Hatchet A report of Gary Paulsen's book by Taylor Allen

Hatchet
A report of Gary Paulsen's book by Taylor Allen

Author, Book, and Publisher
This report will review and describe the content and context of "Hatchet" for the Unified Studies program instructed by Sidney Hatch and Anna Davis. Hatchet was written by the three time Newberry honor award author Gary Paulsen. The captivating story of Brian Robeson is told in 195 pages and was published by scholastic incorporated.  The first time I read "Hatchet", I did so because I loved the outdoors, and the idea of a lone boy trying to survive in the wilderness sounded daring and interesting to me. Others interested in these things would also enjoy this book.

Characters
In "Hatchet" Brian has few interactions with people; instead he deals with different aspects of surviving. Therefore i find it more informative to list aspects he deals with than the few characters. I will list the main aspects below.
Brian: Brian is a thirteen year old boy who is struggling with the divorce of his parents. When he goes to see his father he ends up in a plane crash that leaves him in the Canadian wilderness. He decides to survive and by the end of the book he is a changed, stronger person.
The Hatchet: The hatchet means everything to Brian. It is his main tool that enables him to survive.
Fire: Fire is Brian's best friend, but is a hungry one. Brian has to gather large amounts of wood often to keep fire alive.
Food: Brian begins to display his new knowledge when he achieves different foods. He is constantly striving to eat.
The Secret, the crash, the mosquitoes, the porcupine, the skunk, the moose, the storm: These aspects are the antagonists of the story. Brian must face these difficulties in order to survive.

Plot
Brian's mother divorces Brian's father in order to with be with another man. Brian accidentally discovers this and the knowledge hurts him deeply. In route to go see his father via a twin engine plane, the pilot has a heart attack and dies. Brian is forced to crash land the plane into a lake in the canadian woods. Brian survives the crash and he takes account of what he has while beginning to learn to survive. Brian builds a shelter and discovers how to make fire, hunt birds and trap fish. Brian must face many events that impair his health, destroy his shelter and moral. After many such trials and obstacles Brian retrieves the survival pack from the submerged aircraft and accidentally summons help with an emergency transmitter. A fur trapper takes Brian back to civilization after he had spent 54 days alone in the wilderness. Brian survived.
Hatchet focuses on Brian's thoughts and his growth. Often times in the book a small event will create a snowball effect and devastate Brian's progress. Brian changes from a victim in the beginning to a survivor at the end.

Conclusion
My lasting impressions of "Hatchet" are as follows. Gary Paulsen produces vivid imagery from his writing in "Hatchet" as well as his other works. The reader is absorbed into the scenery and thoughts of the young boy trying to survive in the harsh wilderness. Reading this book as a young boy sparked my interest in wilderness survival and I went on to read many of the other works by Paulsen and similar authors. The imagery and plot weave a story together that intrigues and captivates the reader. I was slightly disappointed by the harsh droop off of rising action as the book came to a close. However, Paulsen recognized this problem and continued Brian’s story in another book called "Brian's Winter with the premise that Brian had not been rescued on the 54th day but had to survive the harsh winter.
During the early part of the book Brian quickly leans that becoming overwhelmed with emotion did not help his situation and often exacerbated the bad aspects of it. One can learn from this to stay calm and think clearly in all situations.
I thoroughly  enjoyed Hatchet and would highly recommend it for all readers, as the book is enjoyable, easy to read, and presents accurate survival techniques. I am glad I have read Hatchet.