PMThat all Defoe's novels, with the exception of 'Robinson Crusoe,'' should have been covered with the dust of neglect for many generations, is a plain proof of how much fashions in taste affect the popularity of the British classics. It is true that three generations or so ago, Defoe's works were edited by both Sir Walter Scott and Hazliit, and that this masterly piece of realism, 'Captain Singleton,' was reprinted a few years back in 'The Camelot Classics,' but it is safe to say that out of every thousand readers of 'Robinson Crusoe' only one or two will have even heard of the 'Memoirs of a Cavalier,' 'Colonel Jack,' 'Moll Flanders,' or 'Captain Singleton'.

Recognized as one of the important early innovators in the novel format, British writer Daniel Defoe contributed such beloved works to the Western canon as Robinson Crusoe and Moll Flanders. In The Life, Adventures, and Piracies of the Famous Captain Singleton, Defoe spins an unforgettable yarn that follows a well-born young man as he descends into a life of criminal enterprise on the high seas.

The narrative describes the life of an Englishman, stolen from a well-to-do family as a child and raised by Gypsies who eventually makes his way to sea. One half of the book concerns Singleton's crossing of Africa and the later half concerns his life as a pirate. Defoe's description of piracy focuses for the most part on matters of economics and logistics, making it an intriguing if not particularly gripping read. Singleton's piracy is more like a merchant adventurer, perhaps Defoe's comment on capitalism.