The Swiss Family Robinson

By Suzanne Fisher Staples and Johann David Wyss

Originally written to entertain his four young sons, Johann David Wyss based The Swiss Family Robinson on Daniel Defoe's classic shipwreck story, Robinson Crusoe (1719). Upon its initial publication in 1812, The Swiss Family Robinson was received with great enthusiasm not only as a first-rate adventure story, but also as a practical guide to self-sufficiency.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Aladdin
• Release date: Feb 28, 2012
• ISBN: 9781442458567

Suzanne Fisher Staples

Suzanne Fisher Staples It’s been many years since I left my newspaper job for the somewhat less predictable world of writing books. Still, most mornings I wake up and thank my lucky stars that I no longer have to pull on pantyhose, only to fight traffic on the way to the bureau; that I can walk the dog in the orange grove after lunch and finish the newspaper; that I spend my days making up stories and talking with children, not dealing with irascible news editors, slippery politicians, and oily flacks. I grew up loving books. My grandmother read to us every day and bribed us with stories to help in her rock garden. There, among the bleeding hearts and irises and peonies, I decided I wanted to be a writer. I’ve always written: journals, letters, school papers, essays, and, when I grew up, news reports. But I could never imagine writing a novel. Whatever could I write about that would sustain anyone’s interest for two hundred or more pages? The answer never occurred to me until I went to Pakistan. There was something about the camels, the ancient stories and blue-tiled mosques, and people who build shrines where a beautiful poem was written, that set my heart to singing. And there was something about our ignorance here in the West about Islamic people that made me know a story about this place needed to be told. And so my writing career began with Shabanu and Haveli. After I left Pakistan, I wondered whether I would ever find anything that fired my soul as the people of the Cholistan Desert had. I returned to America somewhat apprehensive. It’s easy to be sparked by the exotic places of the world. But what about finding inspiration in the familiar? And then I settled in a small and beautiful corner of Virginia’s Eastern Shore. There on the Chesapeake Bay, the mud and the pines and the grasses and the water and all the things that live in and among them spoke to me like characters in a book. I began to see the exotic everywhere. While I was living in Asia, I thought of the United States as a place where the phones and the political system work, and people are tolerant of each other. When I came home I found that some things here were worse than all the poverty and sickness and intolerance I’d encountered in Asia. I met two children who lived on the farm next to our property on the Eastern Shore, one black, one white. Their friendship was based on fishing and swimming and exploring the woods and the creeks. As they approached adolescence, their families began to steer them away from each other. From then on, their stories fell into two distinct patterns. The white boy went to a private school. The black boy was later killed during a dispute over drugs. For all the beauty of the Eastern Shore, racism was one of its healthiest institutions. People were so familiar with it they couldn’t see how heartbreaking it was. And that was the genesis of Dangerous Skies. My husband, Wayne, and I live in the hills of Tennessee, where we love to hike and canoe and watch the eagles soar over valleys that are shrouded in pale blue mist. I know now that the world is wondrous and wide, and I hope I will never cease to be moved by places and people who give rise to ideas for stories. Because stories are the most important thing in the world. They teach us how to live, how to love, and, most important, how to find magic wherever we are. Suzanne Fisher Staples was born in 1945 and grew up beside a lake in the hilly farmland near Scranton, Pennsylvania. She worked as a news reporter in Asia for twelve years, serving in Hong Kong, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka with United Press International. She also worked in Washington, D.C., as an editor at The Washington Post.

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Originally written to entertain his four young sons, Johann David Wyss based The Swiss Family Robinson on Daniel Defoe’s classic shipwreck story, Robinson Crusoe (1719). Upon its initial publication in 1812, The Swiss Family Robinson was received with great enthusiasm-not only as a first-rate adventure story, but also as a practical guide to self-sufficiency.

JOHANN DAVID WYSS (1743-1818) was a Swiss pastor. The Swiss Family Robinson was edited by his son Johann Rudolf Wyss, a scholar who wrote the Swiss national anthem.

SUZANNE FISHER STAPLES is the Newbery Honor author of Shabanu, Daughter of the Wind. She lives in Pennsylvania.

ALADDIN PAPERBACK

Simon & Schuster, New York

Cover designed by Lisa Vega

Cover photograph copyright © 2007 by

   National Geographic

All Ages

www.SimonSaysTEACH.com

0207

THE SWISS FAMILY

ROBINSON

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This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real locales are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

ALADDIN PAPERBACKS

An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division

1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020

www.SimonandSchuster.com

First Aladdin Paperbacks edition February 2007

The Swiss Family Robinson was first published in 1812.

Foreword copyright © 2007 by Suzanne Fisher Staples

All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.

ALADDIN PAPERBACKS and colophon are trademarks of

Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Designed by Lisa Vega

The text of this book was set in Garamond 3.

2 4 6 8 10 9 7 5 3 1

Library of Congress Control Number 2006935074

ISBN-13: 978-1-4169-3490-5

ISBN-10: 1-4169-3490-1

ISBN-13: 978-1-44245-856-7 (eBook)

CONTENTS

FOREWORD

CHAPTER 1

A SHIPWRECK, AND PREPARATIONS FOR DELIVERANCE

CHAPTER 2

A LANDING, AND CONSEQUENT OCCUPATIONS

CHAPTER 3

VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY

CHAPTER 4

RETURN FROM THE VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY—A NOCTURNAL ALARM

CHAPTER 5

RETURN TO THE WRECK

CHAPTER 6

A TROOP OF ANIMALS IN CORK JACKETS

CHAPTER 7

SECOND JOURNEY OF DISCOVERY PERFORMED BY THE MOTHER OF THE FAMILY

CHAPTER 8

CONSTRUCTION OF A BRIDGE

CHAPTER 9

CHANGE OF ABODE

CHAPTER 10

CONSTRUCTION OF A LADDER

CHAPTER 11

THE SETTLING IN THE GIANT TREE

CHAPTER 12

THE SABBATH AND THE PARABLE

CHAPTER 13

CONVERSATION, AND A WALK

CHAPTER 14

CONTINUATION OF PRECEDING CHAPTER—DISCOVERIES

CHAPTER 15

HOPES OF A SLEDGE—SOME SHORT LESSONS IN USEFUL THINGS

CHAPTER 16

BATHING, FISHING AND A KANGAROO

CHAPTER 17

MORE STORES FROM THE WRECK

CHAPTER 18

THE TORTOISE HARNESSED

CHAPTER 19

ANOTHER TRIP TO THE WRECK—BAKING

CHAPTER 20

THE CRACKER AND THE PINNACE

CHAPTER 21

GYMNASTIC EXERCISES—VARIOUS DISCOVERIES—SINGULAR ANIMALS, ETC.

