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3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
I missed out on this story as a child. I loved reading it aloud to my girls this week. The strong, resourceful and independent Karana's island adventures sparked all our imaginations. I caught Kate pretending to collect abalones for her otter friends last night. Great tale, and interesting to note it was based on true story.
I really enjoyed Karana and watching her survival skills. The author wrote the book to make it not boring as I thought it would be. After reading this book I got a further understanding of survival and Karana's strength surprised me throughout the book.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Stunning and heartbreaking. I adored this journey with Karana. What a smart, resourceful girl! I loved her relationship with Rontu and her animals. It was the sweetest thing. I listened to the audiobook, which had music at certain points! I highly recommend it. It was a great narration by Tantoo Cardinal.
Fav quotes below! (some spoilers)
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"Each day toward evening, Ulap and I helped Ramo put the abalones in baskets and carry them to the village for safekeeping. During this time, other women were gathering the scarlet apples that grow on the cactus bushes and are called 'tunas.' Fish were caught, and many birds were netted. So hard did the women work that we really fared better than before when the hunting was done by the men." (33:30).
"Matasep strode from hut to hut telling everyone to be calm, and not to lose time packing things that would not be needed. I took my skirt of Yucca fiber, however, for I had spent many days making it, and it was very pretty, and also my otter cape." (39:15).
"I had seen the weapons made, but I knew little about it. I had seen my father sitting in the hut on winter nights, scraping the wood for the shafts, chipping the stones for the tips, and tying the feathers. Yet, I had watched him and really seen nothing. I had watched, but not with eye of one who would ever do it." (1:10:25).
"On the far side of the rocks, I found the big grey dog. He had the broken arrow in his chest and was lying with one of his legs under him. He was about ten paces from me, so I could see him clearly. I was sure that he was dead, but I lifted the spear and took good aim at him. Just as I was about to throw the spear, he raised his head a little from the earth and then let it drop. This surprised me greatly and I stood there for a while not knowing what to do, whether to use the spear or my bow. I was used to animals playing dead until they suddenly turned on you or ran away...I fitted an arrow and pulled back the string, aiming at his head. Why I did not send the arrow, I cannot say...The big dog lay there and did not move, and this may be the reason...I stood there for a long time looking down on him, and then I climbed off the rocks. He did not move when I went up to him, nor could I see him breathing until I was very close...I do not think that he knew I was picking him up, for his body was limp, as if he were dead...the only way I could lift him was by kneeling and putting his legs around my shoulders. In this manner, stopping to rest when I was tired, I carried him to the headland." (2:01:24).
"The arrow had a small point, which was fortunate, and came out easily, though it had gone deep. He did not move while I did this, nor afterwards as I cleaned the wound with a peeled stick from a coral bush...I had no thought that he [the dog] would live, and I did not care." (2:02:00)
"On the fourth day, when I came back from the rocks early, he was not there at the fence waiting. A strange feeling came over me...I called out 'Dog? Dog?' for I had no other name for him. I ran toward the house, calling it. He was inside. He was just getting to his feet, stretching himself, and yawning. He looked first at the fish I carried and then at me and moved his tail. That night I stayed in the house. Before I fell asleep, I thought of a name for him...Rontu, which means in our language 'fox eyes.'" (2:05:14).
"Nor, thinking of the past, of the many summers and winters and springs that had gone, could I see each of them [my people]. They were all one, a tight feeling in my breast and nothing more." (3:45:04).
"...Not until I came to Mission Santa Barbara and met Father Gonzalez..." (3:48:59).
Fav quotes below! (some spoilers)
*
*
*
*
*
*
"Each day toward evening, Ulap and I helped Ramo put the abalones in baskets and carry them to the village for safekeeping. During this time, other women were gathering the scarlet apples that grow on the cactus bushes and are called 'tunas.' Fish were caught, and many birds were netted. So hard did the women work that we really fared better than before when the hunting was done by the men." (33:30).
"Matasep strode from hut to hut telling everyone to be calm, and not to lose time packing things that would not be needed. I took my skirt of Yucca fiber, however, for I had spent many days making it, and it was very pretty, and also my otter cape." (39:15).
"I had seen the weapons made, but I knew little about it. I had seen my father sitting in the hut on winter nights, scraping the wood for the shafts, chipping the stones for the tips, and tying the feathers. Yet, I had watched him and really seen nothing. I had watched, but not with eye of one who would ever do it." (1:10:25).
"On the far side of the rocks, I found the big grey dog. He had the broken arrow in his chest and was lying with one of his legs under him. He was about ten paces from me, so I could see him clearly. I was sure that he was dead, but I lifted the spear and took good aim at him. Just as I was about to throw the spear, he raised his head a little from the earth and then let it drop. This surprised me greatly and I stood there for a while not knowing what to do, whether to use the spear or my bow. I was used to animals playing dead until they suddenly turned on you or ran away...I fitted an arrow and pulled back the string, aiming at his head. Why I did not send the arrow, I cannot say...The big dog lay there and did not move, and this may be the reason...I stood there for a long time looking down on him, and then I climbed off the rocks. He did not move when I went up to him, nor could I see him breathing until I was very close...I do not think that he knew I was picking him up, for his body was limp, as if he were dead...the only way I could lift him was by kneeling and putting his legs around my shoulders. In this manner, stopping to rest when I was tired, I carried him to the headland." (2:01:24).
"The arrow had a small point, which was fortunate, and came out easily, though it had gone deep. He did not move while I did this, nor afterwards as I cleaned the wound with a peeled stick from a coral bush...I had no thought that he [the dog] would live, and I did not care." (2:02:00)
"On the fourth day, when I came back from the rocks early, he was not there at the fence waiting. A strange feeling came over me...I called out 'Dog? Dog?' for I had no other name for him. I ran toward the house, calling it. He was inside. He was just getting to his feet, stretching himself, and yawning. He looked first at the fish I carried and then at me and moved his tail. That night I stayed in the house. Before I fell asleep, I thought of a name for him...Rontu, which means in our language 'fox eyes.'" (2:05:14).
"Nor, thinking of the past, of the many summers and winters and springs that had gone, could I see each of them [my people]. They were all one, a tight feeling in my breast and nothing more." (3:45:04).
"...Not until I came to Mission Santa Barbara and met Father Gonzalez..." (3:48:59).
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
My students really enjoyed this book but the main character was hard to relate to and though the story was moving, it wasn't very deep.
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I was one of those kids who would hide my current book inside a textbook during class, completely lost in another world. Island of the Blue Dolphins was one of those books for me—the kind I read under desks, under covers, and again and again as a kid.
Anytime I reread it through the years, it still hit me the same way every time. Karana’s story of strength, solitude, and survival on a remote island felt so powerful to me as a child, and it still does. There’s a quiet beauty in her resilience and a timeless sense of wonder in the way nature is both her friend and her biggest obstacle.
Even after all these years, I still think about how special this book was to me.
Anytime I reread it through the years, it still hit me the same way every time. Karana’s story of strength, solitude, and survival on a remote island felt so powerful to me as a child, and it still does. There’s a quiet beauty in her resilience and a timeless sense of wonder in the way nature is both her friend and her biggest obstacle.
Even after all these years, I still think about how special this book was to me.