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Kidnapped

(David Balfour #1)

Robert Louis Stevenson,

Alasdair Gray (Foreword),

Donald McFarlan (Annotations)

3.79 · Rating details · 58,419 ratings · 1,938 reviews

Robert Louis Stevenson's Kidnapped is at once a rollicking adventure story and an earnest political allegory. This Penguin Classics edition is edited with an introduction and notes by Donald McFarlan and a foreword by Alasdair Gray.

Orphaned and penniless, David Balfour sets out to find his last living relative, miserly and reclusive Uncle Ebenezer. But Ebenezer is far from ...more

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Paperback, 240 pages

Published September 27th 2007 by Penguin Classics (first published 1886)

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Apr 08, 2018 Henry Avila rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

You are seventeen Mr. David Balfour, alone in the world of 1751, in troubled Scotland, a futile bloody revolt was crushed a few years ago, by England, the parents are no more, father never spoke about his family, or the distant past , the poor, quiet introvert, a widowed school master, of the lowlands, has left his good, loving son a...

Mysterious letter, (both of them had deep secrets) for you. Go from your birthplace , a small village, the only one you know, and take the message to a lawyer Mr You are seventeen Mr. David Balfour, alone in the world of 1751, in troubled Scotland, a futile bloody revolt was crushed a few years ago, by England, the parents are no more, father never spoke about his family, or the distant past , the poor, quiet introvert, a widowed school master, of the lowlands, has left his good, loving son a...

Mysterious letter, (both of them had deep secrets) for you. Go from your birthplace , a small village, the only one you know, and take the message to a lawyer Mr. Rankeillor, in the frightening, huge, cosmopolitan city of Edinburgh; by foot you must travel, a two day walk. Meeting strangers good or bad on the roads...who can tell? Should you turn back, it would be so easy; or follow your late father's wishes and risk the unknown dangers. But first he arrives at the home of his Uncle Ebenezer, a person he never knew existed, that name alone for most people would give them a clue about this gentleman's character. His father's brother is a great miser, so cheap he lives like a pauper in his big mansion, uncompleted, the reason, obviously he can't spend any money, will not light a fire but in one fireplace, eats porridge and drinks a little beer the cheapest he can find. Paranoid in the extreme, his sick mind hates anybody that threatens him even if it is not true. After an unsuccessful plot to eliminate his naive nephew in the dark tower, a better one bears fruit. A sea captain named Elias Hoseason, agrees to kidnap the boy, for a nice fee, and sell him in the colonies of the Carolinas in America , they need slaves for the cotton plantations...However, plans are plans and you can not tell what the future brings, storms, reefs, fogs and the unexpected, anything is possible on a liquid surface.
Alan Breck Stewart, with a sack of money is wanted by the Crown as a Scottish rebel, the only survivor of a shipwreck off the coast of Britain, caused by the less than honorable captain, picked up in a thick fog. Nevertheless, greed wins out and the crew desires the valuable coins, killing a man doesn't bother them. Mr. David, is appalled, helps the fugitive escape and he too, later in the best section of the classic novel...
A long grueling crossing , the highlands of Scotland, trying to avoid capture by the Red Coats and the hangman's rope, a murder has just occurred. And Alan blamed...Such splendid adventures follow, as the two new friends flee on the rugged terrain of the north country's hills, valleys, rivers and bays, always moving, never resting, hiding in woods, the tall grass, on top of rocks, in caves, anywhere available, getting assistance from loyal relatives of Alan and his clan. A wonderful book for the young at heart, indubitably. ...more

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Nov 14, 2016 James Tivendale rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: classics

"I have seen wicked men and fools, a great many of both, and I believe they both get paid in the end, but the fools first."

We find ourselves in Bonny old Scotland - circa June 1751 - King George and the red-coats rule this empire. Following on from the Jacobite Revolution; we are introduced to an innocent teenage gentleman known as David Balfour. To initiate the narrative; David and the minister, Mr. Campbell discuss the necessity for a journey that our young hero should take following the unti "I have seen wicked men and fools, a great many of both, and I believe they both get paid in the end, but the fools first."

We find ourselves in Bonny old Scotland - circa June 1751 - King George and the red-coats rule this empire. Following on from the Jacobite Revolution; we are introduced to an innocent teenage gentleman known as David Balfour. To initiate the narrative; David and the minister, Mr. Campbell discuss the necessity for a journey that our young hero should take following the untimely death of both his parents. He is entrusted with a letter that was written from his father's very own hand which cannot be opened until it is delivered to a certain individual = his conniving uncle who happens to be, of course; a close family member of Young Balfour. His uncle represents the Scottish House "Shaw" - the destination of the aforementioned is close to Edinburgh and so David treks as a young 18-year-old person would. Maybe even skipping across the glen in bonnie pretty spirits ay lad?

