Чудова коротка робінзонада про підлітка, але не тільки для підлітків.

Original rating: 4 stars. One star docked for the language.

Language: A couple of uses of the D word. And God's name is used in vain a few times, seriously is it that hard to use 'gosh' instead?

Overall Rating : A+

Rereading from my childhood and I forgot how short this book is. But it's simple and wonderful and the way it's written can give you pause for thought on nature, wilderness, and simply finding the will to survive.

It brought joy to my heart rereading this after so many years. I definitely rate this under ageless classics that will never be forgotten.

Despite some of the repetition getting annoying from time to time, Hatchet is an engrossing story of survival for a young boy unfortunate enough to endure a plane crash to become stranded in the Canadian wilderness. For the most part the story sticks to realistic stuff, concentrating mainly on hunger and food. So many other survival stories focus on more, but really the basics of food and hunger and survival would be the forefront issue most would encounter if stranded alone. It sets in fast and it's almost constant. Brian shows he has what it takes to survive, but the author doesn't make the child come across as anything super since he shows that nature is uncontrollable and that it's luck of the draw for us all. The author even ends the narrative of the story saying that if Brian had been unlucky enough to be stranded during wintertime in the Canadian wilderness, he very likely wouldn't have survived at all. His dependency on the lake is the only reason he made it past the first few days, and then subsequent months, but a frozen lake would have nixed that.tttttt

Although realistic with its focus on hunger and survival, it did have an unlikely tornado that felt contrived. Still the story can be forgiven this, as it focused on things like swarms of mosquitoes, baking sun, a random rude moose and other concerns. Brian didn't venture far from the landing, and I'm not sure I would have either. Some would venture far to try and find salvation themselves but he stuck to one area and stayed close to the shelter and food/water supply that were guaranteed to be sure. A more cautious method that worked. Not sure what I would have done in his circumstances, but I see the point that the chances of shelter like that would have been few and far between.tttttt

Written for children, it's more interesting and educational than upsetting. I do wish the author had spent more time granting us a deeper afterword. I realize the point of the story was the struggle, but I like to see more time involved with the after effect. Just a pet peeve of mine. We did get a small one at least. Besides the survival story being the focus, the Secret also weighed heavy in his mind, and ends up being a continuous thing he has to carry. The story ties into the Hatchet being the main tool he used to get started, but I do have to wonder why kind of random present that is that a mother gives a young boy. Either way, came in handy.tttttt

Even if the repetition with the writer's style grew too much at times, it was to the point and paced well. I can see why it won so many children's awards, including Newberry Honor.

I volunteer at the local library in a program between the schools and library to encourage reading. I usually work with high school students but this month I was changed to the 10 to 12 year olds. Our librarian chose the book this time and the kids read the book and met with me at the conference room at the library last week. The book was “Hatchet” by Gary Paulsen. The book was a Newbery Honor book for 1987. The novel is about a thirteen year old Brian Robeson who is on his way to visit his father for the summer in a single engine plane, the Cessna 406 bush plane. Brian is sitting in the co-pilot seat; suddenly the plane jerks off into another direction and the pilot is grabbing his chest. The pilot is dead of a heart attack and the plane flies on until it runs out of gas and goes down in a lake. Brian manages to escape the plane but all he has are his cloths, a windbreaker and on his belt the hatchet his mother had given him at the airport. Brian had been depressed about his parent’s recent divorce and knew he had to snap out of his depression and find the determination and courage to survive alone in the Canadian wilderness. Brian survives fifty-four days alone. Paulsen describes how he survived, what he found to eat, how he managed to create a fire.

The book is well written and is 186 pages long. Paulsen makes the story very realistic and he personally tried every food and technique he describes in the book. Paulsen also provides moral and emotional information intertwined in the story. The book that was given to me had a number of discussion points to review with the children. One of the discussion questions was how Brian uses information that he has learned from his school teachers, movies and specials on public television to understand the animals in the wild and how does this knowledge contribute to his survival. Another question was how did Brian deal with his dark moments of despair? At what point does he learn not to fear the animals, but to share the woods with them? The group was very excited about the story and got into a big discussion that ended up going overtime. I found it interesting that both the boys and girls were equally excited about the story and during the discussion I noted that most of the children were evaluating their own skills and knowledge and wondering if they could have survived on their own. I recommend this book to everyone of all ages and as a family discussion book.