CHAPTER 22

EXCURSION INTO UNKNOWN TRACTS

CHAPTER 23

USEFUL OCCUPATIONS AND LABOURS—EMBELLISHMENTS—A PAINFUL BUT NATURAL SENTIMENT

CHAPTER 24

A NEW DOMAIN—THE TROOP OF BUFFALOES—THE VANQUISHED HERO

CHAPTER 25

THE MALABAR EAGLE—SAGO MANUFACTORY—BEES

CHAPTER 26

TREATMENT OF BEES—STAIRCASE—TRAINING OF VARIOUS ANIMALS—MANUFACTURES, ETC.

CHAPTER 27

THE WILD ASS—DIFFICULTY IN BREAKING IT—THE HEATH-FOWL’S NEST

CHAPTER 28

FLAX, AND THE RAINY SEASON

CHAPTER 29

SPRING—SPINNING—SALT MINE

CHAPTER 30

HOUSE IN THE SALT ROCK—TURTLES

CHAPTER 31

NEW FISHERY—NEW EXPERIMENTS—NEW DISCOVERIES, AND HOUSE

CHAPTER 32

COMPLETION OF TWO FARMHOUSES—A LAKE—A BOAT

CHAPTER 33

ANNIVERSARY OF OUR DELIVERANCE—MOTIVES FOR THANKFULNESS

CHAPTER 34

GOURD PLANTATION—MONKEY ROOT OR GINSENG—BIRD SNARES

CHAPTER 35

THE DOVE-COT AND ITS MANAGEMENT

CHAPTER 36

JACK’S ADVENTURE AND NARROW ESCAPE—A FOUNTAIN

CHAPTER 37

THE APPROACH OF WINTER AND WET SEASON—INVENTION OF A NEW LIGHT—LITERARY ACQUISITIONS

CHAPTER 38

CLOSE OF THE RAINY SEASON—A WHALE—CORAL

CHAPTER 39

THE WHALE, ITS DISSECTION—USES OF THE DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE WHALE

CHAPTER 40

THE BOAT-PROPELLER OR ROWING MACHINE—A TURTLE DRIVE

CHAPTER 41

WEAVING-MACHINE—BASKET-MAKING—THE ALARM—A DANGEROUS VISITOR—THE ASS FALLS A VICTIM

CHAPTER 42

DISCOVERY OF A CRYSTAL GROTTO—FURTHER EXPLORATION

CHAPTER 43

THE PIG HUNT—THE SUPPLY—THE OTAHEITAN ROAST—HAM SMOKING

CHAPTER 44

EXCURSION INTO THE SAVANNA—TWO HORSEMEN—THE OSTRICH HUNT—THE NEST—THE LAND TURTLES

CHAPTER 45

BEARS! BEARS!—NARROW ESCAPE—THE COMBAT—DISCOVERY OF PORCELAIN EARTH

CHAPTER 46

PREPARATION OF THE BEARS’ FLESH—CUPS OUT OF OSTRICH EGGS—ANGORA RABBITS AND ANTELOPES

CHAPTER 47

OSTRICHES AGAIN—A HUNT AND A CAPTURE—ACQUISITION OF TREASURE—EUPHORBIA—VANILLA

CHAPTER 48

PROGRESS IN OSTRICH DISCIPLINE—EFFICACY OF TOBACCO SMOKE—HYDROMEL—THE NEW HAT—POTTERY

CHAPTER 49

RETURN OF THE RAINY SEASON—A NEW WANT—THE CAJACK

CHAPTER 50

RETURN OF THE BOYS—THEIR ADVENTURES—HARVESTING—PARTRIDGES AND QUAILS

CHAPTER 51

TRIAL OF THE CAJACK—THE ALARM—ADVENTURE WITH SEA-COWS—THE DRAWBRIDGE

CHAPTER 52

TAMING OF ANTELOPES—SUGAR PRESS—COMBAT WITH A HYENA—A FLYING COURIER—THE WILD HORSE AND THE ELEPHANT

CHAPTER 53

THE REDOUBT—VALUABLE DISCOVERIES—THE CACAO TREE—THE BANANA—CROCODILES AND ALLIGATORS—TEA PLANT—ARTILLERY AND FORTIFICATION OF SHARK ISLAND

CHAPTER 54

A GENERAL REVIEW OF THE COLONY AFTER TEN YEARS OF ESTABLISHMENT

CHAPTER 55

EXCURSION OF FRITZ—STARTLING COMMUNICATION—DISCOVERY OF PEARLS—INTELLIGENCE OF A FELLOW CREATURE—FRITZ’S RETURN, AND ACCOUNT OF HIS WONDERFUL DISCOVERIES

CHAPTER 56

EDIBLE BIRDS’ NESTS—PEARL-FISHERY—POOR JACK IS KILLED—DISCOVERY OF TRUFFLES

CHAPTER 57

COTTON NUTS—TERRIFIC ENCOUNTER WITH LION AND LIONESS—A SAVAGE—PARLEY, AND RECOGNITION OF A FRIEND

CHAPTER 58

ADVENTURES OF FRITZ—SIR EDWARD MONTROSE—OUR ADOPTED SISTER—ATTACK OF WOLVES—PREPARATIONS FOR RETURN

CHAPTER 59

THE LIMEKILN—FRITZ’S STORY

CHAPTER 60

EMILY’S OWN STORY—RETURN TO FELSENHEIM WITH MILITARY HONOURS—THE WINTER SEASON ONCE MORE

CHAPTER 61

CONCLUSION

AN ALADDIN READING GROUP GUIDE TO THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON

FOREWORD

When we were children many of our ideas for play came from stories. I particularly loved adventure stories that helped me to reinvent imagined worlds of discovery in a time when life seemed filled by days without end.