Is everyone in fiction who is called Ebeneezer a scumbag? David journeys for a few days across the lowlands of Scotland including Cramond, Colinton until the sight of the Glasgow Road is in his peripheral vision. At this point, he knew he was close to the presented described destination. After these travels to start his (what would turn out to be) journey, he meets his uncle. I will not say too much but upon their meeting, after slight consideration, David realises his uncle is a slimy, sinister snake who has stolen his inheritance. After that Ebeneezer undermines David's intelligence after failing in a notorious plot to kill him - David; only because of his (soon to be but present in this tale) heroic wit - that is already bubbling below the surface - the mean uncle arranges for him to be "K1dnapped"! (Some book title on GR you have to spell wrong or it deletes them and makes reviewers look like a sausage!)

This book was so amazing - that if I was to truly analyse it. I would probably write more pages than Mr. Stevenson did.

I will not divulge too much into the intricacies of the story but essentially David's mean uncle sells him out - literally. David is a lord by name and paper but Ebeneezer pays pirates money to send David to Carolina to become a slave worker. On his journey on said pirate ship they impale a boat and a gentleman called Alan Breck joins the fray. That is all I will say story wise so don't worry.

The journey continues. It is David's voyage away from and journey back to his rightful estate that is the "lions share" of the novel. My father is a Scottish History lecturer - so every time I mentioned a character in this book as I was reading - he would tell me how legitimate they were at being presented by Stevenson in this era as the majority were real characters/ people in this amazingly interesting but dark age. E.g. Alan Breck, James of the Glens, Red Fox, Robin Oig (Rob Roys' Son).

If you read this book - your mind will flow in a Scottish accent 100%.

As a non-Scottish reader - do you know what these words mean that are prevalent? If I wasn't half Scottish I may have struggled... didnae, auld, dram, ay, keek, lassie, ken, kenned, gliff, whigh etc...

Following this colloquial language. It cannot get more Scottish than one amazing scene. Two gents challenge each other for a dual, but instead of deadly combat with pistols and ten steps etc... they settle on a bagpipe showdown!! There is a huge divide between the "hielands" and the lowlands. England analysed Scotland as one country at this stage but all of the Clan's saw many different countries in Scotland. In the highlands - people mostly only speak Gaelic which alienates David in their presence. The closer the south of Scotland you were... the more English you were.. does that play a part perhaps?

To me, I would probably give this 3.75 stars. Not as much happens in this as Treasure Island. However; I enjoyed losing myself in the world of my forefathers. I am named after Scottish kings y'know.

I will check out the film later. Love as always- James www.youandibooks.wordpress.com ...more

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May 15, 2018 Tara rated it really liked it

While Stevenson’s Kidnapped was not quite as strong a work as either Treasure Island or his incredibly gripping The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, it was such an exciting, action-packed, genuinely fun adventure story that I couldn’t help but love it. Set in 1751, it features such thrilling elements as a sinister, foul-tempered uncle, a ship full of villainous sailors, a shipwreck on a gloomy, deserted island, political intrigue, Murder!, the perilous proximity of the Red Coats on the S ...more

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Jan 13, 2019 Paul Bryant rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: novels

This is in the olden days when there wasn’t anything except boats and cows. No phones, no movies, nothing. Who would want to live there, right? But see some people did, and they had to or we wouldn't be here with all our stuff. They had to like go without so we could rock and roll.

That's deep.

So for entertainment they would play funny tricks on each other, like this guy’s uncle sells this guy into slavery even though this is a Scottish guy, so he gets coshed and wakes up on a boat to the US of ...more

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Mar 18, 2011 Jeffrey Keeten rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

”The woman’s face lit up with a malignant anger. ‘That is the house of Shaw!’ she cried. ‘Blood built it; blood stopped the building of it; blood shall bring it down. See here!’ she cried again---’I spit upon the ground, and crack my thumb at it! Black be its fall!’”

David Balfour’s father has died, and he is on his way to his Uncle Ebenezer’s house when he meets the local peasant woman who gives him a taste of how the local people feel about his uncle. I love that line, “crack my thumb at it.” T ...more

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Jun 17, 2011 Jason Koivu rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction

Why haven't I read more Stevenson? Perhaps because from what I can tell his writing feels as remote and cold as the Scottish Isles. It can be beautiful in its way, but you often forget it's there in favor of more popular destinations with more color and pizzazz.

In a way, Kidnapped feels a little like the Scottish version of Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo, which I was never overly fond of. Something about the story doesn't grab me. Although it should, as I just recently endured a similar situa ...more

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Apr 13, 2018 Piyangie rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: scottish-lit, my-library, children-young-adult

Kidnapped is a young adult adventurous story. The protagonist, the young David Balfour, having become an orphan, takes on a journey to find his uncle seeking support and fortune. Little he knows of the adventure that he is to embark on, upon meeting his uncle.

David is a likable hero. Throughout his adventurous journey, David's courage, strength, and loyalty are tested, from which he emerges as a true winner. The supporting characters are chosen to suit the tone and pace of the story. Many, incl ...more

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Mar 27, 2020 Brett C rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: classic-literature

I read an illustrated and abridged version of this when I was a kid. Now reading the unabridged version as an adult I really liked it. The story is solid, the characters are meaningful and interact well, and the plot was good and comprehensible. There is nothing deep or subliminal about this. That's not to say the story is shallow but is good because everything is surface level.

