Robinson Crusoe is a very complicated book. There were many parts that I enjoyed, but at the same time, there were parts that left me confused or wanting more. One thing that I thought added to the novel is that all of the characters served a purpose. Sometimes in other books, there are lots and lots of characters but only a few are important to the story. In this story, all of the caracters helped progress the story and open up new pathways. This led to me wanting to know more about each character because I knew that they would have some kind of impact on Crusoe and the story.
One thing that I didn’t enjoy was Robinson Crusoe’s first voyage back to Europe. To me, this was very anti-climactic and wasn’t as special of a moment as it should have been. I figured that if he ever returned home, it would be a huge deal, but with most of his family dead, it didn’t seem as big of a deal. This left a sour taste in my mouth. That is because Crusoe made many bad decisions throughout his life, and they didn’t come back to hurt him. He ended up wealthy, in good health, and was able to see the world as he wanted when he was a young man.
The beginning of the story was a little confusing for me. I thought that Robinson Crusoe would get to the deserted island much quicker and so I was anxious for him to get there. This led to me not focusing as much on the details of where he was, but trying to figure out how he was going to get onto the island. On each of his trips before the show more wreck, I thought that he would be stranded somewhere, when in reality, he arrived safely in his first few voyages.
My favorite character was the Portuguese Captain, who played a huge role in Robinson Crusoe’s successfulness. These two first met in the middle of the ocean while Robinson and Xury, a slave boy, were trying to escape from Moorish pirates. The captain saved Robinson and took him to Brazil to start a new life. The Captain was one of the main reasons that this story turned out the way that it did. I enjoyed reading about the captain because, while other characters were doubting Robinson and not believing in him, the Captain saw something that others didn’t and gave Robinson a big break. Whatever the Portuguese Captain saw in Robinson saved his life and gave him new hope.
Overall I enjoyed reading this book. The ever-changing story kept me interested and wanting more. Even though it wouldn’t seem as if there would be much action on a deserted island, I found this book interesting. There were a few things that I would have changed such as the importance of certain events, but besides that I thought this was a good book to read. To close, I would recommend this book to someone who was looking for a book that was different from anything they had read before. show less

What do you look for in a good book? Great descriptions? Many different characters? Or even a different point of view? Well, What is the What had all of those things. This book written by Dave Eggers is very unique. It has many different characters such as; Achor Achor, Moses, William K, and Dut Majok joined Valentino Achak Deng on his journey through life. His story is told extremely well because of the details and description. I felt as if I was a character in the story because the story felt real. What is the What is about a young Sudanese boy who was forced out of his home because of the horrific civil war. He has to walk hundreds of miles and relocate various times. All of this is happening while Achak has no clue if his family is alive, or if he will ever return home. Achak and the thousands other boys who faced what he faced are called the Lost Boys. This book is even more interesting because it is told from his point of view.
Many of the characters were friends because of the hardships that they had shared. They were seen as a group because they had a common set back, but many of them in fact did not have much in common. One reason they couldn’t find shared interests is that they were from all over southern Sudan, were the rituals and customs were varied depending on where you were from. My favorite character was Dut, because he was always doing things for the good of the group. Even though sometimes the boys didn’t understand Dut’s reasoning, the recognized show more that without him they would not have survived.
Throughout the book it seemed like everything that could have gone wrong for Achak did. There were only a few times in the book where I felt happy and excited. One of these was when Achak finally got to speak to his father again. This was my favorite part because even though at first the call didn’t get through, Achak kept hope. This made me feel that I shouldn’t give up on things just because they don’t work out at first. Many things that Achak did in this book made me feel this way because it seemed like the book was more about Achak’s struggles than his rewards.
The only part of the book that I didn’t like was the beginning of the chapters. Achak would start out the chapter by talking about his life today, but then suddenly transition into his story. In some ways this was good and in others bad. Sometimes this made the story have a better flow to it while other times it didn’t. Even though both parts of the story were good separately, at some points they did not go together. This was what caused the book not to flow in certain parts.
I thought that What is the What was a great book. It never got boring or lost the intensity that made it so great. I enjoyed reading about Achak growing and learning more about himself, and the world. This book was made even better because of the unique point of view. I had never read a book written by a young Sudanese man, or seen the world from his eyes. This book was just that, and was fascinating because of it. What is the What showed that if you never give up and fight for your dreams they will come true. show less