Treasure Island in Overdue Podcast

Oct 01, 2016 Brendan Walsh rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: classics

How did this do nothing for me the first time I read it? As I read this, I wondered what made late 19th/early 20th century adventures like this so much better than modern ones. I think the reason might be that books like this (along with Verne's and Rider Haggard's books) evoke a sense of authentic wonder. If a modern author tried to do what they do, they'd probably feel embarrassed about it and wouldn't know why. Modern adventures would hyper-fixate on realism if they weren't backed up by metic ...more

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Sep 01, 2024 Abigail Advincula rated it liked it · review of another edition

Treasure Island follows the young Jim Hawkins who, through a twist of fate, comes into possession of a treasure map promising vast riches. A voyage is made on the ship, Hispanola, to Skull Island; however, the crew proves treacherous under the lead of the persuasive man-of-fortune, Long John Silver. Jim Hawkins and his allies manage to escape the crew-turned-pirates and turn Skull Island into a game of tactics and fate.

First, the negatives. Treasure Island is somewhat a victim of its own succes ...more

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Sep 29, 2015 James rated it really liked it

Treasure Island was one of the first books I remember enjoying as a kid. It was so much more interesting and exciting than what I had to read for school. Coming back to it all these years later, the book reads a bit differently. It's hard to look past some of the tropes (even though this book set many of them), weak characters, odd pacing, and word choices that haven't aged well. That being said, as an adventure story for younger readers, this is still a great story and remains a classic for a r ...more

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Sep 06, 2018 Barrett Lafortune rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, literary-fiction

Treasure Island is an enjoyable read. The adventure and pirates and treasure (surprise!) are all fun and many of our modern pirate tropes are present in this book. Some of the language was surprisingly challenging but overall I had a good time.

One interesting thing to note is that this book's narrative is framed as diary entries that are being published at a later time. This is the literary version of a "found footage" movie (think Blair Witch Project or Paranormal Activity). Several other class ...more

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Mar 16, 2022 Matt Goncalves rated it really liked it

A classic and simple adventure tale. What needs to be said about this book that isn't already known and covered through pop culture. I enjoyed the easy to read story of young Jim Hawkins who gets involved in a sea faring treasure hunt that includes a gang of nefarious pirates. I appreciated what this book was as a staple of adventure stories and it was quaint and easy to get through. Some chapters were less engaging than others but I still have a fun time reading this book. There is no deep take ...more

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Feb 03, 2015 Tina rated it liked it

Shelves: bookclub

I thoroughly enjoyed the beginning and end of this book but found myself lost somewhere in the middle. I believe I would've enjoyed this book more if I was more knowledgable on the topics of boats and sailing. However, I found this to be an interesting adventure story. ...more

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