Throughout the story I kept wondering if the main character David Balfour was resilient and mentally strong, or just l ...more

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Nov 01, 2011 Jan-Maat added it · review of another edition

Shelves: 19th-century, novel, british-isles, childrens-ya, celtic-fringe

Swashbuckling fun, but the problem I have with this rereading it as an adult is the same as reading The Black Arrow. Stevenson manages to be both engaging and silly - sometimes at the same moment, but luckily the human brain is capable of multi-tasking even in the middle of a paragraph.

Isn't the relationship between Alexander and Ebenezer Balfour which drives the narrative too ridiculous? The elder brother giving up his inheritance and becoming an out of luck village teacher is one thing and har Swashbuckling fun, but the problem I have with this rereading it as an adult is the same as reading The Black Arrow. Stevenson manages to be both engaging and silly - sometimes at the same moment, but luckily the human brain is capable of multi-tasking even in the middle of a paragraph.

Isn't the relationship between Alexander and Ebenezer Balfour which drives the narrative too ridiculous? The elder brother giving up his inheritance and becoming an out of luck village teacher is one thing and hard enough to believe (why not just split the inheritance or pay him off or set him up in a profession?) but such a story must have got all over the countryside. It is hard to believe that David, or at least the pastor, Mr Cameron would have been ignorant of it. At least Stevenson kept back that detail until the end, but still I wonder why he didn't think of a different way to drive the story – say Ebenezer tricking his brother in some way or framing him for a crime. More or less anything would have been more plausible than the story he does use.

On the plus side I liked the sense of the cultural differences between the lowlanders and the Highlanders which comes through strongly, although I was not sure how far the prejudices against the highlanders reflected Stevenson's own views or what he felt would be a reasonable reflection of those held by contemporary lowlanders. Alternatively this is a moment in a children's book in which the child's moral values and intellectual capabilities are shown to be superior to that of an adult.

That perhaps is the secret of Stevenson's success - it is there in Treasure Island and The Black Arrow too. The child can outwit the wicked uncle, the pirate, or the wicked uncle disguised as a leper (as they so frequently are). The child lost in an adult world triumphs through their own ability. And the characters and settings are sharp and vivid, Sandy's devotion to the memory of Alan Breck in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie seems more reasonable than the obsessions harboured by her teacher (view spoiler).

Other parts of the story don't make much sense. Alan Breck apparently travels regularly between the Highlands and France but seems not to have a regular route or a trusted set of regular contacts (& if he was in a row-boat on his way to rendezvous with a French ship neither he nor the ship the Covenant could have been so far from Alan's stamping grounds as for narrative purposes they turn out to be. It should have been a simple matter to stick him in a row-boat and take him straight to shore. It's all an unnecessary contrivance.

Later I find it mystifying that when leaving the house of his kinsman Breck is given only a couple of pennies but two days later on the heather when he sends a message the same kinsman is able to come up with several guineas in a short order. OK I can understand the situation is stressed and hurried, but equally these are meant to be people living under a harsh regime and used to having Breck drift in and out secretly on clan business, as a reader I don't expect them to be quite so innocent. In narrative terms it serves only to demonstrate how Breck communicates and interacts with the clan network because the money is never used in practical economic exchange but is instead lost at cards at the first opportunity. But the general impression is that the Highlanders are inept and less morally developed than the child hero - particularly here I'm thinking of David's attitude towards the card playing of the Clan Chief.

That's by the by. Worse the trail of instructions left by Alan Breck for David to follow would have served to bring both friend and foe to the house of Alan's kinsman. Particularly as David doesn't speak Gaelic and has to discover the political lay of the land as he makes his journey. It doesn't suggest a particularly skilled conspirator, but then the Jacobites did loose I suppose, so maybe that's the point.

If you read The Wind in the Willows you know it's an animal fable and so you accept that a Vole and a Badger can be friends or that a Toad can disguise himself as a washerwoman and not be recognised. On the other hand if a story appears to be realistic and is set amongst amidst the political intrigue of Scotland after the '45 then you expect the adult characters to behave appropriately or to get hanged. So I'm left wondering if Stevenson was just not very thoughtful in how he put the story together, or was just very condescending in how he viewed the highlanders and their capabilities, or if he expected the late Victorian reading public to wolf down his stories more eagerly than their porridge and still ask for more. What does the Gaelic anti-defamation league think?

Best hope the children don't ask too many questions. And if they do - tell them it's like a Scotch egg - you have to deal with the mince before you can get at the egg. ...more

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Jun 10, 2008 Kathleen rated it really liked it · review of another edition

"Alan," cried I, "what makes ye so good to me? What makes ye care for such a thankless fellow?"

