Book info

• Title Lord of the Flies
• Author William Golding
• Year 1954
• Genre Young Adult

A plane crashes on a desert island. The only survivors are a group of schoolboys. By day, they explore the dazzling beaches, gorging fruit, seeking shelter, and ripping off their uniforms to swim in the lagoon. At night, in the darkness of the jungle, they are haunted by nightmares of a primitive beast. Orphaned by society, they must forge their own; but it isn't long before their innocent games devolve into something far more dangerous...

Thoughts

The basic premise is a plane crash and a group of boys of varying ages stranded on a deserted island. They start off well, organising themselves into groups, making sure they can survive. They sort out hunters and people to keep the fire going, they participate in regular meetings, but as time goes on and minds start bending, the group begin to disintegrate.

Ralph and Jack are the main two, starting as irritants to each other and ending up as leaders of rival groups and mortal enemies. All the boys are portrayed well and it’s interesting to see how they react without the presence of adults.

The very start of the book was a little confusing for me, and setting up the storyline took a moment to get used to. Overall, it was good, although I’m not sure I would give it rave reviews.

Rating: 3 / 5