My sister was more given to reading books like Little Women, and her play world included painting her nails and playing with dolls. My brother read Tom Swift stories and science fiction comic books, and was absorbed with a play world that revolved around cars, boats, machines, Monopoly, and Scrabble. So I was pretty much alone in my play world, which was filled with pirate adventures from Peter Pan, animal stories from Black Beauty, strange characters from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, and exploring the waterways in a fine boat with The Wind in the Willows.

The winter that I was nine my grandmother, who lived with us, read my brother, sister, and me The Swiss Family Robinson. I was a solitary child, and the idea of self-sufficiency and relying on my ingenuity to survive in the wilderness was the best game I could think of. I spent hours at the desk in my room drawing plans for a tree house while snow fell outdoors. I couldn’t wait for warm weather, when our family moved to a cottage beside a small lake in north-eastern Pennsylvania. I dreamed of exploring the woods, catching fish, and nursing injured squirrels, chipmunks, and birds back to health.

When summer finally came I built a platform in a tree and covered it with a tent that was hidden by branches and leaves. I stocked it with food, water, and an old blanket and pillow. I collected acorns and chestnuts and stored them for the winter.

That entire summer I lived out the adventure of being stranded on a deserted island, naming the streams and hills, open spaces and meadows the way the Robinson family explored and named the parts of their island. They had their Falcon’s Nest, while mine was called Hawk’s Outlook, because hidden among the branches I could see red-tailed hawks swooping back to their nests with mice from the field beyond the woods. The Robinsons’ Jackal’s River was my Pollywog Creek, because the little stream that meandered through the meadow was where I caught tadpoles that I brought home to watch as they swam in a glass bowl toward their destiny as frogs.

Not being as resourceful as the Robinsons I had to make frequent trips from the woods back to the cottage to ask for lengths of laundry line and containers of various sizes for holding provisions—usually crayfish, minnows, earthworms, acorns, moss, and lake water.

I don’t remember Pastor Robinson’s sermons to his children from the story, and I don’t know whether the part that the mother and father played in the book led me to enlist my own parents’ support in my imagined world, but support me they did. They asked for progress reports and supplied most of my requests. They knew it was a secret world I explored, and they never insisted on seeing it. They provided me with a hammer and nails, and even my prized penknife, with which I spent hours whittling things for my island retreat.

As the woods were only a few yards from the cottage, my parents occasionally let me sleep in my Hawk’s Outlook tent house. And sometimes I made a quick, early morning trip to the lake to bring perch home for my father’s breakfast.

As we played, so we grew. It turned out that the days were not without end after all. As I look back to our childhood, I see that we became somewhat who we imagined being back then. My sister has been happiest in her adult life as a mother and housewife, while my brother has been a successful engineer and businessman.

My love for deserts, mountains, and jungles carried over into adulthood, when I worked in Asia, first as a news reporter, and later as I did research for a literacy project and began to invent imaginary worlds of my own as a fiction writer. Our play lives shaped us, and so did the stories we read.

If play is the land where I lived as a child, imagination continues as the most sustaining place in my life today. It is the place where I continue to learn about the world and about myself, where the lines between my world and the world that is possible shimmer and merge—the place where ideas and hope meet for all of us.

—Suzanne Fisher Staples

THE SWISS FAMILY

ROBINSON

CHAPTER I

A SHIPWRECK, AND PREPARATIONS FOR DELIVERANCE

Already the tempest had continued six days; on the seventh its fury seemed still increasing; and the morning dawned upon us without a prospect of hope, for we had wandered so far from the right track, and were so forcibly driven toward the southeast, that none on board knew where we were. The ship’s company were exhausted by labour and watching, and the courage which had sustained them was now sinking. The shivered masts had been cast into the sea; several leaks appeared, and the ship began to fill. The sailors forbore from swearing; many were at prayer on their knees; while others offered miracles of future piety and goodness, as the condition of their release from danger. My beloved children, said I to my four boys, who clung to me in their fright, God can save us, for nothing is impossible to Him. We must however hold ourselves resigned, and, instead of murmuring at His decree, rely that what he sees fit to do is best, and that should He call us from this earthly scene, we shall be near Him in heaven, and united through eternity. Death may well be supported when it does not separate those who love.

My excellent wife wiped the tears which were falling on her cheeks, and from this moment became more tranquil: she encouraged the youngest children who were leaning on her knees; while I, who owed them an example of firmness, was scarcely able to resist my grief at the thought of what would most likely be the fate of beings so tenderly beloved. We all fell on our knees, and supplicated the God of Mercy to protect us; and the emotion and fervour of the innocent creatures are a convincing proof that even in childhood devotion may be felt and understood, and that tranquillity and consolation, its natural effects, may at that season be no less certainly experienced. Fritz, my eldest son, implored, in a loud voice, that God would deign to save his dear parents and his brothers, generously unmindful of himself: the boys rose from their posture with a state of mind so improved that they seemed forgetful of the impending danger. I myself began to feel my hopes increase, as I beheld the affecting group. Heaven will surely have pity on them, thought I, and will save their parents to guard their tender years!