"'Deed and I don't know," said Alan. "For just precisely what I thought I liked about ye, was that ye never quarrelled--and now I like ye better!"

Historical fiction, an adventure story, but also a great "buddy story". The plot follows young David, who is cheated out of his inheritance by a greedy uncle, and kidnapped into servitude on a sailing ship. The ship hits a small boat during a fog and picks up ...more

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May 01, 2017 Duane rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2017-book-challenge, english-calssics, rated-books, reviewed-books, historical-fiction, young-adult, guardian-1000

I don't know how the rest of young David Balfour's life turns out, but his early adventures where amazing. Set in 18th century Scotland during the Jacobite period, David, a loyalist to King George, and his friend Alan Stewart, a Jacobite, seemingly travel the entirety of the Scottish Highlands hiding in the rocks and heather from rival clans and the British Army. Character lessons abound, especially for young David. Just a fun book to read. ...more

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Mar 05, 2008 Werner rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: Fans of 19th century fiction, and of adventure fiction

Shelves: classics, historical-fiction

While the above description suggests, misleadingly, that all of protagonist David Balfour's adventures take place on the "high seas" (he only gets as far as the treacherous coastal waters of his native Scotland, and the great majority of the story takes place on land), the rest of it is pretty apt. This is Romantic historical adventure fiction at its finest (that is, fiction from the Romantic school, with its stress on appeal to emotions --here, excitement, fear, sympathy, moral indignation, adm ...more

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Aug 23, 2012 Carol rated it really liked it

Shelves: classics, read-2014, adventure

Young David Balfour begins and ends his harrowing adventure with evil Uncle Ebenezer (the old rat) with many mishaps in between. After being nearly murdered, then kidnapped and shipwrecked, Davie uses honesty and intelligence to his advantage while hoping to seek justice in the end. The inclusion of Scottish history throughout makes for an entertaining story, and the introduction gives an informative recap of significant dates in the life and literary career of RLS including how he came to write ...more

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Aug 10, 2017 Erin *Proud Book Hoarder* rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: a-own-book-form, classics, 3-star, classics-i-have-finally-conquered, movie-havent-seen, drama-gen-fiction, read-in-2017, reviewed, maritime

“There are two things that men should never weary of, goodness and humility; we get none too much of them in this rough world among cold, proud people.”

I guess I’m just not going to be a big fan of Robert Louis Stevenson, which is a shame since he wrote classic adventure-filled maritime fiction. As with Treasure Island, the beginning promised more than what was delivered, although Kidnapped ended up being the better of the two because of the satisfying ending.

I liked the first half more than the ...more

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Aug 24, 2014 Raúl Omar rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, from-paper-to-film, favorites, have-to-read-it-again

Kidnapped became my default recommendation because of two reasons: 1. none of my friends has read it (not even heard of it) and 2. it is awesome. Let me be honest: I didn´t know this book existed, I acquired Kidnapped because it was on sale, it had a cool front cover design and I liked the back cover description which seemed just nice.
I wonder why this book is not as popular as other Robert Louis Stevenson’s work, I’m guessing it's because the novel is way too Scottish for any reader who happen
Kidnapped became my default recommendation because of two reasons: 1. none of my friends has read it (not even heard of it) and 2. it is awesome. Let me be honest: I didn´t know this book existed, I acquired Kidnapped because it was on sale, it had a cool front cover design and I liked the back cover description which seemed just nice.
I wonder why this book is not as popular as other Robert Louis Stevenson’s work, I’m guessing it's because the novel is way too Scottish for any reader who happens to be, well... not Scottish. Scottishness aside, the novel is marvellous.
I truly don’t know where to start. The story is as good as it can be, Stevenson delivers an adventurous tale with his magnificent narrative that combines friendship and survival in the midst of political intrigue; a terrific description that transports you to the 18th century Scotland's landscapes and people and all that, of course, with an excellent pace: I hated when I had to interrupt my reading.
What can I say about the characters but that I loved them? I really liked how they main characters interact with each other and with others, they are lovable and a little funny. There is something I truly enjoy when reading a book: to laugh now and then. Stevenson’s nails it again with his good humour, I had more than a couple of laughs while reading.
There should be more books like this. There are books that after reading them, the first thing you want to do is to grab a good book. After I read Kidnapped I didn’t even wanted to see my queue in fear my next reading wouldn’t be half as good as this one was.
After I recommend a book I’m always nervous and doubtful about if the reader will like it, and even worse, is the remorse of being the responsible for making someone read something that didn’t like (I hate when that happens to me). Yet, when I recommend this book I feel confident that if they don’t like it, is because they definitively don´t like either the sea or adventures or adventures in the sea or Stevenson's work or because they hate Scotland or... [insert as many other reasons as you want], but not because it is not a good book.

This review was also posted on my blog :)

...more

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Jul 21, 2014 Alex rated it it was amazing

Shelves: rth-lifetime, 2014

This was my third Robert Louis Stevenson book, and they've all been five star reads for me. That makes him one of the most consistent authors I know of.

