an eleven year old boy while i sat mesmerized reading this tale of wonderful adventure. A Classic!

[Ümit Mutlu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Klasiklerin klasik olmalarının elbette sayısız sebebi var ve burada bu sebep, ayrıntılardaki itinada yatıyor. Ballantyne deyim yerindeyse ballandıra ballandıra anlatıyor her aşamayı, her macerayı ve bu sayede insan kendisini Lost adasında zannediyor. The Others olmadan tabii, ha hah.

Bu arada elimdeki "kısaltılmamış" çeviri (hem de 8. Baskı olmasına rağmen) sanıyorum ki son sayfalara sığdıramadıklarından, kitabın son üç paragrafını içermiyor. Trajikomik.

[Micaiah Keough · Rating 4 out of 5]

(MIGHT UPDATE THIS REVIEW. we shall see.)


The Coral Island was truly a masterpiece. I now understand why it was one of the most well-loved Ballantyne books of its time and even today. The characters were impeccable. I fell in love with them immediately. The storyline was fascinating and well-written. All around, it was fantastic.

Another add to this wonderful book is the Gospel message that R.M. Ballantyne skillfully wove throughout the novel and the character’s lives (Ralph’s in particular).

It was a riveting and intriguing story of three boys trapped on a lonely coral island out in the Pacific Ocean, and the many adventures and perilous happenings that befell them. Suffice to say, I loved it! I am sure it will remain my favorite, or at least one of my favorites, of Ballantyne’s many novels.

Characters:

Oh, the characters! They were fantastic. Jack, Peterkin, and Ralph were the perfect trio. They worked well together. Scratch that. They worked perfectly together.

I have to say that thirteen-year-old, Peterkin Gay was my favorite. He was lively, humorous, incredibly energetic, and mischievous. What he said and the way he acted was incredibly hilarious, making for many ‘Laugh out loud’ moments. But he also has a real depth to him that shows on those rare occasions. :)

This book was written in first-person point-of-view, and Ralph Rover is our very own ‘Story-teller’, or narrator. Ralph was philosophical, studious, and absolutely charming. He often trails off into deep patterns of thought, which is quite interesting, and, honestly, kind of fun. Suffice to say, I loved him. (But you really can’t help but love all the boys.)

Jack, the brains and brawn, was the leader. Who knows what would have happened to Ralph and Peterkin had Jack not been on that coral island with them! He showed courage and bravery many times throughout the entire book, and was truly sacrificial. Always the one to whom both younger boys looked to when in doubt (actually, when in trouble), he showed wisdom and always had a plan. :)

Conclusion (sorry, this was a long review):

The Coral Island was a wild and adventurous mix of desert coral islands, dangerous pirates, unmerciful savages, and one crazy journey from England to the Pacific Ocean, intertwined with Godly principles and an ocean-full of humor. It espoused principles such as: fighting for the right and protecting the innocent, which can be rare in books today.

The Coral Island was a fantastic book that I absolutely loved. I recommend it to those who enjoy adventure and historical fiction.

READ THIS BOOK!!! :)

[Ebookwormy1 · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's an interesting thing to read a book written in 1857 and see how much the world, and our perceptions of it, have changed.

Ballantyne's style is typical of the time, with loquacious description of the environment and characters. Modern readers can find this tedious, but at the time, UK readers had no videos and few (black & white) photographs of south pacific islands. Ballantyne's thorough research and detailed descriptions of banyan trees, mangos (the plum like fruit not named), penguins, the growth patterns of palm trees and the sweetness of coconut brought to them a bright, sunny, new world, much like a science fiction book of today - except Ballantyne was describing something REAL on the other side of the planet. It's easy to imagine how his target audience, young men, was enchanted even as young women and adults joined in the adventure.

Another feature of the time is how the narrator, Jack, heeds his mothers advice to read the Bible every day, and is distressed by his loss of the text in the shipwreck. Periodically, Jack breaks out in praise to the LORD, exclaiming over the beauty of their deserted prison and it's abundant provision for their needs. This aura of goodness is typical of early Robinsonade's and the original, Robinson Crusoe, and makes them wonderful reads for the young.

