Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, regarded by many to be first novel in English, was the first tale of a castaway struggling to survive on a remote desert island.

The sole survivor of a shipwreck, He chronicles, in a journal, his daily battle to stay alive, as he fashions shelter and clothes, conquers isolation, enlists the help of a native islander who he names 'Friday', and fights off cannibals and mutineers.

Robinson Crusoe is a brilliant narrative, depicting Crusoe's transformation from terrified survivor to self-sufficient master of an island.

Before the end of 1719, the book had already run through four editions, and has gone on to become one of the most widely published books in history, spawning numerous sequels and adaptations for stage, television and film.

DANIEL DEFOE (1660 –1731) was an English writer, journalist, pamphleteer and spy, most famous for his novel Robinson Crusoe. A prolific writer, he wrote more than five hundred books, pamphlets and journals on various topics (including politics, crime, religion, marriage, psychology and the supernatural. He is best remembered for his masterworks, Robinson Crusoe, Moll Flanders, and A Journal of the Plague Year.