Kidnapped recently showed up on the Guardian's list of the 100 best English novels, and I guess I might have put Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde there instead; I still feel like it's a deeper book. But the Guardian chose this instead, mostly because of its Scottishness. It's a gripping adventure book first and foremost - dude gets kidnapped, headed for a ...more

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Jan 16, 2020 Hannah rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2019-challenge, ebooks-2019, england, audiobooks-2019, classic-adventure, high-seas-adventure, classics-2019, oldies-2019, scotland

A dashing classic adventure with loads of action to keep the story moving. It's got a very nasty villain and a mostly very good hero. The hero's friend is both good and bad together. Each main character is strongly drawn and memorable, though the story is focused more on action than on motivation by a long shot.

The action indeed is incessant and often heavy, from shipboard to progress across land.

This classic definitely has reason for being one and I'll be reading the sequel this year. ...more

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Sep 27, 2020 Zoeb rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

If "Treasure Island" established the nearly-unrivalled standard for the "intelligent and morally realistic swashbuckling adventure", "Kidnapped", I think, was the novel with which Robert Louis Stevenson redefined the very meaning of the words "swashbuckling adventure" itself. The title is deceptive - the actual abduction, an act of insidious treachery, is only a very small part of the actual meat of the book's narrative and instead, it is what follows that single travesty that gives the novel no If "Treasure Island" established the nearly-unrivalled standard for the "intelligent and morally realistic swashbuckling adventure", "Kidnapped", I think, was the novel with which Robert Louis Stevenson redefined the very meaning of the words "swashbuckling adventure" itself. The title is deceptive - the actual abduction, an act of insidious treachery, is only a very small part of the actual meat of the book's narrative and instead, it is what follows that single travesty that gives the novel not only its flawless efficiency and efficacy as an adventure brimming with superbly orchestrated action and peril, rich characterisation, whip-cracking dialogue and pitch-perfect pacing (all of which I will come to in due course in the review) but also a surprising (for the time) heft of political context and intrigue, in blending a real-life, sensational scandal unfolding in the Scottish highlands in the wake of the Jacobite rebellion and a cast of actual Highland chieftains and exiled rebels with the fictional story of its protagonist and his odyssey back home to claim justice.

This Stevenson accomplishes with such consummate skill and seemingly agile and flexible ease that it is almost something of a wonder that just how does "Kidnapped" in a length far shorter and brisker than most historical adventure novels of its time and even after that contain such a remarkable grasp on both the factual and fictional worlds without ever losing sight of its main objective - to lead us on a merry chase with very real stakes of life and death, honour and disgrace, of being imprisoned or escaping to blissful freedom. Indeed, most thrillers and pulp adventures that we read these days, including our highly touted bestsellers, all have a debt to owe to Stevenson and perhaps even they, despite their best efforts, cannot come even close to how he could write highly entertaining, compulsively readable and realistically sketched narratives with such surprising profundity that never feels tiresome or plodding; like just how his distant nephew (and my favourite storyteller of the twentieth century) would do less than fifty years after this novel was published.

I read this flawless novel from cover to cover, riveted by just how beautifully the dexterous storyteller grips the reader by setting the fundamentals of the story in the space of just a couple of chapters, mesmerised by his tight command of prose (the kind of precise, agile symmetry of action, thought, personal reflection and description that I can only find in the above mentioned writer), propelled to a height of tension, apprehension and even excitement by his superb, urgent direction of action and suspense and even driven to think and meditate by his moral realism. I would be hard-pressed to find any modern historical adventure novel that can boast of accomplishing so many things at the same time.

"Kidnapped" is also classic Stevenson in how it meshes a dark shade of grey morality with a real heart of genuine warmth and camaraderie. We never, for once, trust our and David Balfour's allegiances to the characters that we and he encounters, befriends and finds himself pitted against in the narrative and this is what makes Balfour easily one of the most intriguing and believable of all protagonists and narrators in fiction. His voice is not merely that of the writer's - lively, a little melancholic, wry and poignant in turns - but it is also our voice - honest, vulnerable, even tormented on the inside with his conflicting loyalties and even capable of thoughts of betrayal but most importantly a voice that summons up warmth, friendship and even kindness at will. We root for David Balfour to escape his woes, in the end, because Stevenson has made him an image of all that is flawed, naive yet noble in us.

The same praise would go to the other characters in the narrative - not just the romantic, perennially upbeat, raffishly charismatic Alan Breck Stewart but also the other outlaws on the run and exiled from their land but capable of great dignity, chivalry and even a generous display of warmth and fellow-feeling even to their sworn enemies, as evidenced by the excellent scene towards the end when two initially vengeful opponents encounter each other unexpectedly and then settle down instead in a duel of bagpipes, then conceding that each one of them is musically gifted and all their grudges vanish miraculously.