At this moment a cry of Land, land! was heard through the roaring of the waves, and instantly the vessel struck against a rock with so violent a motion as to drive every one from his place; a tremendous cracking succeeded, as if the ship were going to pieces; the sea rushed in, in all directions; we perceived that the vessel had grounded, and could not long hold together. The captain called out that all was lost, and bade the men lose not a moment in putting out the boats. The sounds fell on my heart like a thrust from a dagger: We are lost! I exclaimed, and the children broke out into piercing cries. I then recollected myself, and, addressing them again, exhorted them to courage, by observing that the water had not yet reached us, that the ship was near land, and that Providence would assist the brave. Keep where you are, added I, while I go and examine what is best to be done.

I now went on the deck. A wave instantly threw me down, and wetted me to the skin; another followed, and then another. I sustained myself as steadily as I could; and looking around, a scene of terrific and complete disaster met my eyes: the ship was shattered in all directions, and on one side there was a complete breach. The ship’s company crowded into the boats till they could contain not one man more, and the last who entered were now cutting the ropes to move off. I called to them with almost frantic entreaties to stop and receive us also, but in vain; for the roaring of the sea prevented my being heard, and the waves, which rose to the height of mountains, would have made it impossible to return. All hope from this source was over, for, while I spoke, the boats, and all they contained, were driving out of sight. My best consolation now was to observe that the slanting position the ship had taken would afford us present protection from the water; and that the stern, under which was the cabin that enclosed all that was dear to me on earth, had been driven upwards between two rocks, and seemed immovably fixed. At the same time, in the distance southward, I descried through clouds and rain, several nooks of land, which, though rude and savage in appearance, were the objects of every hope I could form in this distressing moment.

Sunk and desolate from the loss of all chance of human aid, it was yet my duty to appear serene before my family: Courage, dear ones, cried I on entering their cabin, let us not desert ourselves: I will not conceal from you that the ship is aground; but we are at least in greater safety than if she were beating upon the rocks; our cabin is above water; and should the sea be more calm to-morrow, we may yet find means to reach the land in safety.

What I had just said appeased their fears; for my family had the habit of confiding in my assurances. They now began to feel the advantage of the ship’s remaining still; for its motion had been most distressing, by jostling them one against another, or whatever happened to be nearest. My wife, however, more accustomed than the children to read my inmost thoughts, perceived the anxiety which devoured me. I made her a sign which conveyed an idea of the hopelessness of our situation; and I had the consolation to see that she was resolved to support the trial with resignation. Let us take some nourishment, said she; our courage will strengthen our bodies; we shall perhaps need this comfort to support and long and melancholy night.

Soon after night set in; the fury of the tempest had not abated; the planks and beams of the vessel separated in many parts with a horrible crash. We thought of the boats, and feared that all they contained must have sunk under the foaming surge.

My wife had prepared a slender meal, and the four boys partook of it with an appetite to which their parents were strangers. They went to bed, and, exhausted by fatigue, soon were snoring loudly. Fritz, the eldest, sat up with us. I have been thinking, said he, after a long silence, how it may be possible to save ourselves. If we had some bladders or cork-jackets for my mother and my brothers, you and I, father, would soon contrive to swim to land.

That is a good thought, said I; we will see what can be done.

Fritz and I looked about for some small empty firkins; these we tied two and two together with handkerchiefs or towels, leaving about a foot distance between them, and fastened them as swimming-jackets under the arms of each child, my wife at the same time preparing one for herself. We provided ourselves with knives, some string, some turfs, and other necessaries which could be put into the pocket, proceeding upon the hope, that if the ship went to pieces in the night, we should either be able to swim to land, or be driven thither by the waves.

Fritz, who had been up all night, and was fatigued with his laborious occupations, now lay down near his brothers, and was soon asleep; but their mother and I, too anxious to close our eyes, kept watch, listening to every sound that seemed to threaten a further change in our situation. We passed this awful night in prayer, in agonizing apprehensions, and in forming various resolutions as to what we should next attempt. We hailed with joy the first gleam of light which shot through a small opening of the window. The raging of the winds had begun to abate, the sky was become serene, and hope throbbed in my bosom, as I beheld the sun already tinging the horizon. Thus revived, I summoned my wife and the boys to the deck to partake of the scene. The youngest children, half forgetful of the past, asked with surprise, why we were there alone, and what had become of the ship’s company? I led them to the recollection of our misfortune, and then added, Dearest children, a Being more powerful than man has helped us, and will, no doubt, continue to help us, if we do not abandon ourselves to a fruitless despair. Observe, our companions, in whom we had so much confidence, have deserted us, and that Divine Providence, in its goodness, has given us protection! But, my dear ones, let us show ourselves willing in our exertions, and thus deserve support from heaven. Let us not forget this useful maxim, and let each labour according to his strength.

Fritz advised that we should all throw ourselves into the sea, while it was calm, and swim to land. Ah! that may be well enough for you, said Ernest, for you can swim; but we others should soon be drowned. Would it not be better to make a float of rafts, and get to land all together upon it?

Vastly well, answered I, if we had the means for contriving such a float, and if, after all, it were not a dangerous sort of conveyance. But come, my boys, look each of you about the ship, and see what can be done to enable us to reach the land.

They now all sprang from me with eager looks, to do as I desired. I, on my part, lost no time in examining what we had to depend on as to provisions and fresh water. My wife and the youngest boy visited the animals, whom they found in a pitiable condition, nearly perishing with hunger and thirst. Fritz repaired to the ammunition room; Ernest to the carpenter’s cabin; Jack to the apartment of the captain; but scarcely had he opened the door, when two large dogs sprang upon him, and saluted him with such rude affection that he roared for assistance, as if they had been killing him. Hunger, however, had rendered the poor creatures so gentle that they licked his hands and face, uttering all the time a slow sort of moan, and continuing their caresses till he was almost suffocated. Poor Jack exerted all his strength in blows to drive them away: at last he began to understand, and to sympathize in their joyful movements, and put himself upon another footing. He got upon his legs, and gently taking the largest dog by the ears, sprang upon his back, and with great gravity presented himself thus mounted before me, as I came out of the ship’s hold. I could not refrain from laughing, and I praised his courage; but I added a little exhortation to be cautious, and not go too far with animals of this species, who, in a state of hunger, might be dangerous.

