Scott O'Dell won the Newbery Medal for Island of the Blue Dolphins in 1961, and in 1976 the Children's Literature Association named this riveting story one of the 10 best American children's books of the past 200 years. O'Dell was inspired by the real-life story of a 12-year-old American Indian girl, Karana. The author based his book on the life of this remarkable young woman who, during the evacuation of Ghalas-at (an island off the coast of California), jumped ship to stay with her young brother who had been abandoned on the island. He died shortly thereafter, and Karana fended for herself on the island for 18 years. O'Dell tells the miraculous story of how Karana forages on land and in the ocean, clothes herself (in a green-cormorant skirt and an otter cape on special occasions), and secures shelter. Perhaps even more startlingly, she finds strength and serenity living alone on the island. This beautiful edition of Island of the Blue Dolphins is enriched with 12 full-page watercolor paintings by Ted Lewin, illustrator of more than 100 children's books, including Ali, Child of the Desert. A gripping story of battling wild dogs and sea elephants, this simply told, suspenseful tale of survival is also an uplifting adventure of the spirit. (Ages 9 to 12)


From AudioFile
Narrator Tantoo Cardinal more than succeeds in delivering a lovely listening experience. Her accent and pronunciation are first rate. The music adds to the story with an ethnic sound. When the Russians invaded the island, many islanders were killed or fled. Some, like the young girl, Karana, were accidentally left behind. Karana's survival in remote isolation is moving and unforgettable. Both the text and Cardinal's style make the listener feel he's part of Karana's isolation and maturation. S.G.B. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine


Midwest Book Review
A beautiful Indian girl stranded on an island off California makes her home with her brother while she awaits a rescue which will take years in O'Dell's moving classic story. Tantoo Cardinal's fine reading is enhanced by her background as an actress in this moving story, which comes alive in audio.

ANNOTATION

Left alone on a beautiful but isolated island off the coast of California, a young Indian girl spends eighteen years, not only merely surviving through her enormous courage and self-reliance, but also finding a measure of happiness in her solitary life.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

This newly illustrated edition of Island of the Blue Dolphins, a Newbery Award-winning novel published in 1960, includes fourteen full-color paintings by a master watercolorist.

SYNOPSIS

Island of the Blue Dolphins is the remarkable story of a strange and beautiful Indian girl who lives a serene and courageous life as the solitary survivor on a rocky island off the California coast.

The island looks like a big fish sunning itself in the sea. Around it, blue dolphins swim, otters frolic in the surf, and sea elephants and birds abound. Once, many Indians lived on the island, too. But when the Russian arrived to prey on the wildlife surrounding the island, a war broke out, and many perished. The few that were left fled the island and sailed to the island of Santa Catalina in the east, but Karana, The Girl wih the Long Black Hair, and Ramo, her brother, were left behind.

FROM THE CRITICS

"O'Dell tells the miraculous story of how Karana forages on land and in the ocean, clothes herself (in a green-cormorant skirt and an otter cape on special occasions), and secures shelter. Perhaps even more startlingly, she finds strength and serenity living alone on the island. This beautiful edition of Island of the Blue Dolphins is enriched with 12 full-page watercolor paintings by Ted Lewin, illustrator of more than 100 children's books, including Ali, Child of the Desert. A gripping story of battling wild dogs and sea elephants, this simply told, suspenseful tale of survival is also an uplifting adventure of the spirit."

Children's Literature - Marilyn Courtot

Winner of the Newbery Medal in 1961, this story of Karana, the Indian girl who lived alone for eighteen years on an island off the coast of California, still fascinates young readers. Her survival story-fighting the wild dogs and loneliness, hunting for food, and hoping to be rescued-is spellbinding. 1996 (orig.

AudioFile - Susan G. Baird

Narrator Tantoo Cardinal more than succeeds in delivering a lovely listening experience. Her accent and pronunciation are first rate. The music adds to the story with an ethnic sound. When the Russians invaded the island, many islanders were killed or fled. Some, like the young girl, Karana, were accidentally left behind. Karana￯﾿ﾽs survival in remote isolation is moving and unforgettable. Both the text and Cardinal￯﾿ﾽs style make the listener feel he￯﾿ﾽs part of Karana￯﾿ﾽs isolation and maturation. S.G.B. ￯﾿ﾽAudioFile, Portland, Maine

AudioFile