During the Golden Age of Piracy, treasure was almost the most valuable thing to everyone; pirates, commoners, and rulers. Everyone loved treasure, and they were willing to do anything for it, even kill others. This classic novel does not disagree with that idea, and it does not disappoint readers who dare to board the boat which leads to Treasure Island. 

The book starts off with Jim Hawkins, a young man living with his parents and working at Admiral Benbow, a bar. Jim is then forced to let a blind pirate named Black Dog into the Admiral Benbow to speak with Captain Billy Bones, Black Dog’s former captain. But, of course, pirates are known to be greedy and that was exactly the story with those two buccaneers. A couple minutes after Jim left the scene, they both drew their cutlasses and got into a full fight which led to Black Dog running off and the Captain injured. 

A couple days later, Jim gains some hard experiences with the deaths of his father, and his friend, Captain Billy Bones. Right after the Captain’s death, Black Dog and his crew of pirates all come to steal Captain Billy Bones’s treasure map, but it is not there. Jim Hawkins was one step ahead. Jim and Dr Livesey gather a crew of their friends, and get on their ship and start sailing to the Island with buried treasure. 

This novel teaches readers about betrayal, cooperation, and loyalty. In times where Jim was struggling with what decision to make, he always made the right one, the one that showed his values. In this story, Jim Hawkins learned a lot of life lessons through the experiences he had. Treasure Island is an exciting novel with lots of plot twists which makes it impossible to put down. This book will not make you regret reading it, and while reading it, you will also be on a ship, sailing to Reading Island, where you will find that magnificence that classics have behind them. 

I rate this book a 9/10 because it was a great book. The only negative about the book is how slowly it moves throughout the plot. Treasure Island is an amazing novel! I really recommend this book.

-Mert A.

Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. It can also be downloaded for free from Overdrive.