That is the magic of Stevenson. "Kidnapped" is as much about these mellow, wistful beats as much about the weary scramble through the harshest and bleakest regions of the Highlands for cover. It is as much a tender tale of friendship as much an exhilarating adventure.
...more

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Jan 24, 2017 Paul rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, novels, audio

Kidnapped was one of my "audio classics," the public-domain audiobooks I listen to on my phone when I'm walking the dog, washing dishes or shopping. I picked it on a whim, not knowing anything about the plot – presumably, someone gets kidnapped – and was pleasantly surprised. The first half of the book especially is exciting, filled with suspense as the protagonist arrives at his uncle's house and tries to figure out why he's being received so coldly, even treacherously. The book has attempted m ...more

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Jul 06, 2020 Ken rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: classics-newly-read, finished-in-2020

Although I know I've read Treasure Island through the same pirate sea twice, I wasn't sure about the almost-as-famous Kidnapped. If I did read it once, the memory of it is gone, so let's say this was a first go-round.

My biggest observation is that is gets off to a roaring start, adventure-wise (which is what you want, nae DEMAND, of a Robert Louis Stevenson), because at first there's the mystery of young David Balfour's dead father and living uncle (his brother) and estate, and then there's the ...more

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May 06, 2013 Jonathan Kranz rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorite-ya

Here's a book that's simultaneously well-known AND under-appreciated. If asked, I suspect most people would regard Kidnapped as an adventure story for boys -- and, in a sense, it is. Alan Breck is rightly remembered as one of the most dashing of romantic heros and the story has plenty of sword play and scheming.

But I was pleasantly surprised by how adult the story is. Alan may be romantic, but he's an ambiguous character. Did he commit murder? Is his Jacobite crusade really on behalf of the Sco ...more

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Jul 02, 2019 Cphe rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: historical, 2019, classic, suspense, boxall-guardian-2019, scotland

A young David Balfour didn't expect to be kidnapped when he sought his Scottish kin at the bleak and isolated house of Shaws. Much preferred the first half of the novel, life aboard the vessel Covenant and Davids interactions with an unscrupulous crew.

Whilst I did enjoy this swashbuckling adventure I have to admit that I far preferred the more convoluted Master of Ballantrae.

Read the free edition without any issues. ...more

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May 30, 2018 Jim rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 3classics, historical, 1audio, 2fiction

The description of this book is a summary of it - spoiler alert! Thankfully, it doesn't matter to me since I read it once long ago. I didn't think much of it then, but I found myself liking it better this time through. I missed a lot as a youngster. As so often is the case with assigned reading, I didn't have enough life experience to really appreciate it yet.

The characters were great, especially David & Alan. Their failings brought the story to life more than their accomplishments. It was a gre ...more

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May 18, 2009 Amy rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: classic-lit, classics, audio

5 stars, primarily for the audio book. I doubt I could have made it through the book if it weren't for the Audio CD. It is a wonderful adventure with historical significance and action but with decidedly Scotch language. What I like most is how realistically hardship is portrayed. You can almost feel the exhaustion, dehydration, worry, etc. David's actions can be unlikable. Alan can be a pest. Yet both are in the end devoted to each other and fun to read about.
This book also proves that cliff h ...more

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Jan 17, 2021 Έρση Λάβαρη rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: classics

First published in 1886, “Kidnapped” is a torrential adventure set in Scotland soon after the Jacobite Rebellion of 1745. David Balfour, a young man of sixteen years who no longer has a family to hold him in Essendean, his birthplace, and keen to claim his own adventure, finds himself in Queensferry, where his father led him with a letter and bespoke him to assert his fortune–in the face of the sublime House of Shaws, now inhabited by his father’s brother, Ebenezer. Uncle Ebenezer deceives David First published in 1886, “Kidnapped” is a torrential adventure set in Scotland soon after the Jacobite Rebellion of 1745. David Balfour, a young man of sixteen years who no longer has a family to hold him in Essendean, his birthplace, and keen to claim his own adventure, finds himself in Queensferry, where his father led him with a letter and bespoke him to assert his fortune–in the face of the sublime House of Shaws, now inhabited by his father’s brother, Ebenezer. Uncle Ebenezer deceives David, however, for he is wicked; and David is now kidnapped, aboard a ship full of vicious men, to be sold as a slave in the American colonies. On this very boat, amidst a crisis half of acceptance of his fate and half of desperation, he meets Alan Breck Stewart, rather a religious and political foe of his yet bound to suffer a misfortune twice the size of his own should he be left clueless, who he eventually decides to help, seeing that, were they to escape the ship, they could end up overall aiding each other–which is the point the actual adventure sets off.

I don’t think I am in a place to speak of Robert Louis Stevenson’s language. It was hard for me to follow the story at first because I had never read a classic novel in its native tongue before, but once I got used to this curious case of old(ish?) English I so, so much enjoyed it! I was particularly fascinated by the constant use of the word “lad”, which I had thought was sort of a slang (my most favorite Foil Arms and Hog make quite a use of this word in their comic sketches, and it is bound to sound comical to me now, I suppose), but I was surprised to notice that back then apparently it wasn’t, and “lad” was a very respectable word. Apart from the points where “lad(s)” was used I found myself really absorbed, so much so that it felt like I was a part of Alan and David’s adventures myself, and I was incredibly disappointed when I realized I had reached the end, and, on top of that, I can’t get my hands on “Catriona” to keep up with them.

