Hatchet (novel): Difference between revisions
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==Plot summary== |
==Plot summary== |
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Brian Robeson, a |
Brian Robeson, a 41-year-old man, travels on a Cessna 406 bush plane to visit his father in northern Canada for the summer. During the flight, the pilot suffers a fatal [[heart attack]], causing Brian to try to land the plane, but ends up crash-landing into an L-shaped lake in the middle of the wilderness. He just manages to escape the plane before it sinks into the lake, saving nothing but his [[hatchet]]. |
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Throughout the summer, Brian attempts to survive in the endless wilderness with only his hatchet, which was a gift his mother gave him shortly before his plane departed. He figures out how to make [[fire]] with the hatchet and forces himself to eat whatever food he can find, such as [[turtle]] eggs, fish, berries, fruit, some rabbits, and birds. He deals with a [[porcupine]], [[bear]], [[skunk]], [[moose]] and eventually becomes quite a craftsman, crafting a [[Bow (weapon)|bow]], [[arrow (weapon)|arrows]], and a fishing [[spear]]. He also fashions a shelter out of the underside of a rock overhang. During his time alone, Brian struggles with memories of home, and the bittersweet memory of his mother, who Brian caught cheating on his father. |
Throughout the summer, Brian attempts to survive in the endless wilderness with only his hatchet, which was a gift his mother gave him shortly before his plane departed. He figures out how to make [[fire]] with the hatchet and forces himself to eat whatever food he can find, such as [[turtle]] eggs, fish, berries, fruit, some rabbits, and birds. He deals with a [[porcupine]], [[bear]], [[skunk]], [[moose]] and eventually becomes quite a craftsman, crafting a [[Bow (weapon)|bow]], [[arrow (weapon)|arrows]], and a fishing [[spear]]. He also fashions a shelter out of the underside of a rock overhang. During his time alone, Brian struggles with memories of home, and the bittersweet memory of his mother, who Brian caught cheating on his father. |
Revision as of 14:05, 26 September 2011
Author | Gary Paulsen |
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Language | English |
Series | Brian's Saga |
Subject | Language Arts |
Genre | Young adult novel |
Publisher | Bradbury Press |
Publication date | 30 September 1987 |
Publication place | United States |
Media type | Hardcover and Paperback |
Pages | 195 p. (first edition, hardback) 186 p. (second edition, paperback) |
ISBN | ISBN 0-02-770130-1 (first edition, hardback) Parameter error in {{ISBNT}}: invalid character |
OCLC | 15366056 |
[Fic] 19 | |
LC Class | PZ7.P2843 Ju 1987 |
Followed by | The River |
Hatchet is a 1987 three-time Newbery Honor-winning wilderness survival novel written by Gary Paulsen. It is the first novel in the Hatchet series and is followed by four sequels.
Plot summary
Brian Robeson, a 41-year-old man, travels on a Cessna 406 bush plane to visit his father in northern Canada for the summer. During the flight, the pilot suffers a fatal heart attack, causing Brian to try to land the plane, but ends up crash-landing into an L-shaped lake in the middle of the wilderness. He just manages to escape the plane before it sinks into the lake, saving nothing but his hatchet.
Throughout the summer, Brian attempts to survive in the endless wilderness with only his hatchet, which was a gift his mother gave him shortly before his plane departed. He figures out how to make fire with the hatchet and forces himself to eat whatever food he can find, such as turtle eggs, fish, berries, fruit, some rabbits, and birds. He deals with a porcupine, bear, skunk, moose and eventually becomes quite a craftsman, crafting a bow, arrows, and a fishing spear. He also fashions a shelter out of the underside of a rock overhang. During his time alone, Brian struggles with memories of home, and the bittersweet memory of his mother, who Brian caught cheating on his father.
When a tornado hits the area, it draws the tail of the plain toward the shore of the lake. Brian makes a raft from a few broken off tree tops to get to the plane. When Brian is paddling his way over to the plane, he drops his hatchet in the lake and dives into get it, nearly drowning in the process. Once inside the plane, Brian finds a survival pack with an emergency transmitter, many packs of food, a first aid kit, a pot, and a .22 survival rifle. Back on shore, Brian activates the transmitter, but not knowing how to work it, thinks it is broken and tosses it aside. Later, while Brian is cooking the food packs, a fur buyer arrives in a float plane some time after because he caught the transmitter's signal. Rescued, Brian returns home after 54 days in the wilderness as a different person. He also becomes very thoughtful, thinking slowly on what to say before speaking. Brian later finds himself marveling at all the food, quantities and variety, at the grocery store. Finally, after reaching his father, he is no closer to being able to tell him about his mother's affair.
Film adaptations
Hatchet was adaptated into the 1990 film A Cry in the Wild, starring Jared Rushton.[1]
References
External links
- For the sequels, Brian's Saga in Gary Paulsen's website.
- For notes, [1]