Hatchet

This was my favorite book as a child, rereading it at least once a year from age 10 until I was 21. I just read it for the first time as an adult, checking for problematic things I may have missed as a child, before recommending it to my 10 & 11 year old nieces. I still think it’s a really good book for kids to read, especially for children that are interested in nature and survival. It does talk about cheating and divorce, and Brian is very angry about it in the beginning, but grows and doesn’t seem to hold a grudge by the end. There is also the mention of suicide - Brian being depressed and trying to cut his wrists. This didn’t trigger me as a child, it was more a quick description of what most people in this situation would probably face at one point or another. It didn’t linger on it, a page worth of description, and then moves on to Brian being stronger and surviving. I would recommend this book to most kids 10+ years old.

Have you ever been stranded in the woods as a 13 years old? In the book, Hatchet, Brian Robeson was stuck in the woods left to survive on his own at 13 years old. This book was written in 1986 and the author is Gary Paulsen. This book is the first in a series with 4 other books other than Hatchet. The plot of this book is pretty scary. A 13 year old boy named Brian gets stuck in the woods for 54 days. His parents are also divorced. He was on a small bush plane to visit his father at an oil plantation when the plane crashed in the middle of the Canadian woods. He then has to survive on his own. One thing I like about this book is that parts of it are very action packed and exciting to read. For example when he crashes in a plane it is very scary and exciting at the same time. One thing I don't like about this story is that after he crashes the plane it isn't super exciting because he’s just trying to get food and survive. I would recommend this book for 11-14 year olds but really anyone could like this book if you like adventure and exciting plot twists. I would give this a 4.5 stars.