As Brian washes the blood and dirt off his tattered and tired face with nice, refreshing, cool lake water, he hears something move in the bushes behind him. ? What is it?? He wonders. Is it a bear or maybe another grouse?? He ponders with curiosity and fright. Then he turns around only to see a cow moose ready to charge at him and trample him to the ground. What would you do at this moment? Maybe turn and run? But wait, a moose can run faster than you? Maybe jump into the lake and swim for your life? Well, Brian decides to face this moose head on. Yikes! This is only one of the many problems Brian Robeson had to face in the book called Hatchet. Gary Paulsen, the author of this novel, tells us how Brian was going to visit his father in Canada and before he knew it he was stranded out in the wilderness. With only his hatchet as his companion, he had to find food and save his own life. Would you be able to do that?
This very adventurous story takes place in the Canadian wilderness with all the lovely birds, woods, and lakes. ? Oh! How beautiful,? you may think, because that's what Brian thought at first too. The beautiful sunrises and sunsets or the way the sun reflects off the small lake where Brian's shelter is on the shore. This may sound like paradise or maybe just a good vacation. Well, it's not. For there are many hardships at this so-called ?paradise?. One night the wind started blowing, the sky turned green, it started to rain hard, and a tornado hit. After being thrown around in the tornado Brian was even worse off. I am glad I'm not Brian.
Though all these difficulties Brian had only one person to rely on for food, shelter, protection, and even more. This person was himself. After the plane landed in the lake, Brian found himself knocked unconscious, wounded, hungry, and alone. After finding some berries to eat, Brian notices he's not alone. A bear is off about twenty feet heading towards the same berry patch that Brian's at. ?What's Brian going to do?? You may ask? Well, Brian knows that the bear isn't out to get him, but instead just wants some berries. So, Brian just finds a way to disappear from the scene. A bear wasn't the only animal or insect, in this case. Brian was greeted with something painful, and when they bite it itches. Yep, I'm guessing you guessed it: mosquitoes! After Brian finds out how to start a fire, mosquitoes aren't a problem. Before long, Brian also learns how to kill fish, grouse, and rabbits for food and he becomes part of nature. Now, with nature on his side, he is able to survive.
After learning some about this book, I hope that you will enjoy it as much as I did and still do. When you read it, you will be able to picture what Brian's going through, and you won't be able to put the book down. Whether you picture him when he is just a city boy almost starving to death, or you picture him on one of his silent hunts, quietly walking through the woods only to receive a rabbit for a supper, you will picture him doing everything. I believe that Hatchet by Gary Paulsen is one of the best books ever, and I hope you will feel the same way when you read it.
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