History Literature / IslandOfTheBlueDolphins

* ForWantOfANail: If Ramo had just listened to his sisters and gotten on the boat rather than go back for his spear, he and Karana wouldn't have ended up stranded.

* VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory: Karana's story is based on the story of Juana Maria, the Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island, but it's heavily fictionalized. The Lone Woman's tribe really was decimated by Aleut hunters (although the circumstances of the conflict were different), and she really was left behind when the rest of her village was evacuated, but everything that happens to her between then and the rescue is almost entirely pure fiction, since virtually nothing is known about Juana Maria's years alone on the island other than what could be gleaned from the rescuers' observations. As far as the follow-up in ''Zia'', Juana Maria really was rescued and brought to a Spanish mission where she died shortly thereafter, but the similarities end there; Juana Maria did not have relatives in the mission, nor did she have the level of difficulty and conflict with the people of the Mission that Karana does. For his part, O'Dell states in the epilogue that the novel is a work of fiction [[InspiredBy inspired by]] Juana Maria and was never intended to be a factual retelling of her story.

* VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory: Karana's story is based on the story of Juana Maria, the Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island, but it's heavily fictionalized. The Lone Woman's tribe really was decimated by Aleut hunters (although the circumstances of the conflict were different), and she really was left behind when the rest of her village was evacuated, but everything that happens to her between then and the rescue is almost entirely pure fiction, since virtually nothing is known about Juana Maria's years alone on the island other than what could be gleaned from the rescuers' observations. As far as the follow-up in ''Zia'', Juana Maria really was rescued and brought to a Spanish mission where she died shortly thereafter, but the similarities end there; Juana Maria did not have relatives in the mission, nor did she have the level of difficulty and conflict with the people of the Mission that Karana does. For his part, O'Dell states in the epilogue that the novel is a work of fiction {{inspired by}} Juana Maria and was never intended to be a factual retelling of her story.

* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: Karana describes Ramo as "foolish as a cricket when he was excited." In the first chapter, he's supposed to be helping Karana dig roots the village needs for food, but when the Aleut ship appears, he gets excited by it and runs off, leaving Karana to dig by herself. Later in the book, [[TooDumbToLive he decides to go hunting alone and is killed by wild dogs]].

* TooDumbToLive: Karana's brother, Ramo, decides to go off hunting, alone, on an island with packs of vicious wild dogs running around everywhere. Naturally, he doesn't last very long.

Spanning from the period before her abandonment up to her departure from the island, the story is narrated by Karana, the marooned woman. After many of Karana's people are killed in a battle with [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aleut Aleut]] hunters, the remaining islanders emigrate from the island to the California mainland. An impending storm forces the ship to leave early and Karana and her younger brother are left behind. Soon after, her brother is killed by a pack of wild dogs. The ship never returns, and Karana is left alone on the island for what will be 18 years.

* MissingMom: Karana's mother has died before the book begins.

!! Tropes found in ''Island of the Blue Dolphins'':

* {{Robinsonade}}: With a twist—Karana isn't stranded far away from civilization, per se, but stranded ''without'' civilization, as everyone else sails away, leaving her behind. She has to learn to survive alone on the island she's always called home, without her community.
* SuddenSequelDeathSyndrome: In ''Zia'', Karana dies soon after arriving at the Santa Barbara mission - much like what happened to the real Lone Woman.

* VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory: Karana's story is based on the story of Juana Maria, the Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island, but it's heavily fictionalized. The Lone Woman's tribe really was decimated by Aleut hunters (although the circumstances of the conflict were different), and she really was left behind when the rest of her village was evacuated, but everything that happens to her between then and the rescue is almost entirely pure fiction, since virtually nothing is known about Juana Maria's years alone on the island other than what could be gleaned from the rescuers' observations. As far as the follow-up in ''Zia'', Juana Maria really was rescued and brought to a Spanish mission where she died shortly thereafter, but the similarities end there; Juana Maria did not have relatives in the mission, nor did she have the level of difficulty and conflict with the people of the Mission that Karana does. For his part, O'Dell states in the epilogue that the novel is a work of fiction {{Inspired|By}} by Juana Maria and was never intended to be a factual retelling of her story.

* IdenticalGrandson: When they're first reunited, Karana immediately identifies Zia as a loved one despite never having met her; Zia speculates that Karana must recognize her for her resemblance to her mother, Karana's sister.

* {{Revenge}}: Karana intends to kill the pack of wild dogs that killed her brother, but she adopts their leader instead.

* UncannyFamilyResemblance: How Karana can tell that Rontu-Aru is Rontu's son.

* {{Robinsonade}}: With a twist—Karana isn't stranded far away from civilization, per se, but stranded ''without'' civilization, as everyone else leaves and she is left behind. She has to learn to survive alone on the island she's always called home, without her community.