By and by my little company were again assembled round me, and each boasted of what he had to contribute. Fritz had two fowling-pieces, some powder and small-shot, contained in horn flasks, and some bullets in bags.

Ernest produced his hat filled with nails, and held in his hands a hatchet and a hammer; in addition, a pair of pincers, a pair of large scissors, and an auger, peeped out at his pocket-hole.

Even the little Francis carried under his arm a box of no very small size, from which he eagerly produced what he called some little sharp-pointed hooks. His brothers smiled scornfully. Vastly well, gentlemen, said I; but let me tell you that the youngest has brought the most valuable prize, and this is often the case in the world; the person who least courts the smiles of Fortune, and in the calm of his heart is scarcely conscious of her existence, is often he to whom she most readily presents herself. These little sharp-pointed hooks, as Francis calls them, are fishing-hooks, and will probably be of more use in preserving our lives than all we may find besides in the ship. In justice, however, I must confess, that what Fritz and Ernest have contributed will also afford essential service.

I, for my part, said my wife, have brought nothing; but I have some tidings to communicate which I hope will secure my welcome: I have found on board a cow and an ass, two goats, six sheep, and a sow big with young: I have just supplied them with food and water, and I reckon on being able to preserve their lives.

All this is admirable, said I to my young labourers; and there is only master Jack, who, instead of thinking of something useful, has done us the favour to present to us two personages, who, no doubt, will be principally distinguished by being willing to eat more than we shall have to give them.

Ah! replied Jack, but if we can once get to land, you will see that they will assist in hunting and shooting.

True enough, said I, but be so good as to tell us how we are to get to land, and whether you have contrived the means?

I am sure it cannot be very difficult, said Jack, with an arch motion of his head. Look here at these large tubs. Why cannot each of us get into one of them, and float to the land? I remember I succeeded very well in this manner on the water, when I was visiting my godfather at S—

Every one’s thought is good for something, cried I, and I begin to believe that what Jack has suggested is worth a trial: quick, then, boy! give me the saw, the auger, and some nails; we will see what is to be done. I recollected having seen some empty casks in the ship’s hold: we went down, and found them floating in the water which had got into the vessel; it cost us but little trouble to hoist them up, and place them on the lower deck, which was at this time scarcely above water. We saw, with joy, that they were all sound, well guarded by iron hoops, and in every respect in good condition; they were exactly suited for the object; and, with the assistance of my sons, I instantly began to saw them in two. In a short time I had produced eight tubs, of equal size, and of the proper height. We now allowed ourselves some refreshment of wine and biscuit. I viewed with delight my eight little tubs, ranged in a line. I was surprised to see that my wife did not partake our eagerness; she sighed deeply as she looked at them. Never, never, cried she, can I venture to get into one of these.

Do not decide so hastily, me dear, said I; my plan is not yet complete; and you will see presently that it is more worthy of our confidence that this shattered vessel, which cannot move from its place.

I then sought for a long pliant plank, and placed my eight tubs upon it, leaving a piece at each end reaching beyond the tubs, which, bent upward, would present an outline like the keel of a vessel; we next nailed all the tubs to the plank, and then the tubs to each other, as they stood, side by side, to make them the firmer, and afterwards two other planks, of the same length as the first, on each side of the tubs. When all this was finished, we found we had produced a kind of narrow boat, divided into eight compartments, which I had no doubt would be able to perform a short course in calm water.

But now we discovered that the machine we had contrived was so heavy, that, with the strength of all united, we were not able to move it an inch from its place. I bade Fritz fetch me a crow, who soon returned with it: in the meanwhile I sawed a thick round pole into several pieces, to make some rollers. I then, with the crow, easily raised the foremost part of my machine, while Fritz placed one of the rollers under it.

How astonishing, cried Ernest, that this engine, which is smaller than any of us, can do more than our united strength was able to effect! I wish I could know how it is constructed.

I explained to him as well as I could the power of Archimedes’ lever, with which he said he could move the world, if you would give him a point from which his mechanism might act, and promised to explain the nature of the operation of the crow when we should be safe on land.

One of the points of my system of education for my sons was to awaken their curiosity by interesting observations, to leave time for the activity of the imagination, and then to correct any error they might fall into. I contented myself now, however, with this general remark, that God sufficiently compensated the natural weakness of man by the gifts of reason, of invention, and the adroitness of the hands; and that human meditation and skill had produced a science, called mechanics, the object of which was, to teach us how to make our own natural strength act to an incredible distance, and with extraordinary force, by the intervention of instruments.

Jack here remarked that the action of the crow was very slow.

Better slow than never, Jack, replied I. Experience has ever taught, and mechanical observations have established as a principle, that what is gained in speed is lost in strength: the purpose of the crow is not to enable us to raise anything rapidly, but to raise what is exceedingly heavy; and the heavier the thing we would move, the slower is the mechanical operation. But are you aware what we have at our command, to compensate for this slowness?

Yes, it is turning the handle quicker.

Your guess is wrong; that would be no compensation: the true remedy, my boy, is to call in the assistance of patience and reason: with the aid of these two fairy powers I am in hopes to set my machine afloat. As I said this, I tied a long cord to its stern, and the other end of it to one of the timbers of the ship, which appeared to be still firm, so that the cord being left loose would serve to guide and restrain it when launched. We now put a second and a third roller under, and applying the crow, to our great joy our machine descended into the water with such a velocity that, if the rope had not been well fastened, it would have gone far out to sea. But now a new difficulty presented itself: the boat leaned so much on one side that the boys all exclaimed they could not venture to get into it. I was for some moments in the most painful perplexity; but it suddenly occurred to me that balast only was wanting to set it straight. I drew it near, and threw all the useless things I could find into the tubs, so as to make weight on the light side. By degrees the machine became quite straight and firm in the water, seeming to invite us to take refuge in its protection. All now would get into the tubs, and the boys began to dispute which should be first. I drew them back, and seeking a remedy for this kind of obstacle, I recollected that savage nations make use of a paddle for preventing their canoes from upsetting. I once more set to work to make one of these.

