{"product_id":"cast-away-or-the-surprising-adventures-of-alexander-selkirk-9781526661449","title":"Cast Away: or, the Surprising Adventures of Alexander Selkirk","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eFrom the author of \u003ci\u003eSaltblood\u003c\/i\u003e (winner of the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize) comes the true-life story of Alexander Selkirk, a sweeping tale of isolation and tenacity, asking: Who is a man, when everything is stripped away?\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e'\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eBeautiful, fascinating, heartbreaking, philosophically engaging\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e – and often very funny' JO HARKIN\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eHow big must a man’s folly be, that it can cost him the whole of his life? \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eAs big as a ship; as big as an island.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e1704: Scottish sailor Alexander Selkirk has been abandoned by his own shipmates on a remote, uninhabited island. With little hope of rescue, and wild goats and cats as his only companions, he is forced to confront not only the urgent challenges of survival, but also the troubled, unsavoury past that has brought him here.  What kind of man is deliberately stranded by his crew, to face near-certain death?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  On the island, he must use his grit, tenacity and ingenuity to survive. As his isolation deepens, Selkirk’s experience takes an extraordinary and often blackly comic turn, for the island’s consolations prove as unexpected as its trials. The longer he is stranded, the more Selkirk wonders if he will ever escape the island, and in what ways he will be changed if he does.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  A tale of adventure and endurance, isolation and friendship, despair and hope, this gripping, singular novel asks who we are – and who we become – when everything else is stripped away.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  In \u003ci\u003eCast Away\u003c\/i\u003e, award-winning author Francesca de Tores boldly reimagines the real-life story of Alexander Selkirk, the inspiration for the classic novel Robinson Crusoe. The world knows Crusoe’s story – yet what unfolds on Selkirk’s island is stranger by far . . .\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch4\u003eDetails\u003c\/h4\u003e\u003cp\u003eISBN13: 9781526661449\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFormat: Paperback \/ softback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eNumber of Pages: 336\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eEdition: \u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePublication Date: \u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePublisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePublication City, Country: London, United Kingdom\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDimensions (cm): 23.2(H)x15.2(L)x3(W)380\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWeight (gm): 380\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch4\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h4\u003eFrancesca de Tores is a novelist and poet. She is the author of six novels, published in more than 20 languages. Her first historical novel, \u003ci\u003eSaltblood\u003c\/i\u003e, was awarded the 2024 Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize. In addition to a collection of poems, her poetry is widely published in journals and anthologies. She grew up in Lutruwita\/Tasmania and, after fifteen years in England, is now living in Naarm\/Melbourne.\u003ch4\u003eReviews\u003c\/h4\u003eWhat I imagine must have been lengthy and meticulous research has transformed on the page into a \u003cb\u003evivid, utterly convincing and immersive\u003c\/b\u003e read . . . \u003cb\u003eBeautiful, fascinating, heartbreaking, philosophically engaging\u003c\/b\u003e – and often \u003cb\u003every funny\u003c\/b\u003e. A necessary and delightful corrective to the Crusoe mythology -- JO HARKIN, author of The Pretender\u003cbr\u003eWhat makes \u003ci\u003eCast Away\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cb\u003eexceptional \u003c\/b\u003eis the way de Tores threads Selkirk’s metaphysical struggles through the story, and writes about them with \u003cb\u003epoetry, whimsy and humour\u003c\/b\u003e. De Tores asks: what is the nature of a human, when everything extraneous has gone? I read \u003ci\u003eCast Away\u003c\/i\u003e over one weekend and \u003cb\u003ecould not put it down. I adored it\u003c\/b\u003e -- TONI JORDAN, author of Tenderfoot\u003cbr\u003eDelivers\u003cb\u003e rich detail\u003c\/b\u003e . . . with a concrete physical immediacy that is\u003cb\u003e absolutely persuasive\u003c\/b\u003e * New Zealand Listener *\u003cbr\u003eA \u003cb\u003ebrilliant \u003c\/b\u003estory that drew me in from the first line . . . de Tores weaves \u003cb\u003ea tale of survival and philosophical reflections\u003c\/b\u003e about what it means to be human * Good Reading Magazine *","brand":"Francesca de Tores","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48752445620441,"sku":"9781526661449","price":32.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0502\/9530\/8441\/files\/9781526661449_870704d7-00bb-4d05-bc96-d28386cc9ecb.jpg?v=1779889663","url":"https:\/\/www.arielbooks.com.au\/products\/cast-away-or-the-surprising-adventures-of-alexander-selkirk-9781526661449","provider":"Ariel","version":"1.0","type":"link"}