A tale of high adventure and gripping drama, Kidnapped is the story of David Balfour, a young Scotsman orphaned by the death of his father. He is sent to live with his uncle Ebenezer, who, as circumstances soon reveal, turns out to be a ruthless old man who fears David may try to claim an inheritance relinquished to Ebenezer by David’s father. To get David out of the way, his uncle pays a ship’s captain to kidnap the boy, take him to sea and eventually sell him into bondage. Aboard ship the plucky young lad meets Alan Breck Stewart, a Scottish rebel with a price on his head. Together, they survive a shipwreck, struggle to elude the King’s forces and endure many hardships before reaching safety.

ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON (1850-1894) was born in Edinburgh,the son of Thomas and Margaret Isabella Balfour Stevenson.For much of his life, Stevenson suffered from poor health,but his physical frailties did not dampen his enthusiasm for travel and adventure. Though Stevenson’s formal education was sporadic during his early years (again, due to ill health),he was an avid reader and somewhat precocious. He eventually attended Edinburgh University to study engineering--his father’s and grandfather’s occupation---and later law. He never practiced either profession, but turned instead to literature.

Stevenson had been publishing his writings since he was 16, but it wasn’t until his university days, when he began contributing essays to various periodicals, that he attracted critical attention. Then in 1881, with the serialized publication of Treasure Island, he achieved popular success. Five years later Stevenson published two of his most successful works:The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Kidnapped. Set against the backdrop of the highland uprisings of the mideighteenth century, the latter reveals Stevenson’s fascination with Scottish history. David Balfour, the young hero of the tale, encounters several historical figures--including Alan Breck Stewart, the Jacobite rebel. In Stevenson’s novel, David’s loyalties to the British crown conflict with his personal relationship to Alan, an outlaw with a price on his head. As the two are pursued through the Scottish highlands, David comes to appreciate Alan’s code of honor, despite their political differences.

In this abridgment, Bob Blaisdell has preserved the sense of adventure and excitement that has made Stevenson’s original a classic; young and old alike will be enthralled by the romance of these highland adventures.

Chapter 1

I Set Off upon My Journey to the House of Shaws

Chapter 2

I Meet My Uncle

Chapter 3

I Go to the Queen’s Ferry

Chapter 4

I Go to Sea in the Brig Covenant

Chapter 5

The Man with the Belt of Gold

Chapter 6

I Hear of the "Red Fox"

Chapter 7

The Islet

Chapter 8

The Death of the Red Fox

Chapter 9

The Flight in the Heather

Chapter 10

I Come to Mr. Rankeillor