The Life and Adventures of Robinson Crusoe.

Often hailed as the first novel in the English language and purportedly based on the experiences on Alexander Selkirk, who spent four years on the uninhabited island of Juan Fernandez from 1704, the adventures of Crusoe and his companion Friday have attained mythical status in the history of Western literature. The book's success was immediate, a second edition being called for only seventeen days after publication of the first on April 25, 1719, with a further two editions published before the end of year. The Farther Adventures appeared on August 20, and relates how Crusoe revisited the island with Friday. A final part, The Serious Reflections, followed in 1720. "The romance of Crusoes's adventures, the figure of civilized man fending for himself on a desert island, has made an imperishable impression on the mind of man... much of modern science fiction is basically Crusoe's island changed to a planet" (PMM).