Ballantyne's works are complemented by his contemporary G.A. Henty, who wrote for the same audience and featured similar themes. As such, both gentlemen are seeing a resurgence of interest by the homeschooling community. While descriptions of far off lands are tedious for adults of this age, children who are discovering the world find them just as fascinating as their original readers. In addition, reading these books creates an interest in both other places and other times. I have found they are easily available as ebooks for download (we got a set off Amazon for free!) or excellent check outs at the library, if your library has them.

Reading this was similar to my experience of Swallows & Amazons. I read both Swallows & Amazons and The Coral Island because they were referenced in William Goldings 1954 Lord of the Flies, a Robinsade of a darker shade. I don't have time to digest all his work, as Ballantyne wrote over 100 books, but I'm happy to turn them over to my voracious reader, knowing they shall be free from harm and full of goodness. I remain a little jealous that I can't indulge in them as I would have, if I'd discovered them at a younger age. The incredible production of each of these authors, Ballantyne, Henty and later Ransom, makes them valuable referrals for middle school readers who devour titles, and even high schoolers who would like something easier to plow through. It will take them a good portion of their time to digest all that is available and will grow them in the process. Recommended.

Robinson Crusoe, Defoe, 1719
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Swallows & Amazons, Ransom, 1930
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Lord of the Flies, Golding, 1954
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

With Lee in Virginia, G.A. Henty, 1890
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[L.E. Fidler · Rating 3 out of 5]

man, i love adventure stories.

it's fascinating to reread this one after reading Lord of the Flies...here, our narrator is Ralph, his dad is in the navy, and he is shipwrecked on an island with two wise, true friends, Peterkin and Jack.

yes, Jack.

Jack is elected captain, he espouses the importance of reading books, and is measured a philosopher by the wily Peterkin.

there are pig hunts (a sow is killed), an angry savage marked with red and white paint attacks, and Jack gets described as being shark-like in his behavior.

that Golding rolled deep, you know what I'm saying.

totally enjoyable, would totally read again, even with the creepy white man burden shit.

[Tuna Turan · Rating 5 out of 5]

En büyük hayali dünyayı dolaşmak ve ilginç maceralar yaşamak olan denizci bir ailenin çocuğu olan Ralph ve iki arkadaşının başından geçen ilginç olayları anlatan çocuk kitabı olarak göremeyeceğimiz kadar edebi bir dilde yazılmış çok güzel bir kitap. Üç arkadaş, mürettebatıyla birlikte Büyük Okyanusa doğru yola açılır ama ne yazık ki gemileri fırtınaya yakalanır ve kayalıklara sürüklenip parçalanır. Kazadan yalnızca üç arkadaş kurtulur. Hayatta kalmanın sevinçleriyle gözlerini açtıklarında, kendilerini bu adada bekleyen zor günlerden habersizlerdir ve asıl macera şimdi başlayacaktır.

