Reviewed by Monique Prince, Undergraduate Services Librarian
I can't remember how many times I read this book as a child—but I do remember being fascinated by this tale of independence and survival. When a group of Russian hunters arrives at a remote island and kills many of its inhabitants, those remaining decide to abandon the island. As the ship sails away the narrator, Karana, notices that her young brother is still on the island. Hysterical, she jumps overboard and returns to shore and together they prepare to survive alone until another ship returns for them. Her brother is killed the next day by wild dogs, and Karana spends the next several years in solitude on the island. She encounters many dangers, including wild dogs, hunters, an earthquake, an octopus, and a tidal wave. While her life is dangerous, she also learns survival skills—she makes weapons, builds a house and fence, builds and mends a canoe, and makes her own clothes. Both the day-to-day aspects of a solitary life, and the dangerous adventures she encounters makes this a fascinating book for late elementary and middle school students, but on rereading it, I can say that it is a great quick read for adults as well. Island of the Blue Dolphins won the 1961 Newbery Medal.
