Castaway [Hardcover]

Lucy Irvine (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1984

Writer seeks "wife" for a year on tropical island.' The opportunity to escape from it all was irresistible. Lucy Irvine answered the advertisement - and found herself alone on a remote desert island with a 'husband' she hardly knew. Lucy Irvine fell in love with the seductive, if cruel, beauty of that untouched Eden, whose power to enslave and enchant her never slackened throughout the whole of her amazing adventure. Uncompromisingly candid and sometimes shocking, Castaway is her compulsively readable account of a desert island dream which threatened to turn into a nightmare of illness, thirst and personal antipathy.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Lucy Irvine was born in 1956 in Whitton, Middlesex.She ran away from school very early and had no full-time education after the age of thirteen.She has been employed as a charlady, monkey-keeper, waitress, stonemason's mate, life model, pastry-cook and concierge.She has also worked with disabled people and as a clerk at the Inland Revenue.Lucy Irvine is the author of a novel, One is One, as well as Castaway and an account of her early years, Runaway.She has three sons and lives in the Highlands of Scotland. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Random House Inc (T) (March 1984)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0394535421
• ISBN-13: 978-0394535425
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #929,165 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Story of the original "Survivors", October 6, 2000

By 

Lee Logan "Lee Logan" (Houston, TX, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Castaway (Mass Market Paperback)

"Castaway" captivated my imagination from the very first page. The story of the constantly evolving relationship between the author Lucy Irvine and Gerald Kingsland touched my heart and soul. Starting in mid 1981 these two people, who met through a personals ad in a newspaper, take on the challenge of recreating a Robinson Crusoe experience on a deserted island. Can modern man/woman survive? Lucy Irvine excellently tracks two symultaneous stories throughout the book - what their day-to-day quest was like and the interpersonal relationship between Lucy and G. The emotions that leap off the pages through Lucy's unique statement and explanation writing style will make you feel like you are in her skin as she runs the gamut of the highs and lows in their adventure. Be sure to obtain a copy of the book that includes the maps AND pictures as they will help clarify statements in the text. I'm surprised this isn't required reading on every college campus as "Castaway" could be the handbook for today's women of great strength, independence and determination. A decade before the "age of women" Lucy Irvine demonstrates how an intelligent, strong and determined woman uses the power of her mind and body to not only keep herself alive but her man as well. She is the ultimate wind beneath his wings. Gerald Kingsland was convinced that a man and woman could find nirvana if they were left alone on a deserted island for at least a year to develop their relationship no matter how different they were to begin with. In 1996 in a newspaper interview while he was in London looking for a partner to accompany him on his 8th or 9th attempt to prove his theory Gerald called himself the "sex pest of the South Seas". Lucy Irvine was the only partner that ever survived an entire year with him. Castaway is the incredible story of how she did it. The only unfortunate thing is that "Castaway" feels like the second book in a trilogy with Lucy's "Runaway" being the first. Sure would like to see the remainder of her life story with a third book focused especially on her transition back to civilization after Tuin and what long-term effect her relationship with Gerald had on her future relationships. Was this the book that inspired "Castaway" on the BBC and "Survivor" on CBS? See what you think. The book is unfortunately out-of-print but more than worth the hassle of finding it wherever you can.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is well worth the search, February 8, 2000

By 

Eaglefeather (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Castaway (Hardcover)

"Castaway" presents itself as a true story, and I suppose it is, whether it actually happened or not, because it is an allegory for the cultural conflicts involved in development. Lucy and G quickly settle into a survival mode on their island. They live quite primitively, making do with the small amount of provision they brought along. They live in a small tent without worries about material things. They eat naturally, wear no clothing, and live each day with the sun being their only clock. But, it was supposed to rain, and it didn't. Rain would have replenished their water supplies and nourished their garden. But it was an unexpectedly dry year. Their water dried up and their garden failed. They lost weight until they were little more than skeletons, lacking the strength to carry out more than the most basic functions of life. They would have doubtless died, except they were discovered by people living on another island a short boat ride away. These saviours brought them food and water. They also brought a couple missionary nurses who provided bandages and medicines.

Their lives were saved, but their lives were also irrevocably changed. The islanders came back, bringing more supplies. The discovered that G knew how to fix things and they began bringing all their broken motors for his repair. Lucy and G were no longer independent on their little island, but became dependent upon the outsiders. They felt obligated to wear clothing when the others were around, and the islanders even built them a shelter to protect them from the expected monsoons. Lucy Irvine successfully crafts a story which demonstrates how hard it is to live in isolation, whether a couple on an island or a tribe previously untouched by civilization. And while the world outside can indeed provide a lifeline, it can also strangle the heart of the culture. Although this book is out of print, it is well worth the searh to find it.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars "Survivors" -- a bummer, December 21, 2007

By 

C. J. Leach (Midwest, United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Castaway (Hardcover)

Well . . . looks like I am a lone dissenting voice on this island survival true-diary. Let me insert a preliminary disclaimer that I am not some kind of charter member of the "He-Man Woman Haters Club". However, a frank review ---

The big picture here; a writer-adventurer (Robert) advertises for a "wife" to live with him on an isolated deserted island for a year. This experience has been recorded in this book by the volunteer "wife", Lucy Irvine.

The tale is told one-sidely by the author, and Robert comes off as a lazy, unwashed, alcoholic. Reading between the lines, the author comes off as a snippy uncontentable b----.

The experience made me almost as miserable to read about as it apparently was for the participants. A record of exposure to the elements, food/water deprivation, vermin, infection, and two people living together in a small hut that don't like each other. I would have enjoyed more description of survival problem-solving, and the wonder of living in remote unspoiled isolation . . . instead I got continual mutinous murmuring focused on how much the author despised her co-habitant (shouldn't have signed up, huh?). They end up merely doing time, waiting for the piteous project to come to an end.

Ironically, the only refreshing glimmer of hope in their miserable situation comes after natives on a neighboring island discover that Robert is something of a talented and resourceful mechanic. He trades his skills for the material comforts that the natives can offer (thus, participation in a mini industrial civilization becomes their salvation). Next time, stay home . . . or utilize an island resort.

I appreciate the candor here, but I read for education and entertainment, not pain. I don't know or care if Robert ever wrote his book. Irvine comes off as a "head-gamer" that I don't like very much. Other reviewers seem to have enjoyed this. I found few surprises and much to dislike. Choose your own poison I suppose.