[Fonch · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ladies and gentlemen, I don't know if I'll have time to finish this review, because I've started writing it too late. This book has a rating between 2.5 stars and 3 stars, and I will explain why. In short, you can say that I liked it, but I found other things during reading that I did not like.
He spoke briefly of the history of the book. This book was edited by Espasa and I bought it in a second-hand book store together with "Captain Corcoran" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3... (which God willing I will read this year, as it is a novel that liked my friend Krisi Keley very much https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... i do not know if He translated it into English) and "The shooters of rifle" by Thomas Mayne Reid https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1... I can be wrong, but these kinds of adventure and survival novels have been promoted by the group of Spanish writers prisoner of Zenda, who promoted by Arturo Pérez Reverte https://www.goodreads.com/author/show...
, Slavic Galán https://www.goodreads.com/author/show...
, and others promote a third political route in Spain. Alternative to the Marxist left, and the traditional right. I do not fully share your nominees especially in terms of religion, but if your company in favor of starting young people to reading with adventure novels. In fact, yesterday in its section in XL Weekly supplement that is given every Sunday with the ABC Newspaper, and El Norte de Castilla. In this article published in his patent section of Corso Arturo Pérez Reverte complained about the attacks suffered by his friends Javier Marías https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... and the film director Agustín Díaz Yanes militants of the left with the Franco dictatorship, and which were now attacked by the current left. Reverte accused them of being sectarian, and that unlike the left of yesteryear he no longer reads.
Although I have my differences with Reverte (in fact, you know that I prefer your companion to my admiradous and dear Juan Manuel de Prada https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... , whose views are closer to my way of seeing the world) this thing he says could be extended to everyone. Don't worry that I'm not going to let you down a rally, or a secular homily, as I did with "Intensity" about Coronavirus (I apologize to Goodreads users, but it was necessary because of the media-induced hysteria, who haven't known how to deal with this topic) https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3... going back to the main thread. You need to get to know Arturo Pérez Reverte a little to talk a little bit about "The Island of Coral" a Reverte loves the themed novels Nautical. Your fans of the murciawriter don't know it much better than I do. Therefore, it is not uncommon for you to decide to edit this adventure, survival novel. What we would call a Robinsones story today, although the genre is older. We have Homer's "The Odyssey" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1... https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... (if you like Greek mythology I recommend Father Augustine Wetta's book "The Eighth Arrow: Odysseus in the Underworld, A Novel" https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... R.A. Lafferty's funny parody "Space Chantey" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2... https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... or the novels of Richard L. Purtill, which I wish as in the case of Father Augustine Wetta will one day translate into the Spanish https://www.goodreads.com/series/1447... -trilogy https://www.goodreads.com/series/1447... https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... telling us the misadventures of the cunning Ulysses and his forced stay with Calypso. In more modern times we have "The Gullier's Journeys" by Jonathan Swift https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7... but first we have an interesting German picaresque novel, although I have not been able to finish it, set in the Thirty Years' War. I mean Grimmelhausen's "The Adventurer Simplex Simplicissimus" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9... being Bavarian it is normal for its protagonist to convert to Catholicism and end up on an island where he finds peace not wanting to return to civilization. These are the precedents of the classic that created the genre "Robinson Crusoe" by Daniel Defoe, although it is believed that there were cases of Robinson Crusoe among some Spanish sailors. Yet Crusoe is the prototype of the survivor on a desert island, and how to plan for long-term survival. Then they'll have to make a decision whether to stay, or go back to civilization. Some prefer the new Eden as Simplicisimus to Jonathan Swift after being with his horses immune to original sin, they find it very difficult to adapt to civilization. So I didn't find the miniseries they did with Ted Danson about Gulliver's Travels with the subplot if Gulliver's crazy or not. As I read "The Island of Coral" I spent a little bit what my friend Manuel Alfonseca https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... (of which I spoke to my boss Dr. Juan del Río Berereartu in the History of Medicine class to about his idea that things are good or bad depending on how they are employed) that i was made very heavy. When Rudolf and his friends Johnnie, and Gay Peterkin ship wreck the island, and explore it. What many may be interested in. Seeing how the protagonists adapt, and the description of nature became enormously tedious, and slow, and I was hugely bored. I wanted action. Besides, as I read it, a doubt arose. I'm fond of a Japanese cartoon series called Doraemon The Gadget Cat from the future. About a cat that comes from the future and has to help a child, which is a disaster. In one chapter in question the cover of the human book https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x33... the teacher sends Nobita the protagonist to read a book, but he only reads comics, so Doraemon brings out a 21st century