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Island of the Blue Dolphins | 
| Author: Scott O'dell
Publisher: Thorndike Press
Category: Book
List Price: $10.95
Buy New: $9.85
You Save: $1.10 (10%)
Rating:  8 reviews
Sales Rank: 171526
Format: Large Print
Media: Paperback
Edition: 1
Reading Level: Young Adult
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 223
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 8.3 x 5 x 0.8
ISBN: 0786272546
EAN: 9780786272549
Publication Date: February 2, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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Product Description
This is the story of Karana, the Indian girl who lived alone for years on the Island of the Blue Dolphins. Year after year, she watched one season pass into another and waited for a ship to take her away.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 3 more reviews...
 Karana: Tenacious and Hopeful Hero September 26, 2005
5 out of 6 found this review helpful
As a child, my grade school librarian wore out from me asking to borrow so often. Later, as a private tutor, my students chose this again and again. "Island of the Blue Dolphins" lives up to its reputation as one of the greatest children's book ever.
Libraries are good for borrowing books, but some books should be on the shelf of any young reader. Scott O'Dell's magnificent "Island of the Blue Dolphins" is just that. Save your librarian some grief and buy a copy.
"The Island of the Blue Dolphins" is not the story of a foolish young girl who missed the boat when the island was being evacuated. Far from it. Karana was on the boat. Her playful little brother, Ramo, wasn't. He was only 6 years old and could never survive alone. She jumped off and headed to shore to save him. The boat left.
Every little girl or boy has been alone, frightened without a clear way of finding his or her way home. Often, the problem is fixed by turning the next corner, finding out it is the same neighborhood it has always been. In the case of "The Island of the Blue Dolphins," Karana's home never changes. Everyone she knows and loves, however, leaves.
For 18 years Karana took care of herself, and she grows from a preteen child into a woman just entering her 30s. This is that story, filled with adventures similar to "Robinson Crusoe," another true story set to fiction. Fans of "Swiss Family Robinson," will likewise enjoy this.
Karana's ingenuity to survive is surpassed by her tenacity and hope. Weathering hard circumstances, such wild dogs, storms and the constant need to find fresh food and good water. She uses what she learned from her parents and other villagers before the left, and what she learns by trial an error.
As exciting as "Treasure Island," only with a female protagonist, the book is more than a tale of heroics. Scott O'Dell's keen sense of description separates this from the rest of the bookshelf. Although sensitive that his reader is younger, he still manages to place to reader in the story, imagining the smell of sea or hearing the not-so-far off bark of wild dogs.
Like other classics as "Old Yeller" and "My Brother Sam Is Dead," not everything comes easily to Karana. There are somber times when people leave, when her brother dies, or when things look bleak. O'Dell tells the story as realistically as he can, which makes the happy times happier.
I fully recommend "Island of the Blue Dolphins," by Scott O'Dell. It won "The Newberry Medal for Best Children's Book" for good reason.
Anthony Trendl
editor, HungarianBookstore.com
Still a true classic December 30, 2005
5 out of 6 found this review helpful
This classic was voted one of the top 10 American children's books of the last 200 years by the Children's Literature Association. Although modern readers may find it a little dated in some ways and the pacing a little slow, it's still an absorbing and beautiful story about how a resourceful Indian girl survives alone on an island off the California coast for 18 years.
The story is a lot like Robinson Crusoe only told from the girl's point of view, but that's okay. (Coincidently Crusoe was rescued after 17 years on his island, if I remember correctly).
The book is still worth reading today by young readers and O'Dell does a great job of telling this resourceful young woman's story. The story was inspired by true events, when the girl's people were evacuated from the island of Ghalas-At and she jumped ship to stay behind with her abandoned brother (who tragically dies shortly thereafter, leaving, Karana, the girl, all alone).
Overall, still a great classic and worth your child's time and effort.
Wonderful story of history November 9, 2007
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
This is a very touching story based on the small amount of factual information preserved on the Lone Woman of San Nicholas Island. It has been a fantastic jumping-off point for explorations into Chumash culture and history, visits to the graveyard where the woman is buried and Santa Barbara history. O'Dell has incorporated the known facts into a well-written and engaging book, with a very touching ending, as most readers would know that the woman died some weeks after being brought to the mainland, probably because of eating food to which she was unaccustomed. Although all members of her tribe had died by the time she arrived and no one was able to speak her language, she was so happy to be among people that she welcomed many visitors before her death, communicating her stories the best she could. By all accounts she was a very sociable and pleasant woman. This book inspires children to play at "survival" games and adults to ponder European treatment of Native Americans.
 Island of the Blue Dolphins January 30, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O' Dell was the best book that I have ever read. I just couldn't put it down. It was filled with drama. I do not recommend this book for anyone under the age of 8. They might not understand the story. A teenage girl, Karana, living with her Native American tribe on an island off the coast of California experiences some big changes. This happens when some Russians come to the island and offer to take the tribe to the mainland. Karana's brother is left behind so she jumps off the ship and swims to shore. They live together happily until her brother is eaten by a pack of wild dogs. Karana must now defend herself. She chooses to go to the mainland when the Russians come back to pick her up. She lives the rest of her life on the sandy beaches of California.
Island Of Blue Dolphins A review by Karen,Erynn,Jessie,Devon, and April March 13, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Enemy wild dogs stalking you, icy winds whipping your face, unknown creatures lurking among you in the bushes, as you close your eyes and fall asleep, hoping to wake up alive. Imagine enduring these circumstances every day for 18 years in a row. Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O' Dell is a tale of hope, adventure, survival, and discovery based on a true story. When a tribe of Indians is offered to flee from their island in search of a safer place to live, a girl named Karana escapes from the boat in order to save her brother from being left behind. Only the tables turn on Karana, and she is left behind with her brother. While on an adventure, her brother is soon killed by wild dogs. Through threats of wild animals, natural disasters, and invaders, Karana learns to apply her skills towards the challenge of keeping herself alive. Through many challenges and various hardships, Karana remains intent, not only on survival but also in making a happy life for herself. Karana wasn't lonely; eventually she befriends and tames various wild animals, including the leader of the wild dogs. After years of hating the dogs, she slowly comes to realize that it is easier to live in peace then to be constantly at war. This is a gripping story of battling wild dogs and sea elephants, simply telling a suspenseful story of survival and up-lifting adventure. This book was awarded a Newbery Award in 1961; in 1976 The Children's Literature Association named this riveting story one of the 10 best American children's books.
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