The Swiss Family Robinson Told in Words of One Syllable

by Mary Godolphin (Adapted By), Johann David Wyss

This is a reproduction of the original artefact. Generally these books are created from careful scans of the original. This allows us to preserve the book accurately and present it in the way the author intended. Since the original versions are generally quite old, there may occasionally be certain imperfections within these reproductions. We're happy to make these classics available again for future generations to enjoy!

Genres: Classics

Paperback

First published January 1, 1869

About the author

Lucy Aikin was an English historical writer interested in early education. She published several works to assist young readers and also did some French translation. Her own original works include Epistles on Women, Exemplifying their Character and Condition in Various Ages and Nations, with Miscellaneous Poems (1810) and Lorimer (1814). She is well-remembered for her biographies.

Under the pseudonym Mary Godolphin, Lucy Aikin is also attributed for one-syllable adaptations of several famous classics.

Reviews

[Andre Piucci · Rating 5 out of 5]

"When one has a good tale to tell, he should try to be brief, and not say more than he can help ere he makes a fair start"

[Maria Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simple easy read

A great simple retelling of the classic. Full of fun, adventure, and excitement. Perffect for the younger reader or the less confident.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was intrigued--a whole book in one-syllable words? I've never read the original "Swiss Family Robinson", nor have I seen any of the movie adaptations, so I didn't really know the story. I thought the one-syllable format would make the writing seem stilted, but after I got a bit used to it, it flowed right along and I hardly noticed. It made the story feel old-fashioned. In case you're wondering how it is even possible: there is one character, "Ernest", whose name has two syllables, and the author did not change that (I was wondering why she didn't just call him "Ernst"?). Any compound word is broken down into two words ("live stock", for example). Anything that really needs to be named with more than one syllable is written as a hyphenated word ("mon-key", for example, though the author more commonly refers to those as "apes"). I read that "Robinson" is not a Swiss name and was not the family's name--that is borrowed from "Robinson Crusoe", the classic that inspired this tale (and many others). The family accepts their shipwrecked circumstances matter-of-factly and without much drama. They discover everything they need on the island, and they know exactly what to do with everything, which strains credulity a bit, but that keeps things cozy. I liked the way the story was openly religious and moral.

[Sally · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this when I was six, simply because I was DETERMINED to find a word of more than one syllable. Sadly, Family and Robinson were the ONLY ones. Impressed. ;)

[linda parsons · Rating 2 out of 5]

Its ok

This is not all the book.sdgddtgdrfdd dggfggg vhbvfgvgtjftgjg ggy gghg GHG GHG ghggvghg hhggg GHG ghggghv GH vhvhvghv vbvb vgv

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amusing read, stayed mostly true to the original language but occasionally stretched a bit to keep it all in words of one syllable.

[Christen Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was so neat to read and you don't think that it will make sense, and won't flow at all, but it does. See what I did there? I did find one 'out of place' word in it though: "broken" :P So weird!