Fiction for Young Readers : ISLAND OF THE BLUE DOLPHINS <i> By Scott O’Dell illustrated by Ted Lewin (Houghton Mifflin: $18.95; 181 pp.; all ages) </i>

The reissue of “Island of the Blue Dolphins,” Scott O’Dell’s first and best-known work for children, may seem at odds with an adult’s memory of the book as it first was published 30 years ago. The dull, musty library volume that was passed ceremoniously among children has been replaced with a rejuvenated, deluxe edition carrying luminous new illustrations by an artist hand-picked by O’Dell.

Although O’Dell’s recent death is mentioned in the amusing, generous introduction, the copyright page still lists only an open-ended annotation: Scott O’Dell, 1903- . Perhaps it’s a sign; a really good yarn-spinner is never gone, as long as the stories go on being spun.

O’Dell’s view of a paradise lost takes its seed from a historical incident he learned of during his early years on the California coast. Karana, a 12-year-old member of an island clan, finds herself in a solitary struggle for survival in a primeval setting. The fragile ecosystem of the girl’s island home is disrupted by greedy hunters who plunder the sea lions and then kill most of the men of her tribe.

When she and her younger brother are left behind by the ship that bears away her people, Karana must battle what seems to be all of nature. Wild dogs kill her brother; there are earthquakes, tidal waves, new seasons of hunters and endless solitude. She finds a measure of contentment during her survival and takes pleasure in small comforts--the company of creatures she has tamed (and whose flesh she vows never again to eat), a pair of handmade earrings. She also acquires knowledge of weapon making, a skill taught only to boys.

Man as hunter or shepherd, the island as planet, the encounter with nature--these are but some of the large human themes dramatized in this story. Perhaps a male protagonist would have tried to sail beyond the horizon, or attempted to conquer the less-than-tame aspects of his surroundings. But O’Dell seems to insist that the feminine inclination to tend rather than confront is not only preferable but ultimately indispensable for humankind’s survival. In the subsuming need to nurture, Karana is ultimately incapable of vengeful action. The pack of mad dogs is a reminder that nature may be cruel--but that there is no place for premeditated and worthless killing.

In the world of blue dolphins (so different from that of the white whale), O’Dell expresses an Edenic belief that human nature is essentially good and is corrupted only by social intercourse and the prejudices of urban life. But the author’s equally strong conviction that there is a basic human need for companionship leads the older Karana to the evolutionary step from living in nature to “civilized” life. At age 30, the heroine finds solace in the shadows of her rescuers, smiling her welcome and wearing face paint to indicate her virginity, ready to be inducted into the society of others.