Hey, guys!
Just finished reading Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell, I have to say that I understand it a lot more because (once again) I read it as a kid and didn't retain much.
So, this book is about a place called Island of the Blue Dolphins (huge surprise there) where a native people live and have made their home for many years.
Then one day during the summer, a foreign people come to their island to hunt otter, just as they have the year before. The chief of the Island of the Blue Dolphins is wary of them because of the trouble they caused before. Sure enough, trouble is what they get.
After hunting in the sea by their island, the foreign people refuse to pay enough for what they hunted and a fight breaks out, leaving many of the men of the native people dead.
Soon after, another foreign people come to the island, different from the others. These people are different because they come from the place where the native people's ancestors originated. So, with not much left for them on the island, the native people leave for this strange land that they do not know anything about.
And accidentally leave one of their own behind. Her name is Karana, the youngest daughter of their dead chief, and she is all alone on the Island of the Blue Dolphins.
Haunted by the memories of the dead members of her tribe, Karana must survive (not much of a challenge for her) on the island which no longer feels as much like home. And though she keeps an eye out for the ship, after a while she loses hope of it ever coming back.
What she misses the most is human companionship, which she tries to compensate for by befriending many of the animals on the island: otter, birds, wild dogs, you get the picture.
This is a short book (my copy is less than 200 pages) and also a quick read. I mean, I read it in two days so you guys be the judge.
I would recommend it for elementary or middle school students, because the language and the sentence structure are very easy to follow and are rather simple (not to say that this takes away from the story at all; it actually enhances it). The one thing I will say is that a young audience may not understand certain references to survival tactics, flora, or fauna (abalones, yucca plants, cormorants, you get the idea).
I also recommend it for people who enjoy survival stories. I mean, it's not like Karana comes close to dying or has to fight off a bear or anything, but it does have that element to it. So, if it sounds like a book you or someone you know would enjoy, check it out for yourself.
Check in again tomorrow for another post. Be sure to like my Facebook page and to follow me on Twitter for the latest updates. Until next time.
Happy reading!!
Just finished reading Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell, I have to say that I understand it a lot more because (once again) I read it as a kid and didn't retain much.
So, this book is about a place called Island of the Blue Dolphins (huge surprise there) where a native people live and have made their home for many years.
Then one day during the summer, a foreign people come to their island to hunt otter, just as they have the year before. The chief of the Island of the Blue Dolphins is wary of them because of the trouble they caused before. Sure enough, trouble is what they get.
After hunting in the sea by their island, the foreign people refuse to pay enough for what they hunted and a fight breaks out, leaving many of the men of the native people dead.
Soon after, another foreign people come to the island, different from the others. These people are different because they come from the place where the native people's ancestors originated. So, with not much left for them on the island, the native people leave for this strange land that they do not know anything about.
And accidentally leave one of their own behind. Her name is Karana, the youngest daughter of their dead chief, and she is all alone on the Island of the Blue Dolphins.
Haunted by the memories of the dead members of her tribe, Karana must survive (not much of a challenge for her) on the island which no longer feels as much like home. And though she keeps an eye out for the ship, after a while she loses hope of it ever coming back.
What she misses the most is human companionship, which she tries to compensate for by befriending many of the animals on the island: otter, birds, wild dogs, you get the picture.
This is a short book (my copy is less than 200 pages) and also a quick read. I mean, I read it in two days so you guys be the judge.
I would recommend it for elementary or middle school students, because the language and the sentence structure are very easy to follow and are rather simple (not to say that this takes away from the story at all; it actually enhances it). The one thing I will say is that a young audience may not understand certain references to survival tactics, flora, or fauna (abalones, yucca plants, cormorants, you get the idea).
I also recommend it for people who enjoy survival stories. I mean, it's not like Karana comes close to dying or has to fight off a bear or anything, but it does have that element to it. So, if it sounds like a book you or someone you know would enjoy, check it out for yourself.
Check in again tomorrow for another post. Be sure to like my Facebook page and to follow me on Twitter for the latest updates. Until next time.
Happy reading!!
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