"Every kindness done to others is a step nearer to the life of Christ."— Johann David Wyss
Johann David Wyss
A father, his four sons, and one big adventure
Johann David Wyss was a pastor in the Swiss city of Bern. He served as a chaplain to the Swiss Army for a while, then settled into a quiet life of preaching, writing sermons, and raising four sons with his wife.
Johann loved his boys, and he loved making up stories for them. Every evening, after dinner, he'd tell them a new chapter of an adventure tale he was inventing on the spot. The story was about a family, very much like his own, that got shipwrecked on a tropical island and had to figure out how to survive.
Quick Facts
- Born: May 28, 1743
- From: Bern, Switzerland
- Job: Pastor & storyteller
- Famous for: Swiss Family Robinson
The book Swiss Family Robinson was inspired partly by Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe (which is why it's called 'Robinson'). But Johann wanted the family to survive TOGETHER, instead of one man alone, because he wanted to write something that worked for his four sons listening at bedtime.
His Famous Story
Read Swiss Family Robinson on Worldly
Swiss Family Robinson is a warm, adventurous, family-survival story. On Worldly, every page is adapted to your reading level.
His Life, Year by Year
A quiet life, one famous book
Johann David Wyss lived a quiet pastor's life. His stories only became famous when his son published them.
Born in Bern
Johann David Wyss is born in Bern, Switzerland.
He becomes a pastor
Johann studies theology and becomes a pastor in the Swiss Reformed Church.
He's an army chaplain
Johann serves as a chaplain to a Swiss regiment in Holland for a while, then returns to Bern.
Four sons, four listeners
Johann marries and has four sons. After dinner each evening, he tells them a new chapter of a story he's making up about a family shipwrecked on a tropical island.
Swiss Family Robinson is published
Johann's son, now grown up, gathers the bedtime stories together, edits them, and publishes them as Der Schweizerische Robinson (The Swiss Family Robinson). Johann is 69.
He dies in Bern
Johann David Wyss dies in Bern at age 74. His book is by now a hit across Europe. Translations into French, English, and other languages follow.
What's in the Book
The shipwreck family
Swiss Family Robinson is part shipwreck story, part family adventure, part nature lesson. Here's the heart of it.
Survival
Building a treehouse home
The family washes up on a tropical island and over the course of the book, they slowly turn it into a home, treehouse, garden, animal enclosures, all built with materials saved from the wreck and found on the island.
Family
Four boys, four personalities
Fritz is brave and adventurous. Ernest is bookish and careful. Jack is mischievous. Franz is the youngest and sweetest. Each boy contributes to the family's survival in his own way.
Nature
An island full of impossible creatures
The island has kangaroos, ostriches, penguins, monkeys, and tropical birds, even though no real island has ALL of those. Johann wanted to introduce kids to lots of different animals, so he put them all on one island.
Wait… really?!
Six surprising things about Johann David Wyss and Swiss Family Robinson
He never tried to publish it
Johann told the Swiss Family Robinson stories to his sons every night for years. He never tried to publish them. His son did, decades later.
His son edited the book
Johann Rudolf Wyss, the writer's son, became a professor of philosophy. He gathered his father's bedtime stories, edited them into a novel, and published the book.
The animals on the island don't all exist together
The island in Swiss Family Robinson has kangaroos (Australia), ostriches (Africa), and penguins (Antarctica), all on one tropical island. Johann wanted to introduce kids to many animals, so he put them all together.
The Disney movie is very different
The famous 1960 Disney Swiss Family Robinson movie is a wild action film with pirate attacks and treehouse battles. The book is much more peaceful, focused on the family slowly building a home.
It was inspired by Robinson Crusoe
The 'Robinson' in 'Swiss Family Robinson' refers to Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe. Johann liked Crusoe but thought a family adventure would be more interesting for kids than one lonely man.
He inspired generations of survival stories
Swiss Family Robinson is one of the big foundations of the survival-on-an-island genre. Every shipwreck-family story since (Gilligan's Island, Lost) owes something to Johann's bedtime tales.
Good questions, answered
Johann David Wyss FAQ
Is the family really Swiss?+
Yes! In the book they're a Swiss pastor's family, just like Johann's own. The 'Robinson' in the title comes from Robinson Crusoe, not the family's name.
Is it based on a true story?+
No. Johann made it up from his own imagination. But Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe (which was based on a real shipwreck) inspired him.
How are the Disney movie and the book different?+
Very different! The 1960 Disney movie is full of pirate attacks, treehouse battles, and action scenes that aren't in the book. The book is much more peaceful, focused on building a home and learning about nature.
What age is Swiss Family Robinson good for?+
Swiss Family Robinson works as a read-aloud from age 6, and as a chapter book from age 8 or 9. The Worldly version is adapted to fit each reader's level.
Why are there kangaroos AND ostriches AND penguins on one island?+
Johann wasn't trying to be scientifically accurate. He wanted to introduce his sons (and later, readers) to many different animals from around the world, so he put them all together on the same island. It's part of the book's charm.
Ready for an adventure?
Dive in with Johann David Wyss
More survival stories coming soon to Worldly. Sign up to be the first to know.