invention to make the task easier for him. With that invention you don't read, but if you tell you what happens in the book. After his wife in the future (Shizuka) left him lying (as almost always) he has no choice but to go and ask Dekishughi for a book that proposes several "Uncle Tom's Cabin", "The Little Prince", and "The Night Train of the Milky Way" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4... https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1... https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4... but none of the books mentioned go to him and leaves Dekisughi "Two years of vacation" by Jules Verne https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3... . Of course he needs Dekisughi to become a human book and after negotiations agrees to read the book to him. I do not tell you how it ends up in case I decided to see the chapter (I have looked for it in Spanish I apologize to users who are not Spanish), while Dekisughi reads "Two years of vacation" to Nobita. I realized the similar, which were Robert M. Ballantyne's book and Jules Verne's. There was the whole description of the fauna, the protohabitant whose remains find a poignant scene with a cat, and a dog (leaving the dog best fought ;-)) and also the pirates. I don't think either author copied the other. Although they may have been influenced. The Spanish writer Cesar González Ruano said that that "Everything that is not copy is plagiarism" https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... There is also a theory and this comes from the field of history advocated by archaeologist Vera Gordon Childe https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... that said that a finding could occur in two civilizations at the same time without having contact with the other. It is not of course a separate case also Verne wrote other Robinsons novels and similar is "Robinson Swiss" by Johan David Wyss https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6... (by the way in this case, there is also surprise at the end. I'm not saying which) and Emilio Salgari's https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... novels I also saw similarities between Jim the Bloodthirsty and The Ben Gunes from Robert Louis Stevenson's "Treasure Island" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2... Robert M. Ballantyne's novel is likely to pre- and pre-empt, but it gave me the feeling of Deja Vou. Besides, they're shipwrecked on a desert island, and it's a wonderful place that has everything they need to survive. That seemed more forced to do than Eppi's guardianship by Silas Marner https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5... in real life I'm sure that no matter how skilled Rodolfo, Johnnie (who by his leadership takes on the role of captain) and Guy Peterkin I don't think it's that easy to survive and another catch I see. It's just that everything is so harmonious and peaceful. All are generous nobles and altruistic nobles and accept Johnnie's decisions without squealing. It's all very utopian in my view. Something similar to William Golding's "Lord of flies" is more likely to happen, which is a cruder, darker, more realistic view of Robinsones' stories. My friend Professor Alfonseca was annoyed to read William Golding's "The Lord of the Flies" because he considered it a cruel parody of Jules Verne's "Two-Year Vacation." But I have encouraged him to read it, because it is good to know also the dark and reprehensible facet of the human being, so that we can fight it. Golding's novels almost always consist of fear, prejudice being the trigger of violence violence and what makes man evil and this leads him to crime (as Star Wars said, fear leads to anger, anger to hate, and this, to the dark side of the force). Critic Joseph Pearce said https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... "That Golding could never have written "The Lord of the Rings" and in turn J.R.R. Tolkien could never have written "The Lord of the Flies"." I believe, that this is because J.R.R. Tolkien told us about divine grace and the strength of good versus evil, and William Golding instead focuses on the nature of evil and the havoc it causes. I believe, that both writers are necessary, to understand the twentieth century. In this case many have considered that Golding's work is not only a mere parody, cruel and pessimistic, but a religious allegory that speaks of the nature of evil very much in the line of the "Heart of Darkness" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4... in fact Joseph Conrad is one of William Golding's influences. The end many critics have seen it as a representation of the Doomsday to Humanity. But going back to a more utopian view of Robinsons's literature it's true that the first part gets a little heavy, but it gets greatly better with the appearance of indigenous cannibals, and pirates, and it's when Ballantyne, that years later (courtesy of my friend Alfonseca) would write a sequel called "The Gorilla Hunters" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3... is when the action starts when the plot improves, and reminds me of those films of adventures in exotic film settings from the 30-60s of the last century. Another thing I like is that Ballantyne did not fall into the failure of the good savage, which is so fashionable today to blame the 18-65-year-old white male for the evils of humanity as certain ideologies postulate that just as Satan's smoke have infiltrated the boon of historiography. These savages remind me of those of Edgar Allan Poe in the "Adventures of Arthur Gordon Pym" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7... but I think, what I liked most about "The Island of Coral" was the enormous morality of the story, the integrity and nobility of the three protagonists (although in real life I don't think so, but not men should be described as they are but as they should be) and what I liked the most was the religiosity of the story and its Christianity. Toraro may be a little accelerated, but it shows the civilizing power of the cross. So despite its flaws I liked and recommend this novel to Goodreads users.

