First published 1986
Marooned on a deserted island, Susan Barton recounts her year of survival to the eminent writer Daniel Foe. But as Foe transcribes her tale, the lines between fact and fiction blur. Cruso, her enigmatic rescuer, becomes Foe's invention, while the mute servant Friday holds secrets of his own. In this metafictional masterpiece, Coetzee challenges the nature of truth and the power of narrative.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, 20th-century, 21st-century
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, unreliable-narrator
157 pages · Paperback · Penguin Books