Now, David’s very character was a delightful surprise on its own. He’s a fellow of just sixteen years of age, who has just lost his parents and mindlessly sets off eager to cook his own adventure. I would expect him to be annoyingly humble, incredibly naïve, and most certainly unable to handle himself in times of crisis. I was so pleasantly mistaken! David is strong, outspoken, able to think for himself and make his own decisions, denies to be anyone’s little pet, and bites people’s hands when he sees he’s about to be handled. He’s honest, will share his opinion but never force it on anyone, loyal to his morals and values, and do whatever he finds is best for him, regardless of who is for or against him. David, my boy, you are the most ravishing lad in classic literature!

That’s all, I think. Such a good book! Can’t wait to lay hands on “Catriona”!
...more

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Apr 11, 2011 Sasha rated it liked it · review of another edition

David Balfour, a Lowland boy, is sixteen when his father dies. What he left behind is only a letter that tells David to go to the Shaws; there he'll find his inheritance. David follows his father's instructions and meets his uncle Ebenezer - an awkward person that conceals more than he tells David about his family. Things are getting nastier, and finally, Ebenezer tries to kill David. When this doesn't work, he pretends to give up and wants to see an advocate. David feels safe - and suddenly he' David Balfour, a Lowland boy, is sixteen when his father dies. What he left behind is only a letter that tells David to go to the Shaws; there he'll find his inheritance. David follows his father's instructions and meets his uncle Ebenezer - an awkward person that conceals more than he tells David about his family. Things are getting nastier, and finally, Ebenezer tries to kill David. When this doesn't work, he pretends to give up and wants to see an advocate. David feels safe - and suddenly he's sold to a ship bringing convicts to America.
But when he meets the Highlander Alan Breck, they escape, but things don't go the way they should. David finds himself alone on a lonely island, where his travel through Scotland just begins. Now he has just one aim: Coming back home and make things clear.

Who expects a thrilling adventure story won't be satisfied. But who's interested in Scotland, its people, its manners, its landscape might enjoy "Kidnapped".
Actually the plot has enough potential for a really good adventure story, but Stevenson uses too much space for his descriptions of the surroundings or the manners - therefore some of the tension simply gets lost. At some time he focuses on a pipe bag competition between Alan and another Highlander, which is quite interesting, but is not important at all for the action. Furthermore, it might be interesting, but it's not entertaining. So he takes the story its speed that could be quite high if you consider the few pages.
Actually, it already starts this way. Before the journey of David starts he has to go to see his uncle, be sold and the trip with the ship literally takes ages. You might say that this is because it really takes them a long time to travel; however, later one month is summarized within a few pages. There is just too much focus on rather unimportant events that don't have a great impact on what's going on later.
The travel itself is difficult to follow. I had sometimes no orientation where we are right now - and even Google couldn't help! And again I got the expression that the focus is too much on description than on facts that might be use- or helpful.
Furthermore, the characters are everything - despite likable. David is okay, all in all, but Alan is quite strange. He may be brave and he may live up to his ideals, but sometimes he tends to be narcissistic and egoistic. I never felt attached to one of them or any other character. But still I have to admit that they really are characters, not just flat ones, mere names on the paper. They have their strong and their weak moments; they win and they lose; they undergo a development, and they don't always pay attention. It may not make them nicer, but the fact itself is ... yeah, great.
And even if this book has many aspects to criticize, it still is enjoyable. The language isn't that creative, but the Scottish variety of English is reason enough to read and love it.
It's also interesting that Stevenson doesn't settle for stereotypes - at least not only. Of course there are bagpipes, but the Scottish aren't wild, kilt-wearing barbarians. (This wouldn't even work - think of the Dress Act!) Alan for example has kind of fallen in love with his French clothes and he will wear them even this could mean death, because he's easy to recognize with them.
In addition, the Lowlanders aren't mollycoddled copies of the English. They absolutely aren't!
Furthermore, the book has some great scenes where I couldn't stop laughing. There Alan and David just show what sly old dogs they are, and the fact that the others also fall for their line made it even better. Of course this is a question of taste - but who can ignore the great irony, when someone is caught on an island, nearly dies and then finally recognizes he could have gone to the mainland when it's low tide?
What I liked most about his book is the open end, just because it fits the historical events that are known. We don't know about the whole life of Alan Breck and so Mr. Stevenson couldn't write about that, either. Still, the end is not too abrupt - as I said, it just fits.

All in all, I can only say: You can read it, but you don't have to. It might be worth it when you're interested in Scotland, otherwise it would be better to be lucky with other books. ...more

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Apr 15, 2012 Anthony Chavez rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: the-classics

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Oh the aptly dubbed "boys" novel. Kidnapped is a delightful adventure story with just the right doses of humour which will make you feel one with the 16 year old naive, yet good natured, thrill seeking protagonist David Balfour.