I took two poles of equal length, upon which the sails of the vessel had been stretched, and having descended into the machine, fixed one of them at the head, and the other at the stern, in such a manner as to enable us to turn them at pleasure to right or left, as should best answer the purpose of guiding and putting it out to sea. I stuck the end of each pole, or paddle, into the bunghole of an empty brandy-keg, which served to keep the paddles steady, and to prevent any interruption in the management of our future enterprise.

There remained nothing more to do, but to find in what way I could clear out from the incumbrance of the wreck. I got into the first tub, and steered the head of the machine so as to make it enter the cleft in the ship’s side, where it could remain quiet. I then remounted the vessel, and sometimes with the saw, and sometimes with the hatchet, I cleared away, to right and left, everything that could obstruct our passage; and, that being effected, we next secured some oars for the voyage we resolved on attempting.

We had spent all day in laborious exertions; it was already late; and as it would not have been possible to reach the land that evening, we were obliged to pass a second night in the wrecked vessel, which at every instant threatened to fall to pieces. We next refreshed ourselves by a regular meal; for, during the day’s work, we had scarcely allowed ourselves to take a bit of bread, or a glass of wine. Being now in a more tranquil and unapprehensive state of mind than the day before, we all abandoned ourselves to sleep; not, however, till I had taken the precaution of tying the swimming apparatus round my three youngest boys and my wife, in case the storm should again come on. I also advised my wife to dress herself in the clothes of one of the sailors which were so much more convenient for swimming, or any other exertions she might be compelled to engage in. She consented, but not without reluctance, and left us to look for some that might best suit her size. In a quarter of an hour she returned, dressed in clothes of a young man who had served as volunteer on board the ship, and I soon found means to reconcile her to the change, by representing the many advantages it gave her, till at length she joined in the merriment her dress occasioned, and one and all crept into our separate hammocks, where a delicious repose prepared us for the renewal of our labours.

CHAPTER 2

A LANDING, AND CONSEQUENT OCCUPATIONS

By break of day we were all awake and alert, for hope as well as grief is unfriendly to lengthened slumbers. When we had finished our morning prayer, I said, We now, my best beloved, with the assistance of Heaven, must enter upon the work of our deliverance. The first thing to be done is to give to each poor animal on board a hearty meal; we will then put food enough before them for several days; we cannot take them with us; but we will hope it may be possible, if our voyage succeeds, to return and fetch them. Are you now all ready? Bring together whatever is absolutely necessary for our wants. It is my wish that our first cargo should consist of a barrel with gunpowder, three fowling-pieces, and three carbines, with as much small-shot and lead, and as many bullets as our boat will carry; two pairs of pocket-pistols, and one of large ones, not forgetting a mould to cast balls in; each of the boys, and their mother also, should have a bag to carry game in; you will find plenty of these in the cabins of the officers. We added a chest containing cakes of portable soup, another full of hard biscuits, an iron pot, a fishing-rod, a chest of nails, and another of different utensils, such as hammers, saws, pincers, hatchets, augers, etc., and lastly, some sailcloth to make a tent. Indeed the boys brought so many things that we were obliged to reject some of them, though I had already exchanged the worthless ballast for articles of use in the question of our subsistence.

When all was ready we stepped bravely each into a tub. At the moment of our departure the cocks and hens began to cluck, as if conscious that we had deserted them, yet were willing to bid us a sorrowful adieu. This suggested to me the idea of taking the geese, ducks, fowls, and pigeons with us; observing to my wife that, if we could not find means to feed them, at least they would feed us.

We accordingly executed this plan. We put ten hens and an old and a young cock into one of the tubs, and covered it with planks; we set the rest of the poultry at liberty, in the hope that instinct would direct them towards the land, the geese and the ducks by water, and the pigeons by the air.

We were waiting for my wife, who had the care of this last part of our embarkation, when she joined us loaded with a large bag, which she threw into the tub that already contained her youngest son. I imagined that

Reviews for The Swiss Family Robinson

[bookconcierge · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Digital audiobook read by Frederick Davidson. Originally published in 1812, this is a classic adventure tale of a mother, father and four sons who are shipwrecked on an unnamed (and apparently uncharted) tropical island in the South Seas. I had never read the book, though I had seen the Disney movie back in the ‘60s. My adult self recognizes the glaringly implausible (and, frankly, impossible) scenarios – penguins AND bears AND ostriches! – but the adventure still captures the imagination. I also got a bit tired of the Father’s propensity to lecture; my stars, but the man is a walking encyclopedia and he feels compelled to impart his knowledge constantly. Since he is also the narrator, his superior attitude has plenty of opportunity to “shine.” Still, there is much practical information as well as natural history explained, and there are some very exciting scenes to capture the imagination of a young would-be explorer. There are multiple editions of this classic and some have modernized the language to make it “more accessible to today’s students.” One edition I looked at had the narrator always referring to “the Mother,” never naming this strong woman but relegating her to only that role in life. The edition I wound up reading at least had the narrator referring to her as “my wife.” Again, no name but at least showing a personal relationship.

[rodwms · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Maybe it's the translation but I tried to read this book (aloud) to my children and it bored us all unremittingly ...

[firewild · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A very curious reading from a historical perspective. What would life on an uninhabited island in the southern seas look like from a 19th century man's perspective? Apparently it would mostly consist of killing and/or taming any wild beast imaginable from all five continents. On that island the brave Robinson family encounters penguins, lions, walruses, kangaroos, ostriches, lions, elephants, bears, etc. I believe the learned Mr. Wyss felt an immense pressure to be just and not to overlook any creature he may have had a fortune to come across in his studies.

A little spoiler to add drama: some beasts were killed, while riding one of the aforementioned ostriches.

