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Oxford Univ. Press, 1981, 316 pgs., paperback
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Reviewer comment:
The author was a successful practicing international merchant. His novel is
much more than a fun read for a younger audience. It is an excellent primer on
practical economics. The hero must confront the basic problem of life, how to
prioitize his activity for maximum benefit by adjusting the three critical
variables of life. - Production, consumption, and time. The first two
constitute a process which takes place over time. To be successful the
individual must focus on producing more over time than he consumes with the
objective of allocating that 'retained earnings' from production toward
increasing further production. The author gives his hero some critical
advantages in that he is able to rescue a considerable quantity of manufactured
items from the ship before it sinks. These included some firearms and a
considerable quantity of powder and shot. Mr. Crusoe has also considerable
practical experience in creating things of need such as baskets and growing
food.
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Mr. Crusoe has or makes writing implements and 'paper' and dutifully
sets about writing a copious diary. He well understands navigation so can
determine time according to the angle of the sun. He marks each day with a
notch on a stake and quickly determines the seasonality of the weather between
'rainy' and 'dry' months. "His' island is well inhabited with a variety of
animals from which he can obtain meat, milk and even cheese. In short he has
available all the necessities he may need and has the experience in how to turn
them to his advantatge. What he knows (critically) is how to ration his efforts
to maximize his returns over TIME, which in his narrative is the center of his
activity.
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