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bugünlerde okuduğum kitaplardan gerçekten çok memnunum :) seri kitaplardan sonra gerçekten iyi geldiler. Bence çok güzel bi kitaptı. Macera ,deniz,ada hayatı , gemi vb. Sevenler için kesinlikle tavsiye ederim :)

[Joseph Burk · Rating 5 out of 5]

This adventure novel is perhaps Ballantyne's best work. With R.M. Ballantyne being a Christian (Presbyterian) this novel is explicitly so. It is a tale of three lads, Ralph, Peterkin, and Jack, who get isolated on the Coral Island after their ship is wrecked and they the sole survivors. They must struggle to make their way and survive in this island. They learn to hunt, fish, and get their own food. Their friendship grows stronger.

It all seems like they are the only ones on this island until one day, barbaric savages, who lack the true God in them, come upon the island. The lads decide to try to hide but when they see a savage beating up a savage woman Jack rushes to the scene to save the woman's life. Indeed, it is a true act of bibical manliness.

Later in the book, more people come. This time, pirates. They kidnap Ralph but fail to capture Jack and Peterkin due to their being in hiding. The pirates, that is Bloody Bill, bring Ralph to a more populated island with savages. The savages truly need the love of God in them. There is a missionary there, but Bloody Bill disaproves of him. Can these savages escape their life of sin and misery? and can Ralph, Peterkin, and Jack go back to England? It's all for you to find out.

Some say this book has racism in it due to the Indians being called savages and barbarians. I think it not. I don't get offended when I read that my Anglo-Saxon ancestors were savages and barbaric---it's because they were and hadn't yet found Christ!

[shayan mohebi · Rating 3 out of 5]

نتیجه اعتماد کردن به دکه ی کتاب فروشی فرودگاه بهتر از این نمیشه. بهش گفتم کتاب سالار مگس ها رو دارید؟ گفت این کتابو ببر دقیقا مثل همونه، حالا که شروع کردم به خوندن میبینم کتاب واسه بچه ها نوشته شده

[Luisa Knight · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is quite the adventure story and I loved that it wasn’t very predictable either!

Ralph Rover is a young man who has the sea in his blood, so naturally, and with his parent’s permission, he joins a trading crew sailing for Oceania. His mother makes him promise two things: to read the Bible every day and to pray to God every day. These he gladly promises.

After befriending two other young boys on ship and being out to sea for a time, the crew hits a storm and is shipwrecked. The boys become separated from the rest of the crew and find themselves on Coral Island.

From there, the boy’s wild tales begin and will have you glued to the book!

This is an old-school book (originally published in 1857), so the writing is excellent, as is the strength of moral character the boys portray throughout the story. One thing I found a little startling was the more detailed depictions of cannibalism and human sacrifice performed by the island natives. This, I’m sure, was to contrast the native’s lifestyle to that of the Christian civilizations, as the author also went into detail about the need for missionaries in that part of the world and how Jesus Christ and the salvation He brings changes all men for the good. Because of the strong depictions, I do recommend this for a more mature audience.

A great story!

Ages: 14+

Cleanliness: cannibalism and human sacrifice are talked about and described often and with enough detail to know what is going on, i.e. people are batted on the head, cut into pieces and roasted. Mentions babies being thrown into a fire for sacrifice to a god.

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[Caroline · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Coral Island by R.M Ballantyne is a wholesomely humorous "boys' adventure" style0novel from 1857. Ralph, Jack and Peterkin are three plucky, pious, absurdly well-prepared young sailors who wash up on a deserted Pacific island. They explore, make shelter, find food, battle sharks, storms, tidal waves, pirates, cannibals, while making innocent quips. They also become accomplished boatbuilders, hunters, butchers, naturalists, carpenters, shoemakers, and ropemakers. Eventually they escape to another island where there is adventure and intrigue among the pagans and the converted.

This novel strikes me as 19th-century version of edutainment. One can imagine Victorian papas purchasing it for their sons: a rollicking adventure story, or a ripping good yarn, which also allows the eager young reader to absorb proper grammar and wholesome virtues from its upright, manly heroes.

Jack gives kindly lectures on the flora and fauna of the south seas and Ralph (our narrator) expostulates his young readers to wash every day, get enough rest, keep a salt water aquarium, refrain from making silly faces, support missionaries, and force one's "attention upon ALL things that go on around me ...whether I feel it naturally or not." The good guys are rarely out of temper and never intemperate. The tone is cheery, sunny, manly and pious. There is no despair, no cowardice, no losing of faith.

