Terrific Novelization of the Bounty Endgame | Pitcairn's Island: A Novel

A Fictional, But Good Story | Pitcairn's Island: A Novel | Charles Nordhoff, James Norman Hall

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	• Pitcairn's Island: A Novel Charles Nordhoff, James Norman Hall Back Bay Books, 2003 - 352 pages average customer review:based on 8 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Survivor meets Lord of the Flies

This is a magnificent book and the best of the Bounty Trilogy. I've read it many times over the years and find myself wholly captivated by it each time.

"Pitcairn's Island" follows the story of Bounty mutineer Fletcher Christian and eight of his men who are hunting for a sanctuary in which to hide from the long arm of the Royal Navy. They bring their Tahitian wives and several Tahitian men along with them. Finding Pitcairn's Island uninhabited, they settle there in 1790, less than a year after the mutiny. The men range from about age 21 to 38, Christian himself was only about 24 yrs old although the movies always seem to depict him as being older.

The Pitcairn story operates on multiple levels--- the attempt by criminals to make a Utopian society, the conflict between the English and the Tahitians, the conflict between the men and the women, conflict between the educated officers, Christian and Young, and the low-born seamen. The tiny colony struggles with alcoholism, race warfare, slavery, rape, insanity and even religious rebirth. The story seems impossible to believe and yet all of it is true. The mutiny story has made for several rousing motion pictures but they always end with the mutineers arrival at Pitcairn and never deal with what happened afterwards, which is the most fascinating part of the story.

Will some filmmaker PLEASE bring this story to the screen?

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Terrific Novelization of the Bounty Endgame

This is certainly the most exciting installment in the authors' masterful trilogy regarding the tragic tale of the Bounty. It reads much more like a Gore Vidal-style book of historical fiction, simply thrilling writing and high-seas adventure culminating in fascinating, Survivor-like battle of wits and nature as the shipwrecked mutineers square off one by one.

History buffs will need to look elsewhere for more recent and comprehensive accounts of the story, but this epic book stands the test of time and is one of the finest entries in this genre yet produced. A must read.

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A Fictional, But Good Story

Pitcairn's Island is a fictionalized account of the events that took place after the mutiny of the H.M.S. Bounty. I first read this story when I was 13 years old and like other posters I had a hard time putting it down. I read the entire book over one night and I reread it the next day. Fifteen years later I still remember how this book was the beginning of my interest in the South Pacific and Polynesian history. Alhtough this story is a fictionalized account of the events that took place, I argue that the authors did an excellent job of surmizing what might have happened. This book would make a much more interesting movie than Mutiny on the Bounty and I still hope one day I can watch it on the big screen.

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Excellent reading!!

Best story I've ever read in my life. very interesting. Couldn't put it down. Great novel for people of all ages. Everyone should read this book. Good history book of Pitcairn Island.

The best of the Bounty trilogy, and the most thought-provoking

This is the third of the Bounty trilogy. The first book chronicles the mutiny itself, as well as following the fate of the non-mutineers who were left in Tahiti when the ringleaders left. It is a good book - often filmed, so most know the general story. The second book, Men Against the Sea, follows the fate of Captain Bligh and those that chose not to participate in the mutiny who were put off the ship into a boat to make their way as best they could. They eventually reached a Dutch colony and Bligh made his report on the mutiny. This book, Pitcairn's Island, is the story of the mutineers who tried to find an island on which to live out their lives without fear of discovery. The island must be small and remote enough not to have been charted by the admiralty, but big enough to sustain the lives of 27 people indefinitely. Fletcher Christian, leader of the mutineers, picks Pitcairn's Island, known to him from a previous cruise, but officially "undiscovered" because no one could attempt a landing on it.

With the group of mutineers are a number of Polynesian men and women. Once forced to live in close quarters, the inevitable culture conflict starts, especially because the British chauvenism in thinking the Polynesians to be inherently inferior savages. This sets up an ethnically-divided society, and ultimately leads to civil war between the British seamen and their Polynesian counterparts. Rape, murder, drunkeness, and treachery leads to a fascinating account of interracial conflict that ultimately concludes with redemption for the survivors and an optimistic note that all will be well now that the bigotted first generation has died out.

As others have mentioned, this is a "fictionalised" account of the stories of the mutineers. It is based on fact, where available. Certainly, this allows the authors to chose which of the many versions on the subject to believe (or to cut-and-paste together likely events where the facts are seemingly contradictory). Overall, it is the most interesting story, and the one that follows the most conventional arc. I think the other two books should be read first, saving the best for last.

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PITCAIRN'S ISLAND unfolds a tale of drunkenness, betrayal, murder, and vengeance as it chronicles the fate of Christian, the mutineers, and a handful of Tahitians, who together take refuge on the loneliest island in the Pacific.

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