Robinson Crusoe

By: Daniel Defoe

Narrated by: Simon Vance

Widely regarded as the first English novel, Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe is one of the most popular and influential adventure stories of all time.

This classic tale of shipwreck and survival on an uninhabited island was an instant success when first published in 1719, and it has inspired countless imitations.

In his own words, Robinson Crusoe tells of the terrible storm that drowned all his shipmates and left him marooned on a deserted island. Forced to overcome despair, doubt, and self-pity, he struggles to create a life for himself in the wilderness. From practically nothing, Crusoe painstakingly learns how to make pottery, grow crops, domesticate livestock, and build a house. His many adventures are recounted in vivid detail, including a fierce battle with cannibals and his rescue of Friday, the man who becomes his trusted companion.

Full of enchanting detail and daring heroics, Robinson Crusoe is a celebration of courage, patience, ingenuity, and hard work.

Download the accompanying reference guide.Public Domain (P)2008 Tantor

Great story but with moments that made me cringe

Robinson Crusoe is a great story, but it has some cringe-able moments. The big one, the one I didn't remember from high school, was the purpose of Crusoe's voyage when he was shipwrecked on the island: he was the supercargo on a slave ship, intending to buy "slaves for trinkets" on the west coast of Africa, some of them destined for his own slave plantation in Brazil. It would be nice to report that by the end of the book, after his association with Friday, he came to realize the trade was evil, but such is not the case.

The first word he teaches Friday is the name he decided to call him by - the day of the week on which he rescued Friday from cannibals. (He never bothers trying to learn Friday's original name in his own language.) The second word he teaches him is the name by which he wants to be addressed: Master.

This bothered me enough that I spent some time looking up the history of abolitionism in England. Apparently it didn't really take off until another generation or two after the book was written (in 1719). So Defoe doesn't quite get a free pass in my book for this, but at least it can be argued that he was simply not ahead of his time on this issue.

Still, it's a great story, and well worth listening to. Crusoe pieces together a life of reasonable comfort, using flotsam from the wreck that stranded him on the island, and a bit of ingenuity. He keeps track of time by cutting notches in a post. He discovers living seeds among the trash he brought back, and by careful experimenting over several years, he is able to raise a respectable crop of wheat. He comes to a kind of accommodation with the cannibals who periodically visit the island: he realizes that he has no right to kill them just because he abhors their way of life.

But eventually he does kill a few and rescue one of their fellow cannibals, who was about to become a meal himself. This young man he names Friday. As Friday learns English and they begin having more substantial conversations, Crusoe tries to teach him Christianity. (I have to admit that I found Friday's questions and objections more persuasive than Crusoe's answers.) Eventually they are rescued and leave the island.

A major loose end in the plot concerns Friday's father and a small group of Spanish soldiers, whom Friday and Crusoe rescue from yet another band of cannibals. They return to the island they came from, where a larger group of Spaniards resides, to bring them news of Crusoe and the greater safety to be had on his island. But Crusoe returns to England before they get back. (This loose end is tied up neatly in the sequel, the Further Adventures of Robinson Crusoe.)

There are many excellent audio versions of this story available. The one by John Lee is also recommended. (It uses a different set of chapter breaks than this one: apparently Defoe published the story without breaks, and chapters have been added in different forms by later editors.) Simon Vance's version has a slight edge, in my opinion, because his Crusoe has a Yorkshire twang: Crusoe is, after all, a Yorkshireman. (My "expertise" in this comes from many years of watching Sean Bean and listening to Richard Sharpe audiobooks.) Vance, as always, gives a well-modulated, evenly-paced performance.

Fantastic Story and Excellent Narration

Exciting storyline and excellent narration really brings this book to life. I could listen to Simon Vance read the phone book. :)

Adrift

This is probably Daniel Defoe’s best known story and possibly the first English language novel ever written. Inspired by the life of explorer Alexander Selkirk, Robinson Crusoe is the story of a shipwrecked English sailor as he struggles to survive while marooned on a tropical island somewhere off the coast of Africa. Despite being written in the early 1700s, the narrative hold up incredibly well. Some parts will strike a modern reader as fairly racist, but I could forgive that considering the time period. To this day, Robinson Crusoe remains an incredible, and surprisingly philosophical, adventure story of a lone man struggling to survive in the unforgiving wilderness.

As for the narration, I’m a huge fan of Simon Vance in general. That said, I think this might be his best work yet. He perfectly captures Crusoe’s voice and Vance’s own natural accent pushes a good performance into the realm of a fantastic one. Just click on the sample and you’ll see/hear what I mean. What are you waiting for? Beyond highly recommended!

Well worth the money

Inflection and accent of narrator is engaging. Almost as good as a dramatization. Four stars. I highly suggest this reading to college or high school students.

Great story, fantastic narration

A great story end to end! It starts a little impenetrably with the description of his relationship with his father and Robinson’s decision to go against his wishes and all the ill that may befall him... Then the story really gets underway and takes you on a great adventure including totally absorbing (and satisfying!) descriptions of his ship wrecked life and how he went about surviving. A great listen made all the better by the ever exceptional Simon Vance.