[jonsweitzerlamme · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Even on a shipwrecked island, you can't really ride an ostrich. Also, how many houses does one family need? Just a fun, wild read.

[charlie68_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The main story is quite good, I found the digressions informative but tedious. The book might be a compendium of scientific knowledge of the early nineteenth century. Which gives an interesting viewpoint into the world of that era.

[bookbrook · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I love this book!!!

[mumfie_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

As an adult this story is ridiculously irritating.The ship they were shipwrecked from happened to be outfitting a colony and therefore has all the tools and growing crops you could wish for. The island has a good selection of edible plants, trees and animals, as well as running potable water. The family between them can manage everything and know how to do everything they need without having a survival manual to hand.If you can get past all that it's a good and classic novel.

[lovinglit · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

So. A family gets shipwrecked on an island. They happily build some houses, plant food-bearing plants, tame some local animals, and kill one of everything else they see to put in their "museum". The head of the household is a pious man, who luckily seems to know everything about every animal/plant/indigenous custom that ever existed. This father is the narrator of the story. It seems that at every turn there is an opportunity for him to impart some specialised knowledge and moral lesson for his sons. I found him to be stuffy and arrogant, but that was the time I suppose. The only thing saving this story for me was that it was originally a bedtime story told to the authors sons. In that context I can see the fast moving events working, but in the novel form it is repetitive and borderline meaningless

[cshoughton · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

A story about a family sentenced to live in a paradise of raw materials and quality tools where they enjoy near-constant divine intervention on their behalf. There's no tension or depth in the book, just an inventory of their industry, consumption, and slaughter.

[patty_jansen-1 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I love the good classics. For example we have all books in the Anne of Green Gables series. They are obviously written in a different time and in a style that was common then: lots of description and day-to-day happenings without a strong plot. But these books give a beautiful and interesting flavour of times past.This book, however... I completely fail to understand why this ever became a classic.It starts well, but soon the book gets bogged in chapter after chapter of problems too easily solved, self-righteous preaching and family wholesomeness that I find unbelievable. In addition to this, the author appears not to have had one ounce of knowledge regarding the world's geography, climate and plant species.If you want to read classics to your kids, find something else.

[deltaqueen50 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This classic tale of adventure is a perfect story to place in the graphic novel format with it’s exciting story and colourful backdrop. When their ship strikes a reef and they are abandoned by the crew, this family manages to survive the storm and salvage many necessary ingredients to their survival on a isolated tropical island. In fact not only do they survive, they manage to thrive and create a wonderful colony that eventually, when they are discovered, lures more people to join them.With four sons in the family, it is a given that there will be adventures galore. Sharks and jaguars, tree houses and caves, all are drawn in great detail, and this book, originally published in German in 1812 springs to life on these pages.Although simplistic and somewhat abbreviated , this graphic version is a wonderful introduction (or re-visit) to the classic original, especially as it cuts down somewhat on the dated religious views and overly sentimental family values that are strewn throughout the book. Published by Campfire Graphic Novels, this is just one in a large series of classics such as Kim, Prisoner of Zenda, Gulliver’s Travels and many more. Re-visiting the Swiss Family Robinson was a fun way to spend an afternoon.

[auntieknickers · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It's been a very long time since I read this, but I think I still have my original copy from the Junior Deluxe Editions book club my parents signed me up for. I'm sure I read it more than once, because I have such clear memories of the adventures. I especially loved how they could always find things they needed on the wrecked ship.

[judyg54 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Copied from the 'description' page regarding this book: "Swept off course by a raging storm, a Swiss pastor, his wife, and their four young sons are shipwrecked on an uncharted tropical island. Thus begins the classic story of survival and adventure that has fired the imaginations of readers since it first appeared in 1812. With optimism and boundless enthusiasm, the Robinson family undertakes the extraordinary task of constructing a home for themselves and exploring the primitive island filled with strange and beautiful creatures and exotic fruits and plants."I liked the story line and the family, but at times the story dealt too much on the animals, their origin, the plants and their uses, etc.. Although the movie I watched of this story did not stick very close to this book, I liked it better.

[kw50197 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Fun reading.

[edwinbcn · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Nowadays, a work such as The Swiss Family Robinson would be considered an unacceptable rip-off of Robinson Crusoe. What is puzzling still is what lends it the status of a classic, if not its apparently staggering sales.Devoid of originality, what more (except for sales) does a book need to become a classic. Presently, both Robinson Crusoe and The Swiss Family Robinson are mainly read, whether or not in adapted editions as children's books. The latter was intended to be a book for children, while the former was not. It is difficult to assess whether youth would consider Defoe's novel distressing or difficult to understand.From a pedagogical point of view, that is to say, children would probably learn more words and concepts from The Swiss Family Robinson as the author deliberately enriched it with vocabulary, referring to various plants and animals, which could not have lived together on a island as described.Where the island of Robinson Crusoe would appear alien and dangerous, the island of The Swiss Family Robinson would seem familiar, surroundings essentially not much different from the reader's home surroundings. Both Robinsons were happy to get shipwrecked with some supplies and tools they could salvage from the wreck, but in the case of the The Swiss Family Robinson they were able to salvage so much and so many essentially luxury items that their experience on the island is not very distressing. The same attention for luxury is expressed in the idea of constructing a spiral staircase in their shelter (p. 162) and preparing a meal of caviare (p. 176).

[callmechristina · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I dunno...I know the purpose of the book was to teach kids and people how to survive in the wild, and maybe I'd find it more interesting as an adult, but it was so dry! I liked the movie better :-D

[davidleeking_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Loved it as a kid. As a grown up reading it TO my kids, it was a little tedious in places. And I got a kick out of how many different species of animal exists on their little island.Most amusing.

[aprildt_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

This is considered a classic, and I liked a lot action and the inventions the family created when they were stranded on the island, but I was not able to keep my disbelief suspended. For example, the father knew every species they came across. I don't believe that anyone in 1800, no matter how well-read he was, would react to every species (both plant and animal) with a spurt of perfect knowledge of that species. Fun book, for the most part.

