The LIfe Adventures of Robinson Crusoe

6b Daniel DeFoe. Illustrated. London: Routledge & Co., 1853.

Notes 

The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe is a novel by Daniel Defoe, first published in 1719 as The Life and Strange Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, of York, Mariner. It tells the story of Robinson Crusoe, an Englishman who, against his parents’ wishes, goes to sea and eventually becomes shipwrecked on a deserted island. Alone, Crusoe survives by building shelter, cultivating food, domesticating animals, and gradually creating a sustainable life. Over time, he encounters cannibals, rescues a man he names Friday, and ultimately returns to England after 28 years. The novel blends adventure, survival, and moral reflection, emphasizing self-reliance, providence, and personal industry.

Defoe wrote Robinson Crusoe in a realistic, journal-like style, which helped convince readers that the story might be true; many early readers believed it was a factual autobiography. The book is widely considered one of the earliest English novels and had a profound influence on adventure literature, inspiring generations of “castaway” stories, exploration narratives, and tales of individual endurance. Its themes of isolation, ingenuity, and colonial encounter have also made it a subject of literary and historical analysis for centuries.

Description

Burgundy leather with gilt embossed illustration on upper board. Gilt lettering to spine as well. Illustrated. Yellow endpapers. Gilt edges. Canvas over spine has come away and was repaired with book binding glue. Bumped points. Good condition overall.