“Hatchet”
Hatchet is a fictional account of a 13-year old boy’s struggle to survive in the Canadian wilderness. While the intended audience is young adults, if you are a “survival type,” you will enjoy the book. The author does a good job conveying the psychology of surviving, from the initial horror of finding yourself injured after a plane crash, maintaining a positive attitude, the futility of feeling sorry for yourself, trial and error learning, to the elation of having accomplished a skill that keeps you alive. Even non-survivalists will benefit, if only for an evening during this quick read, of a glimpse into a world where “food is all.”
By Gary Paulsen, 1987
Fiction – Young Adult
Newbery Honor Book
4.5 million copies in print
- Hunger incentive
- Feeling of separation from reality while using technology
From the author, Gary Paulsen:
“What makes Hatchet stand out for me was the research I did – or rather lived – for the book. I have been in forced landings in light planes, had to survive in the woods with little or nothing; virtually everything that happens to Brian in the book has happened in one for or another to me just in the process of living.”
Paulsen has written over 100 books, including sequels to Hatchet and a “what if.” More books to add to my to-read list!
Visit Amazon’s Hatchet page.