The language of the novel is the typical stiltiness with the occasional bit of daring "slang" thrown in by that rapscallion of Peterkin ("that's the ticket!" he says). See the following three excerpts.

"Most remarkable!" said Jack.
"Exceedingly curious!" said I.
"Beats everything!" said Peterkin.

"Now, Jack," he added, "you made such a poor figure in your last attempt to stick that object, that I would advise you to let me try it. If it has got a heart at all, I'll engage to send my spear right through the core of it; if it hasn't got a heart, I'll send it through the spot where its heart ought to be."

“Peterkin did not answer, and I observed that he was gazing down into the water with a look of intense fear mingled with anxiety, while his face was overspread with a deadly paleness. Suddenly he sprang to his feet and rushed about in a frantic state, wringing his hands, and exclaiming, "O Jack, Jack! he is gone! It must have been a shark, and he is gone for ever!"”


It also boasts many unfortunate references to "savages" and the boys' "horror" at their customs, which increase in frequency as the novel goes on.

The "savages" are not painted as creatures that must be destroyed, but as creatures that must be converted. Not all are monsters (one lighter-skinned girl is quite sympathetic) and the white pirates are as equally evil. Indeed, the kindly missionaries (and Ralph) take pains to explain the native evils are not as bad because they simply do not know any better. However, while not purposefully malicious, this kind racism is VERY condescending, cringeworthy in more than a few spots.


Notwithstanding the racism, there is a certain charm in these old-fashioned stories. The formality of the language may strike a modern ear as stilted, but that's not necessarily a bad thing; I found a great deal of humor in it. For a 19th century book, it IS readable and the phrasing goes down smoothly. And let us not forget that Treasure Island, for one, is written in a similar, though far superior, fashion (Stevenson admired Ballantyne). The awesome earnestness of its moralizing and the delight the author takes in telling the tale, also make one smile.

I am not sure who this book would be good for, these days. The uneasy racism, the formal language, the endless moralizing... they aren't for the youngsters of today. The advanced reader, on the other hand, won't find much beyond a cheerful historical curiosity, and if in a good mood, will beam mildly on the pleasures of the past.

[Stephen Hayes · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think I read this some time in my childhood, but had lost my copy long ago, and when I saw a copy on the toss-out counter of a church bookshop I picked it up and re-read it, mainly in order to compare it with Lord of the Flies, whose plot I do remember, though I first read it a long time ago too.

I had often heard it said that Lord of the Flies was a kind of realistic retelling of the story of The Coral Island, but it was only on re-reading the latter that I realised that the two main characters had the same names. And I also realised how much I had forgotten of the story. Virtually the only thing I recalled was my mental picture of the island on which they landed, and I had a vague recollection that the boys in The Coral Island were a bit older.

What I had completely forgotten was the extent to which The Coral Island deals with Christian mission and missionaries, especially in the second part, and that links with a current project of mine, on missiology in fiction, which was sparked off by reading Things fall apart | Notes from underground about a month ago.

The main difference between the two island books, it seems to me, is the age of the characters -- teenagers in The Coral Island, doing resourceful teenage things that could have come out of Scouting for Boys, if the latter had been published by then. Lord of the Flies has pre-teen children, less resourceful, more easily distracted. And where The Coral Island has savages becoming civilised, thanks to the influence of missionaries, Lord of the Flies has the civilised becoming savages, in the absence of such influences.

The comparison is quite interesting, but I'll say no more here, lest I introduce spoilers. But it would be interesting to read them one after the other, and to follow both up with A High Wind in Jamaica.

[Vishy · Rating 4 out of 5]

'The Coral Island' by Scottish writer R.M.Ballantyne was one of the first books to come out in the genre, that used to be called 'juvenile fiction'. These days we call it Young Adult literature. So, this was one of the first ever YA books. It came out in 1858. I read an abridged version of it when I was a kid and I loved it. I always wanted to read the full version. So I was happy to read it today.

