Robinson Crusoe

Shipwrecked and castaway, Daniel DeFoe's hard-luck character is still the standard for "growing where you're planted." Captured by pirates, he makes his break in a small boat and undergoes desperate adventures before winning his way back to civilization. But Crusoe proves willing to chance his luck a second time when, after sweating his way to prosperity as a planter in Brazil, he undertakes a voyage that isn't needful... and is marooned on a small island off South America.

Crusoe shows the value of single-minded labor as he pursues ways to feed, shelter, and clothe himself. His ardent wish is to escape his island - why is it that the only people who come there are cannibals? But he spends more than two decades in isolation before acquiring a sidekick - the man Friday you've probably heard of. And who would guess his way to salvation would depend on leading a last-ditch fight against a shipful of mutineers?