I just listened to the audiobook to refresh my memory of this now classic novel. Indeed, I had read this book as a young reader and it's still a great story, even today. The compression of events felt a little odd as an adult reader/listener, but the substance is still there.

Recommended for readers looking for survivalist fiction, value industriousness in characters, and those interested in naturalist stories. Best for ages 8-11.

The Survival genre is one of the genres that I do not normally read, but 'Hatchet' is the most intriguing survival book I've ever read. In the book, it talks about how hard surviving in the wilderness is, and how it's harder to deal with your own emotions. Thoughts of never-ending surviving. Thoughts of no one coming to save him. Thoughts of staying alone living by himself forever. I really like this book because it actually tells you what happens to stay alive after a plane crash. It isn't like a cheesy survival story where the main character just carries through without any emotional change. 'Hatchet' is probably the most realistic survival story I've ever known. It really explains what could happen to you when you go through a huge event. It's as if you become a whole new person! You stepped out of your own bubble, and have taken on another personality. Overall, this book taught me a lot, and I suggest you try it too!

I really enjoyed re-reading this book, though sadly I only picked it up when I learned of the author's recent passing. Such a quick read to describe what would absolutely feel like an indefinite amount of time, especially to a 13 year old but just as much for any adult lost in the wilderness with little hope of rescue.

My main takeaway throughout the entire narrative was "wow, there's no way I could do that" and I hold to that even after finishing. I don't know that I'd have the fortitude to do what's necessary to survive in the wild, and not just survive but actually have shelter and steady sources of food. I'm amazed at the main character's ability to reconcile his situation and force himself to focus on moving forward as best he could.

Great book about endurance and survival.

For some reason I thought this book was more like my side of the mountain.

HATCHET by Gary Paulsen

Brain doesn't think his life will ever be the same after his parents get divorced but his life is about to take an even bigger twist as the plain he is on crashes into Canadian wilderness. alone in the wild, stranded on a piece of jutting out land Brain will try his hardest to survive. Throughout the book I admired his constant positive attitude even when he felt like giving up because without it he would have been dead. It was amazing to read about the number of ways Brain used his hatchet or how a hatchet can be used. Brian used the tool to create fire, to make more tools, and use it for hunting.

When Brain tried to hunt fish, he would fail and have to try again and tweak or adapt his tool or his approach before he could get a meal. This made me think about how we must have evolved from millions of years ago. The caveman had to apply the same process of making mistakes and learning from them, trying new things to get a meal. We now have our meals prepared and available in ready-to-eat packets in our modern world.
the interesting thing about the book was that even though it did not put me at the edge of my seat I could not put the book down.
If you liked "Escape under the forever sky" you very lightly will like "Hatchet".

I.love.this.book.

Seriously, I read this maybe in fourth grade? It was definitly in elementary school, because I remember it was at the same time that we we doing "survival skills"* in Girl Scouts. Not that I ever wanted to be trapped by myself in the wilderness, but I spent a lot of my time in my backyard pretending to find flint with my sister, and starting imaginary fires to keep warm. In winter we dug ourselves igloos. I always went camping with my parents, so this book started a lot of Q&A's with them about what to do if I get lost in the woods (Hint, No. 1 is STAY WHERE YOU ARE!). Any ways, its a great read for an elementary kid, and everyone should read it.


* This was put in quotation marks because it was a total joke. I had been looking forward to these skills for quite some time, finally girl scouts was going to teach me what I wanted! Instead of knives they handed us popsicle sticks. For the love of God CUB SCOUTS get real knives. This was followed shortly on the heels of an outdoor cooking class where none of us were allowed near the fire. Basically we made banana boats, and then the instructor put the boats in and out of the coals for us. We learned how to build a fire with coals, not tinder. Agh. It was at this point that I decided Girl Scouts was NOT for me.