Author(s): Robert Louis Stevenson

Middle Fiction 8-12-year-olds

Jim Hawkins is the son of the innkeepers of the Admiral Benbow near Devon and becomes fascinated by a mysterious lodger, the old seaman Billy Bones. It soon becomes apparent to Jim that Billy Bones is in hiding from a man with one wooden leg and he is also in possession of a much sought after pirate's treasure chest. When Billy Bones suddenly drops dead, Jim flees, taking with him an oilskin packet from within the chest. It turns out that Jim has taken a map detailing the whereabouts of Captain Flint's treasure. A swash-buckling adventure aboard the Hispaniola ensues as Jim attempts to track down the treasure with the help of a one-legged sea cook Long John Silver, Captain Alexander Smollett, Squire Trelawney and Dr. Livesey among others. But all is not as it seems. Is Long John Silver really trustworthy? After all Bones did warn him of a man with one leg...