* {{Robinsonade}}: With a twist - Karana isn't stranded far away from civilization, per se, but stranded ''without'' civilization, as everyone else leaves and she is left behind. She has to learn to survive alone on the island she's always called home, without her community.

* RomanAClef

** NameThatUnfoldsLikeLotusBlossom: Of the public names, we only know Karana's: Won-a-pei-lei, ("girl with long black hair") which she initially tells to Tutok, but once their friendship becomes strong, she tells Tutok her secret name.

* BusCrash: ''Zia'' reveals that Karana's sister (Zia's mother) died while Karana was still on the island.

* DeathByNewberyMedal: Let's see... Karana's father, Karana's brother, a large chunk of Karana's village, [[AndYourLittleDogToo and her dog]].

* TheChiefsDaughter: Karana is actually the daughter of the chief, but she averts the trope as she doesn't trust the Aleuts for a second.

* {{Retcon}}: Averted. People seem to have the impression that the ship carrying Karana's people sank en route to California and that the entire village drowned, and that ''Zia'' is therefore a product of retconning. However, the epilogue of ''Island of the Blue Dolphins'' actually states "the ship sank had sank in a great storm soon ''after'' it reached his country", which would seem to indicate that the ship with the villagers aboard did make it safely to California, but sank before they could go back to rescue Karana. This means that Karana having a niece and nephew through her sister (the only member of her family to make it off the island) is not a retcon at all.

* {{Retcon}}: Averted. People seem to have the impression that the entire village drowned before reaching California. However, the book states that "the ship sank had sank in a great storm soon ''after'' it reached his country", which would imply that they dropped off the rest of Karana's village on the mainland, but sank before it could go back for her. This means that Karana having a niece and nephew through her sister (the only member of her family to make it off the island) is not a retcon at all.

** NameThatUnfoldsLikeLotusBlossom: Of the public names, we only know Karana's: Won-a-pei-lei, ("girl with long black hair") which she initially tells to Tutok, but when the latter leaves, she tells Tutok her secret name.

''Island of the Blue Dolphins'', written by Scott O'Dell and published in 1960, tells the true story of the "Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island," an Indian woman marooned for 18 years, and was the Newbery Medal winner of 1961. Think ''Literature/RobinsonCrusoe'', but with a Native American girl.

* VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory: Karana's story is based on the story of Juana Maria, the Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island, but it's heavily fictionalized. The Lone Woman's tribe really was decimated by Aleut hunters (although the circumstances of the conflict were different), and she really was left behind when the rest of her village was evacuated, but everything that happens to her between then and the rescue is almost entirely pure fiction, since virtually nothing is known about Juana Maria's years alone on the island other than what could be gleaned from the rescuers' observations. As far as the follow-up in ''Zia'', Juana Maria really was rescued and brought to a Spanish mission where she died shortly thereafter, but the similarities end there; Juana Maria did not have relatives in the mission, nor did she have the level of difficulty and conflict with the people of the Mission that Karana does. For his part, O'Dell states in the epilogue that the novel is a work of fiction InspiredBy Juana Maria and was never intended to be a factual retelling of her story.

* VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory: Karana's story is based on the story of Juana Maria, the Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island, but it's heavily fictionalized. The Lone Woman's tribe really was decimated by Aleut hunters (although the circumstances of the conflict were different), and she really was left behind when the rest of her village was evacuated, but everything that happens to her between then and the rescue is almost entirely pure fiction, since virtually nothing is known about Juana Maria's years alone on the island other than what could be gleaned from the rescuers' observations. As far as the follow-up in ''Zia'', Juana Maria really was rescued and brought to a Spanish mission where she died shortly thereafter, but the similarities end there; Juana Maria did not have relatives in the mission, nor did she have the level of difficulty and conflict with the people of the Mission that Karana does. For his part, O'Dell states in the epilogue that the novel is a work of fiction InspiredBy Juana Maria, but was never intended to be a factual retelling of her story.

* VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory: Karana's story is based on the story of Juana Maria, the Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island, but it's heavily fictionalized. The Lone Woman's tribe really was decimated by Aleut hunters (although the circumstances of the conflict were different), and she really was left behind when the rest of her village was evacuated, but everything that happens to her between then and the rescue is almost entirely pure fiction, since virtually nothing is known about Juana Maria's years alone on the island other than what could be gleaned from the rescuers' observations. As far as the follow-up in ''Zia'', Juana Maria really was rescued and brought to a Spanish mission where she died shortly thereafter, but the similarities end there; Juana Maria did not have relatives in the mission, nor did she have the level of difficulty and conflict with the people of the Mission that Karana does.