The narrator of the book is Ralph Rover. When the story happens, Ralph is a teenager working in a ship. The ship is sailing to the South Seas. There are two other teenagers in the ship, Jack Martin and Peterkin Gay. Ralph becomes close friends with them. When the ship reaches the South Seas, it gets caught in the middle of a storm. Ralph, Jack and Peterkin end up shipwrecked on an island. What happens to them, and the adventures they have, form the rest of the story.

The book can be roughly divided into two parts. The first part shows the three friends in the island, and how they discover new things there, and how they survive there. It is like reading Robinson Crusoe's story but with three teenagers instead of one grownup man, and instead of it being philosophical, it has new discoveries, adventures and lots of fun. In the second part, there are pirates and cannibals and further adventures. I loved the first part more than the second part. The description of the island and the flora and fauna in the first part was detailed and beautiful. Peterkin Gay was my favourite character in the book – he was talkative and funny and was a bundle of energy and lifted the spirits of his friends with his sense of humour. One of the things I loved about the book was that it gives a description of surfing in the ocean by the South Sea islanders. It was interesting that surfing originated as a sport in these islands before it spread across the world.

Being one of the pioneering books in its genre, we can spot the ways in which 'The Coral Island' might have influenced future adventure books. For example, Jim Hawkins from 'Treasure Island' looks like another version of Ralph Rover. There is a pirate in 'The Coral Island' who takes Ralph under his wing, who looks a lot like a combination of the pirate Bill and Long John Silver from 'Treasure Island'. There is a pirate captain in this book who looks a lot like Wolf Larsen from 'The Sea Wolf'. It looks like R.L.Stevenson and Jack London (and maybe others too) were inspired by this book and might have borrowed elements from it.

There is some bad news, though. 'The Coral Island' hasn't aged well, especially the second part of the book. There is a distinct religious tone which seeps into the second part and the caricaturish depictions of the South Sea islanders, mostly as people who are cannibals who eat each other, is laughable and jars our 21st century sensibilities. I think these were probably glossed over in the abridged version that I read as a kid.

For a hundred years, 'The Coral Island' was a popular adventure story among kids. Then in 1954, William Golding took the core story from this book and put those teenagers in an island, but instead of them having adventures, he made the story dark and bleak and made them do bad things. He called his book 'Lord of the Flies'. Golding's book became big, it got into recommended reading lists in schools and colleges, and it won Golding the Nobel Prize. 'The Coral Island' and its author R.M.Ballantyne slowly faded into the mists of time. Today, except for this book, all of Ballantyne's books are out-of-print. However, many of them are available as digital copies in Gutenberg.

R.M.Ballantyne was a very prolific writer and wrote more than 80 books, most of which were YA adventure stories like this one, set in different parts of the world. He did his research before writing a book – not like people do today by googling or searching in Wikipedia, but actually going to the places which were featured in the story, living there for a while, and sometimes working there. One can feel that authenticity coming through in 'The Coral Island' in his descriptions of the places and of nature. How he managed to do this extensive kind of first-hand research in the 19th century, when travelling was hard, boggles our imagination.

Ballantyne wrote a sequel to 'The Coral Island'. I remember reading it as a kid. I'm not sure I'll read it again. But Ballantyne has also written a couple of nonfiction books, one about his experiences in the Hudson Bay and another about his experiences in bookmaking. I want to read them. There is also a novel of his called 'The Young Fur Traders' which I want to read.

Surprisingly for a YA book, 'The Coral Island' has some beautiful passages. I'm sharing some of them below for your reading pleasure.

"The morning was exceedingly lovely. It was one of that very still and peaceful sort which made the few noises that we heard seem to be quiet noises (I know no other way of expressing this idea) – noises which, so far from interrupting the universal tranquillity of earth, sea, and sky, rather tended to reveal to us how quiet the world round us really was. Such sounds as I refer to were, the peculiarly melancholy – yet, it seemed to me, cheerful – plaint of sea birds floating on the glassy water or sailing in the sky, also the subdued twittering of little birds among the bushes, the faint ripples on the beach, and the solemn boom of the surf upon the distant coral reef. We felt very glad in our hearts as we walked along the sands side by side. For my part, I felt so deeply overjoyed that I was surprised at my own sensations, and fell into a reverie upon the causes of happiness. I came to the conclusion that a state of profound peace and repose, both in regard to outward objects and within the soul, is the happiest condition in which man can be placed; for although I had many a time been most joyful and happy when engaged in bustling, energetic, active pursuits or amusements, I never found that such joy or satisfaction was so deep or so pleasant to reflect upon as that which I now experienced... My reader must not suppose that I thought all this in the clear and methodical manner in which I have set it down here. These thoughts did indeed pass through my mind, but they did so in a very confused and indefinite manner, for I was young at that time, and not much given to deep reflection. Neither did I consider that the peace whereof I write is not to be found in this world – at least in its perfection..."

