Author: Tracey Garvis-Graves
Summary: Anna and T.J. are en route to join T.J.'s family in the Maldives when the pilot of their seaplane suffers a fatal heart attack and crash-lands in the Indian Ocean. Adrift in shark-infested waters, their life jackets keep them afloat until they make it to the shore of an uninhabited island. Now Anna and T.J. just want to survive and they must work together to obtain water, food, fire, and shelter.
Their basic needs might be met but as the days turn to weeks, and then months, the castaways encounter plenty of other obstacles, including violent tropical storms, the many dangers lurking in the sea, and the possibility that T.J.'s cancer could return. As T.J. celebrates yet another birthday on the island, Anna begins to wonder if the biggest challenge of all might be living with a boy who is gradually becoming a man.
Review
I read this book during my summer holiday and it was perfect for reading by the poolside or on the beach- if you are going on holiday and need an easy and quick read this is the book to chose. I am a huge lover of desert island reads and this book did not disappoint me. Anna and TJ endure a horrible ordeal on the island but what was even better about this book was the fact that the narrative followed their lives even after they left the island.
Perhaps the best part of a desert island story is seeing how humans adapt to being thrown back into the wilderness and having to deal with all the odds thrown against them. Anna and TJ's story was really inspiring they dealt with most of the survival problems logically and sensibly. However when situations like the shark and TJ's illness arose I loved reading how they sorted the problems out.
I really enjoyed the fact that Anna and TJ, regardless of the taxing and harrowing position they were in, were often light hearted and fun. I loved the Dirty Dancing lift they did in the lagoon as it was really entertaining to read and was a nice chance from the constant tension and worry of the narrative.
Moreover, I found Anna and TJ's relationship really interesting. Obviously their relationship is somewhat problematic due to the extreme age gap between them and the fact that Anna was, at a time, supposed to be TJ's teacher. However I thought they were a good match, they spent years together on a desert island and sought comfort in one another. When they made it back to civilisation no one but them could've understood what they had been through therefore I was happy they stayed together. I liked the fact that the issue with the age gap was addressed when they got off the island as it added a deeper meaning to the story rather than it just be another castaway tale.
I didn't think I would enjoy reading about TJ and Anna's story after they leave the island but I found myself enjoying reading it just as much as the previous chapters. It was nice to read how castaways adapt to real life again after being in such extreme isolation and wilderness for several years. The part when they both made it to the hotel and were allowed to buy anything they wanted was really fun to read.
The only issue I had with this book was the simplicity of the writing style. The book itself took place over the course of approximately seven years and so some parts for me felt incredibly rushed it probably could've been about 150 pages longer. There were a few instances when many months or even years would go by with no story being told which left gaps in the character development and narrative. There wasn't a lot of description so much as a more listed way of writing- Garvis-Graves often say what the characters did rather than describing things.
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