[mrslee_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I read this aloud to my children and they enjoyed it once the action got going. I think they were a bit credulous at the way the survivors managed so well on the island, yet it was fun to read anyway. Besides, that was one of their favorite places at Disney Land, though I think it has been changed now to something more modern. Loved the discussion in the book of the things seaweed is good for and its various properties.

[raykhenberg · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

About as exciting as reading the user manual for a vacuum cleaner. Either way, you're constantly thinking to yourself, 'Well, this sucks.'

[dandelionroots · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This mostly just annoyed me that I'd chosen to read it over its basis, Defoe's Robinson Crusoe. I blame Disney World."But in reality, the more there was to do the better. I never ceased contriving fresh improvements, being fully aware of the importance of constant employment as a means of strengthening and maintaining the health of mind and body. This, indeed, with a consciousness of continual progress toward a desirable end, is found to constitute the main element of happiness."^The moral of Wyss's story, with which I agree, but am incapable of appreciating in such a fantastically providential manner. I think I've always been too old for this amount of good fortune.

[bookish59 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The Robinson Family, are shipwrecked on a tropical island for over 10 years. They survive because the father knows NEARLY everything related to science, botany, animal husbandry, farming, carpentry, parenting, marriage, and more, and because they managed to salvage most of the useful items from the ship, i.e. lanterns, silverware, dishes, tools, wood, barrels, books, as well as the animals on board.They explore the island, find plenty of plants and trees that can be used, and begin building a number of homesteads as well as defense barriers. They hunt to eat, but also capture native animals to tame and use for heavier work. They plant and harvest, repair and improve, and beautify until the island truly is New Switzerland. Because this was written in the early 1800's specifically for BOYS, the tone is old-fashioned and sexist; the book is filled with moral lessons on co-operating, independence, responsibility, respect for elders, physical prowess belief in G-d, and knowledge of the environment. Surprisingly not boring; the Robinsons navigate from one adventure to the next, celebrate their successes, and love and care for each other.

[danielle_b_12 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I absolutely loved this book!!! It was difficult to put down therefore this was a "nothing else got done" kinda book. It was wonderful to read about how God came first, as it should be, and how getting back to the basics brings family blessings unmeasurable.

[t1bclasslibrary · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I didn't expect to like this one as much as I did- I thought I'd be bored with it and put off by the fact that an impossible variety of animals and other inaccuracies were coupled with the know-it-all tales of the father. I ended up being fascinated by everything they did. All their adventures, all their creations, everything that made living in the wilderness a civilized and abundant life for them. The ending had some interesting implications- if they indeed started a colony, they wouldn't have the same abundance, but at the same time, they'd have friendship and a future.

[matt2rocha0505 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book is about the Robinson family getting stuck on a abanden ship. In the begining of the book the family is on a ship headed to sweden but end up in a bad srorm and crash in to a big rock. The crew abanen them and the father said the ship wont sink fast and they would sleep tell tomarow. In the middle of the book they find saliler also ship reced on the same island as them. At the end of the book the get saved but only the two sons and the sailer who is actuly a girl leave the island why'll their mom, dad, and yunger brother stayes.

[asmirnov_3 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Perhaps their lives would have been even better if they spent less time praying and thanking god. This aspect of the book became very annoying very quickly. The least favorite (for me) of the Robinson-type marooned-on-an-island type books (Defoe, Verne, Etc).

[hemlokgang · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I was genuinely surprised at how much I disliked this book. The father was ridiculously knowledgeable and moralistic. Yuck!

[crewman_number_6 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A little dated, but always a classic.

[thornton37814 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I remember trying to read this book when I was a child. I didn't enjoy it. I did, however, enjoy the movie better. The story concerns a Swiss family's adventure in the South Pacific after being shipwrecked. It's a story of survival. After seeing another person's review here on LibraryThing, I decided to revisit the book to see if my adult tastes in reading made a difference in my like/dislike of the book. Unfortunately I found that the book had not aged well, even though it is considered a classic. It's one of the few books which fall into the category, "Skip the book; watch the movie instead."

[atimco-1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

The Swiss Family Robinson, first published in 1812, is considered a staple of children's adventure fiction. Somehow I must have missed it growing up, and unfortunately it wasn't the fun read I was expecting. It was—dare I admit it?—rather boring. I was expecting adventure; what I got was a list of inventions and how they were invented. After awhile I grew tired of the descriptions of plants and their uses, the narrator's random useful knowledge and ingenuity, the details of every innovation, the management of their various homes and outposts, etc. And where, oh where are the pirates?This is, of course, one of the more successful imitators of Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, and it's fun to think of Johann Wyss's children gathering around him to listen to the adventures of the Swiss Robinsons. And it did inspire the old Disney movie, which is an utterly ridiculous and lovable film. I appreciated Wyss's deliberate inclusion of moral lessons, though I might approach things a bit differently than the narrator with my own children. Despite the general fact-reporting style of the narrative, there are a few humorous bits, like this wry observation:I constructed a couple of hen-coops, too, for the hens and their little chicks which we had brought from Woodlands, for I knew that if I left them unprotected, the inquisitive dispositions of Knips and Fangs might induce them to make anatomical experiments which would be detrimental to welfare of the youngsters. (300)The edition I read from Puffin is the most popular English translation by W. H. G. Kingston, and I didn't find it particularly well done. Misplaced modifiers, comma splices, and other such failings are the order of the day. I found this copy secondhand and it has its own little history, I think. The inside cover is inscribed to "Zoë" from "Papa" for Christmas 2004. I can't help but imagine some fond grandfather giving his granddaughter a book he loved and hoping that she would enjoy it just as he had. Well, it's a paperback and didn't show any signs of ever having been read when I bought it. I hope Papa never found out. Though I can't say I really blame Zoë, either. Disappointing.