"Rest is sweet as well for the body as for the mind. During my long experience, amid the vicissitudes of a chequered life, I have found that periods of profound rest at certain intervals, in addition to the ordinary hours of repose, are necessary to the well being of man. And the nature as well as the period of this rest varies, according to the different temperaments of individuals, and the peculiar circumstances in which they may chance to be placed. To those who work with their minds, bodily labour is rest. To those who labour with the body, deep sleep is rest. To the downcast, weary, and the sorrowful, joy and peace are rest. Nay, further, I think that to the gay, the frivolous, the reckless, when sated with pleasures that cannot last, even sorrow proves to be rest of a kind, although, perchance, it were better that I should call it relief than rest. There is, indeed, but one class of men to whom rest is denied – there is no rest to the wicked."

Have you read 'The Coral Island'? What do you think about it?

[মাহদী আহনাফ · Rating 5 out of 5]

বাস্তবিক সমুদ্রের কাছাকাছি এখনো না যেতে পারা আমি সেবা র অনেক অনুবাদ যেমন উভচর মানুষ,কিংবা জুল ভার্ন সাহেবের সামুদ্রিক এডভেঞ্চার কিংবা মাসুদ রানার ন্যুমা অপারেশন অথবা তিন গোয়েন্দার সাথে সমুদ্রে অনেকবার ডুব দিয়েছি। কিংবা হারিয়ে গিয়েছি কোনো এক অজানা দ্বীপে,তারপর হাতের কাছে যার যা কিছু আছে তাই নিয়েই ঝাপায়ে পড়েছি। কখনো বিফল হই নি। প্রতিবারই প্রতিকূল পরিবেশে দুই একজন কে হারিয়ে হলেও বেচে ফিরেছি সভ্য জগতে। শেষ মনে পড়ে ব্লু লেগুন গল্পটার কথা,সে কি অজানা ফিলিংস আর ভালোবাসার গ্রো আপ বইটায়, আহা। মন্ত্রমুগ্ধের মত পড়ি সব। এই প্রবাল দ্বীপ খানাও অন্য সব বইগুলা থেকে ব্যাতিক্রম নয়। কি নেই? বন্ধুত্ব, ভালোবাসা,এডভেঞ্চার, প্রতিকূলতা, যুদ্ধ, আবিষ্কার আহহা। সবকিছুর একেবারে ফুল প্যাকেজ
আইডিকে এসব কেন লিখতেসি,তবে মধ্যরাতে এমন বই না পড়লে জীবনে কি যে মিস করতাম আল্লাহ জানে

[Jeremiah · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Coral Island was a great book. It was exciting, funny, and intriguing. And the characters - well, I really like all of them. Jack was the oldest, the leader of the three, and the tough one. Peterkin he was the funny one and the youngest. And Ralph was in the middle and was the philosophical one. They could not have made it without each other.Overall I really liked this book, and highly reccomend it.

[Gu Kun · Rating 3 out of 5]

As other reviewers noted: first two thirds a fast-paced adventure story - much better than Treasure Island in its rendering of couleur locale; then peters out in a boring tale of christian triumphalism.

[Hasya Kavi · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I saw in the description that this book inspired Lord of The Flies, I immediately bought it. And, I didn't regret buying it. You won't regret it either (if you can adjust to tribes in the Pacific killing and eating each other's raw flesh).

[Enoch · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite book right now. I love stories about the sea and ships. Each chapter is filled with adventure and new words and ideas I haven't thought of before.