I’ve had lots of time to read recently and I find myself with a backlog. So I’m going to double up for a couple weeks to keep these a little more timely.
I’m not sure I understand the why of this but my e-reader (a Nook Color) has me reading many more of the classics that I had somehow avoided/missed over the years. Generally I have been very pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoy them and occasionally surprised at how much some of them just fall flat for me.
Treasure Island – Robert Louis Stevenson (1883) – An aged seaman comes to the Admiral Ben Bow Inn one day. What follows him is adventure, piracy, treasure, betrayal and death. Young Jim Hawkins will play a central role in much of this as he carefully steers his way among the intrigues of the adults around him, in search of buried treasure.
Pretty much every cliche you know about pirates began with this novel. Peg legs, treasure maps where “X marks the spot”, pirates with parrots on their shoulder, the Black Spot and more. When I was growing up we had an album version of the Disney 1950 film version. It was a compressed version of the dialogue with the original actors doing the lines. When I think of “Treasure Island” that’s the first thing that comes to mind.
Why I Liked It – From the very beginning this was a boy’s adventure story. 110+ years later it still works as exactly that. Stevenson is a superb story teller and the action sails along (sorry, couldn’t resist) smoothly. You get enough of the background story without it ever interrupting the tale being told.
Why You’ll Like It – The characters. Oh, the characters! Long John Silver is worth the price of admission all by himself. Silver isn’t a cardboard cutout villain either. Stevenson creates a character with depth and nuance. While Silver is a dangerous and volatile man (the only man that Captain Flint ever feared), he has an honest affection for Hawkins. It makes the book that much better that the author invests the time to create real people in his characters. Add in the foolishness of Squire Trelawney, the wisdom of Dr. Livesey, the honesty and intelligence of Jim Hawkins plus so many, many more finely drawn supporting characters and this is a book you won’t want to put down.
Rating – **** Highest Recommendation
The Invisible Man – H.G. Wells (1897) – A mysterious man, whose clothes cover him completely, arrives in a small English village looking for a place to stay where he will not be bothered. The longer he is there the more peculiar he seems to the villagers. Finally his secret is revealed. Through a process he discovered he has made his body invisible. Now the battle begins between the village and the outraged “Invisible Man” who promises a reign of terror.
I’m having an interesting time with Wells, one of the greatest of the early science fiction authors. I truly enjoyed “War of the Worlds” but have struggled repeatedly with “The Time Machine”. So I wasn’t sure about this classic.
Why I Liked It – The story telling is wonderful and drew me right in. At the same time I kept seeing huge plot holes in it. Why does Griffin (the invisible man) make some invisible clothing when he had the chance? He moves precipitously at the beginning of his adventure and pays the price for it along the way. Why does no one think to use flour bombs against him when they have the chance? They simply accept that they can’t see him and never think about how to solve that problem. Made me a little crazy as I read it. Other than that I really enjoyed it. The book kept reminding me of Steven’s Jekyll and Hyde story. A scientist moves into areas never before explored and suffers greatly from the experience.
Why You’ll Like It – Wells creates some wonderful characters in Griffin, Tom Marvel the tramp and Dr.Kemp, who Griffin knew from university and turns to for help. Mixed in with the various personalities of the villagers and others Griffin meets along the way you will enjoy the story a lot.
Rating – **** Recommended
Stories Are My Life 
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