This bonny tale is set a few years after the Jacobite uprising (1746) in Scotland, when the English were still trying very hard to break the unity of the Highland clans, with the help of the Lowland Scots, who had sworn themselves in as His Majesties subjects. Many of the Oh the aptly dubbed "boys" novel. Kidnapped is a delightful adventure story with just the right doses of humour which will make you feel one with the 16 year old naive, yet good natured, thrill seeking protagonist David Balfour.

This bonny tale is set a few years after the Jacobite uprising (1746) in Scotland, when the English were still trying very hard to break the unity of the Highland clans, with the help of the Lowland Scots, who had sworn themselves in as His Majesties subjects. Many of the subplots in the story including the Appin murder, and even the lovable character of Alan Stewart, was based on actual events and persons respectively. So the story has a good bit of history and is generally catalogued in historical fiction, yet I did not know any of this prior to my reading. I am not one of the many people who read this as a child or was assigned it in school, I came into this book blank and was pleasantly surprised.

Stevenson's 'Kidnapped' is simply a great read. In brief, 16-year-old orphan, David Balfour visits his uncle in order to claim an inheritance, left by his father. The uncle, having failed to kill him, arranges for David to be kidnapped by a ship of good-for-nothing villains and taken to the United States to be sold into slavery. While navigating the Scottish coast, the ship collides with another boat and the crew capture the lone survivor, a swashbuckling Highlander called Alan Breck Stewart. David and Alan become friends and escape their captors. On land again, Stewart is accused of murdering a rival clan member and he and David must now cross the Scottish mountains as outlaws and try to reach a safe haven and reclaim David's inheritance his Uncle rudely is withholding.

The descriptions of the Scottish countryside are truly marvelous and the sense of pace and adventure keeps the reader hooked right to the end. I think to most readers the historic aspects of this piece, along with the fact that the couple are being hunted by British redcoats is enough to maintain interest, suspense and pace; however, be forewarned, some may think that there is not a very strong plot, but we must remember that it was originally intended for young boys stepping into adulthood. It was a tale to give boys a sense of the 'big bad world' outside, while entertaining them with kidnapping, duels, ship-wrecks, a murder, and the flight through the highlands to safety, all major ingredients perfect to let any young boys imagination soar high! It is a tale about finding maturity through hardships.

All in all throughout the read I smiled when Uncle Ebeneezer served his gruel, I held my breath when David nearly stepped into the space on the broken stairs, I cringed with the injustice of Ebeneezer trying to cheat David out of his inheritance by selling him into slavery in the American colonies (I also couldn't stop picturing Ebeneezer Scrooge as well, he fit the bill perfectly). Give this one a shot, I look forward to reading more classics by Stevenson.
...more

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Jan 26, 2017 Sud666 rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: classics

Robert Louis Stevenson wrote "Kidnapped" as a story that could be read to a child and that they would enjoy it. This is absolutely true. Kidnapped is a great story.

It is the story of young David Balfour. After his parents death he strikes out to find his inheritance. Unfortunately, his Uncle on his father's side has other plans. This begins the trials of young David as he is kidnapped on board of a ship sailing to the Americas. On this ship he meets his traveling companion and erstwhile savior- ...more

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Jan 15, 2015 Leslie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: guardian-1000, historical-fiction, adventure, audiobooks, ya-teen

Well, 4.5*

I enjoyed Michael Page's narration very much & his Scottish burr seemed spot on to these American ears. Betrayal, friendship and adventure in 1751 Scotland with some Jacobite politics in the background... What fun! ...more

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Apr 23, 2018 Laurene rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Never knew the novel was intertwined with a historical event, the Appen Murder of 1752.

"A word once spoken, who can recapture it?"

"What makes ye so good to me? What makes ye care for such a thankless fellow? Deed, and I don't, know. For just precisely what I thought I liked about ye, was that ye never quarreled; -- and now I like ye better!" ...more

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What's the Name o...: SOLVED. Boy with evil uncle, afraid of falling down stairs in a tower. [s]	7	38	Dec 02, 2020 05:51PM
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About Robert Louis Stevenson

Robert Louis Stevenson

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Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson was a Scottish novelist, poet, and travel writer, and a leading representative of English literature. He was greatly admired by many authors, including Jorge Luis Borges, Ernest Hemingway, Rudyard Kipling and Vladimir Nabokov.

Most modernist writers dismissed him, however, because he was popular and did not write within their narrow definition of literature. It is onl ...more

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Quotes from Kidnapped

“There are two things that men should never weary of, goodness and humility; we get none too much of them in this rough world among cold, proud people.” — 156 likes

“Alan," cried I, "what makes ye so good to me? What makes ye care for such a thankless fellow?"

Deed, and I don't, know" said Alan. "For just precisely what I thought I liked about ye, was that ye never quarrelled:—and now I like ye better!” — 46 likes

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