Island of the Blue Dolphins- Module 4

A. The heroine of the story, Karana, tries to save her brother from being left alone on their island home when her tribe decides to leave. As a result of her heroic effort to save her brother she herself is stranded alone on an island where she lives alone for most of her life. The book is richly detailed with the particulars of Karana's struggle to survive and deal with overwhelming loneliness. She ends up befriending a wild dog, perhaps one that killed her brother, when her kind heart cannot let her turn her back on the suffering creature. The fact that the story is historical fiction based on a real life Indian woman makes it very poignant. B. O’Dell, S. (1960). Island of the blue dolphins. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. C. I enjoyed the story very much mainly because I love books that show strong female characters. I can see a nature loving child or one interested in learning survival skills becoming engrossed in the particulars of the story that the author so vividly details. It is a powerful story, beautifully written. It made me want to read Zia, the sequel to the book and any other books by Scott O’Dell. This is one of the saddest books I have ever read though! D. A true story about a young American Indian girl left behind by her people when they move from their remote island home to the mainland. This subdued book is about how she survives alone for years, but of all her survival skills, the most important thing she learns is how to cope with loneliness. When I say it is true, I mean the bare bones of the story are true. For when The Lost Woman of San Nicolas, as she became known, was finally rescued after eighteen years, she could speak only in sign language. All her own people had long since disappeared. This story, then, written as though she is telling us in her own words, owes a lot to the writer's imagination. There is an Author's Note at the back of the book to tell you the true facts about this story. Karana's tribe number more than forty when this story begins, and they live quite comfortably on a small island. They forage for their food, mainly from the sea, but also roots and seeds from the land. Occasionally they are visited by hunters from the far north, (the Aleutian Islands of Alaska), who come to camp on their island for a few weeks and hunt the sea otter for their pelts. This is where the disaster begins, for the hunters deal unfairly with the islanders and in the ensuing battle most of the menfolk of the tribe are wiped out. After that there really are not enough people left to live successfully on the island, to share the work load, and so one man is sent to fetch help. Eventually, a ship comes to take everyone away to the mainland. Things would have gone differently if only Karana's young brother, Ramo, had not forgotten his fishing spear and gone back to fetch it. The rest of the tribe, including Karana, board the ship in bad weather and rising seas. In an astonishing act of bravery, when Karana looks back to the cliff to see Ramo left behind, she jumps overboard and swims back to him. Thus, there are two left behind when the ship sails. Now, although they are alone, these two children are at home, and they are perfectly well able to feed themselves. They simply continue foraging, mainly for abalone fish. At first, of course, they expect the ship to come back to pick them up, and every day they look out for it on the horizon. It may be home, but it is dangerous. The island is roamed by a pack of wild dogs, there are poisonous and paralyzing fish in the sea, and a huge herd of sea elephants on the shore. Ramo does not survive for long, and after that Karana is alone with the empty, whispering huts of her village. There is no denying, this is a very sad story. I think you will find Karana's resourcefulness fascinating, and her loneliness excruciating. Was her life wasted? See what you think. Smith, H. (2008, November 27). Island of the blue dolphins. Reading Matters. Retrieved from http://www.readingmatters.co.uk/book.php?id=61. E. This book really started me thinking about other survival books like My Side of the Mountain, Hatchet, Julie of the Wolves, and several others I have read throughout the years. I would like to take this book, along with others that are similar and do “Survivor” themed book tour, where books are highlighted for interested students. I think this might be better for middle school students, where I could include books like The Hunger Games, Swiss Family Robinson, and The Giver. If I did this with elementary kids I might have a harder time finding survival stories on an appropriate reading level and theme- but they would enjoy it just as much as the older kids!