Top Ten Tuesday: Books Set on Islands

For That Artsy Reader Girl’s Top Ten Tuesday:

This week’s topic was:

July 27: Books I’d Want With Me While Stranded On a Deserted Island

But since I did something similar recently, I decided to do books set on an island. To make it a little more challenging I decided not to use any obvious island books: so no Swiss Family Robinson, Robinson Crusoe, Lord of the Flies, etc.

1. Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell– This was a childhood favorite about a 12 year old girl who lives alone on an island off the California coast for years. It’s loosely based on the true story of Juana Maria, the Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island. There’s also a sequel called Zia, and I vaguely remember reading it, but have no memory of the actual content of that one.

2. Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton – Is it strange that I don’t really think of this as taking place on an island? I guess the dinosaurs commend attention more than the location! But actually the fact that it takes place on an island is important because it’s means that a) it’s an isolated location (so the dinosaurs don’t threaten the rest of the world) and b) the characters can’t get away so easily.

3. Beauty Queens by Libba Bray – I said I wouldn’t count Lord of the Flies, and I didn’t but I will count this satire. It’s sort of an all female version of Lord of the Flies meets Lost meets America’s Next Top Model meets Pirates of the Caribbean.

4. Foe by JM Coetzee – This one is also strongly inspired by a book I wouldn’t allow on my list, in this case Robinson Crusoe. It’s about a woman who was supposedly on the island with “Cruso” she tells writer Danie Foe her story.

5. And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie – Here’s another one that I don’t usually think of as being an “island book,” even though the island setting it pretty important to the plot.

6. Circe by Madeline Miller- A lot of the action of this novel takes place on Aiaia, the island where Circe has been banished by Zeus. But she makes the place a home, and it becomes sort of an extension of Circe’s powers as she uses things growing on the island to make spells.

7. The Magus by John Fowles– This is another book I don’t often think of as being on an island. In this case I think it would work in any isolated spot cut off from outside influence.

8. The Beach by Alex Garland – This one is also strongly inspired by Lord of the Flies, but since it’s not Lord of the Flies, it counts. I’m actually not the biggest fan of this book (just not really my taste), but it does fit the list…

9. Moloka’i by Alan Brennert- This book opens in Honolulu in the 1890’s and then moves to Kalaupapa, the leper colony on the island of Moloka’i. There’s a sequel, called Daughter of Moloka’i but once again this moves the action away from the island.

10. The Weight of Water by Anita Shreve – This is a dual timeline novel set on the island of Smuttynose in New Hampshire. One timeline is contemporary and one follows murders that happened in 1873

Honorary Mention

Anything by LM Montgomery– Most of her work is set on Prince Edward Island. I didn’t include any in the list because I couldn’t settle on just one.

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