Long a favorite of children and young adults, this thrilling account of a family’s struggle against overwhelming odds retains a lasting appeal for readers who admire the family’s loving spirit and the enterprising manner in which they prevail. Featuring the best English-language adaptation--done by William H. G. Kingston in 1889--this unabridged edition of the immensely popular tale is sure to enthrall a new generation of readers.

After days of being tossed and battered by a raging storm, the ship on which the narrator, his wife, and their four sons are passengers smashes against a reef--and the last lifeboat pulis away without them. Next morning, the intrepid, loving little family finds itself cast away on an uninhabited island. Never losing hope, they retrieve what they can from the ship and construct a life for themselves through their own resourcefulness--building a tree house, finding such foods as coconuts, sugarcane, honey, and potatoes, and securing themselves against danger. Adventure follows adventure as they explore the island, encounter wild birds and terrifying animals, plant crops,build sturdier shelters, and settle in for a long stay. Although there are many hardships, the family lives in peace and harmony, and even rescues a girl who herself is a castaway on a nearby island.

Johann David Wyss (1743-1818), a pastor in Bern, Switzerland, after observing how enthralled his four sons were by the story of Robinson Crusoe, decided to create his own Robinson--a Swiss one, with a family just like his own--in order to entertain and instruct the boys. Many years later, his son Johann Rudolf Wyss, who had become a librarian and a professor of philosophy, convinced his father to allow him to complete and edit the charming story. It was published for the first time in 1813 as Der schweizerische Robinson, oder der schiffbruchige Schweitzerprediger und seine Familie ("The Swiss Robinson, or the Shipwrecked Swiss Preacher and His Family").

Long a favorite of children and young adults, this thrilling account of a family’s struggle against overwhelming odds retains a lasting appeal for readers who admire the family’s loving spirit and the enterprising manner in which they prevail. Featuring the best English-language adaptation--done by William H. G. Kingston in 1889--this unabridged edition of the immensely popular tale is sure to enthrall a new generation of readers.

1. Shipwrecked and Alone

2. A Desolate Island

3. We Explore Our Island

4. The Homeward Journey

5. We Revisit the Wreck

6. Mother Makes a Suggestion

7. We Build a Bridge

8. The Journey to the Wonderful Trees

9. The Tree-House

10. A Visit to Tentholm

11. The Strange Animal

12. Towed by a Turtle

13. An Important Experiment

14. The Pinnace and the Petard

15. The Calabash Wood

16. Last Visit to the Wreck

17. The Buffalo Hunt

18. The Hollow Tree

19. The Rainy Season

20. The Salt Cavern

21. "Woodlands"

22. Thanksgiving Day

23. The Island Sports Carnival

24. A Midnight Raid

25. The Stranded Whale

26. Jack Discovers a Skeleton

27. Death of a Monster

28. An Inland Journey

29. The Desert

30. Ostriches and Bears

31. The Captive Ostrich

32. Home Again

33. A Visit to Whale Island

34. Our First Harvest

35. The Trial of the "Sea Horse"

36. News by Pigeon Post

37. To the Rescue

38. After Ten Years

39. The Mysterious Message

40. Fritz Says Good-bye

41. The Stranger

42. Jenny

43. The Mysterious Guns

44. Three Cheers for New Switzerland!