Literary theme analysis, by a book like {foo}
Books about Wilderness
Grandma Gatewood's Walk: The Inspiring Story of the Woman Who Saved the Appalachian Trail
by Ben Montgomery
The true story of Emma Gatewood's record-breaking hike of the entire Appalachian Trail.
2014 National Outdoor Book Award Winner in History / Biography Emma Gatewood told her family she was going on a walk and left her small Ohio hometown with a change of clothes and less than two ... (Barnes & Noble)
The Last American Man
by Elizabeth Gilbert
The true story of Eustace Conway, who left civilization to live in the wilderness and become a modern-day mountain man.
Finalist for the National Book Award 2002 Look out for Elizabeth Gilbert's new book, Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear , on sale now! In this rousing examination of contemporary American male ... (Goodreads)
Into the Wild
by Jon Krakauer
A young man's journey of self-discovery, traveling into the wilderness of Alaska.
Librarian's Note: An alternate cover edition can be found, here, In April, 1992, a young man from a well-to-do family hitchhiked to Alaska and walked alone into the wilderness north of Mt. McKinley. ... (Goodreads)
Earth Abides
by George R. Stewart
A post-apocalyptic tale of a man's journey to rebuild civilization.
While working on his graduate thesis in geology in the Sierra Nevada mountains, Ish is bitten by a rattlesnake. As he heals from the bite, taking refuge in a cabin, he gets sick with a disease that ... (Wikipedia)
Force of Nature
by Jane Harper
A detective's investigation into a missing woman, uncovering dark secrets of a small town.
Five women reluctantly pick up their backpacks and start walking along a muddy track. Only four come out on the other side. The hike through the rugged Giralang Ranges is meant to take the office ... (Goodreads)
White Fang
by Jack London
A wolfdog's journey from wild to domestication, navigating the complexities of human civilization.
The story begins before the wolf-dog hybrid is born, with two men and their sled dog team on a journey to deliver the coffin of Lord Alfred to a remote town named Fort McGurry in the higher area of ... (Wikipedia)
The Eight Mountains
by Paolo Cognetti
A man's journey of self-discovery, exploring nature and reflecting on life.
Pietro è un ragazzino di città, solitario e un po' scontroso. La madre lavora in un consultorio di periferia, e farsi carico degli altri è il suo talento. Il padre è un chimico, un uomo ombroso e ... (Goodreads)
The Snow Child
by Eowyn Ivey
A couple's dream of a child comes true in the Alaskan wilderness, but with unexpected consequences.
Alaska, 1920: a brutal place to homestead, and especially tough for recent arrivals Jack and Mabel. Childless, they are drifting apart–he breaking under the weight of the work of the farm; she ... (Goodreads)
The Call of the Wild
by Jack London
A dog's adventure in the wilderness, confronting the primal struggle for survival.
The story opens in 1897 with Buck, a powerful 140-pound St. Bernard – Scotch Collie mix, , , happily living in California 's Santa Clara Valley as the pampered pet of Judge Miller and his family. One ... (Wikipedia)
Tarzan of the Apes
by Edgar Rice Burroughs
A wild adventure as a boy is raised by apes in the jungles of Africa.
John and Alice (Rutherford) Clayton, Viscount and Lady Greystoke from England , are marooned in the western coastal jungles of equatorial Africa in 1888. Some time later, their son John Clayton II , ... (Wikipedia)
Brian's Hunt
by Gary Paulsen
A young boy's journey of self-discovery and survival in the wilds of the North.
Brian, who is now sixteen years old, is canoeing through the Canadian wilderness. He realizes that the woods are now his home and he will never be happy in modern society with its noise , pollution, ... (Wikipedia)
Brian's Winter
by Gary Paulsen
A retelling of the classic novel, "Hatchet", from the perspective of a young boy struggling to survive in the frozen wilderness.
The story deals with Brian, still stranded at the L-shaped lake during the fall and winter, constructing a winter shelter, building snow shoes , being confronted by a bear , befriending and naming a ... (Wikipedia)
Into the Wilderness
by Sara Donati
A family's journey of adventure, courage and self-discovery amidst the vastness of the American frontier.
Weaving a tapestry of fact and fiction, Sara Donati's epic novel sweeps us into another time and place...and into the heart of a forbidden affair between an unconventional Englishwoman and an ... (Goodreads)
Hatchet
by Gary Paulsen
A boy must learn to survive in the wilderness after a plane crash leaves him stranded.
Brian Robeson is a thirteen-year-old son of divorced parents. As he travels from Hampton, New York on a single engine Cessna bush plane to visit his father in the oil fields in Northern Canada for ... (Wikipedia)
Firestorm
by Nevada Barr
A raging wildfire uncovers a murder mystery in a national park. Ranger Anna Pigeon must solve the case before the fire engulfs everything.
"An insatiable, unstoppable beast, the wildfire called Jackknife has already devoured 17,000 acres of California's Lassen Volcanic National Park. A devastating force of nature, it has brought out the ... (Goodreads)
Desert Solitaire
by Edward Abbey
A personal account of a season spent as a park ranger in the American wilderness.
First published in 1968, Desert Solitaire is one of Edward Abbey’s most critically acclaimed works and marks his first foray into the world of nonfiction writing. Written while Abbey was working as a ... (Goodreads)
A River Runs Through it and Other Stories
by Norman Maclean
A series of stories about the life of a family and the relationship between two brothers.
Just as Norman Maclean writes at the end of "A River Runs through It" that he is "haunted by waters," so have readers been haunted by his novella. A retired English professor who began writing ... (Goodreads)
The Snow Leopard
by Peter Matthiessen
A spiritual journey to the Himalayas, seeking to observe a rare snow leopard.
When Matthiessen went to Nepal to study the Himalayan blue sheep and, possibly, to glimpse the rare and beautiful snow leopard, he undertook his five-week trek as winter snows were sweeping into the ... (Goodreads)
Encounters with the Archdruid
by John McPhee
A series of three encounters between environmentalist David Brower and three men who represent different perspectives on nature and its use.
The narratives in this book are of journeys made in three wildernesses - on a coastal island, in a Western mountain range, and on the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. The four men portrayed here ... (Goodreads)
The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon
by Stephen King
A young girl's struggle to survive in a dangerous forest while being pursued by a supernatural force.
The story is set in motion by a family hiking trip, during which Trisha's brother, Pete, and mother constantly squabble about the mother's divorce from their father, as well as other topics. Trisha ... (Wikipedia)
The River
by Gary Paulsen
A young boy's journey of self-discovery, learning to navigate the wilderness.
Brian Robeson, a 13-year-old boy who spent 54 days surviving alone in the Canadian wilderness the previous summer, is hired by the government to again live in the woods with only two knives and ... (Wikipedia)
The Long Winter
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
A family's courageous struggle to survive a harsh winter in the American frontier.
On a hot August day in the 1880s, at the Ingallses' homestead in Dakota Territory , Laura offers to help Pa stack hay to feed their stock in the winter. As they work, she notices a muskrat den in the ... (Wikipedia)
The Monkey Wrench Gang
by Edward Abbey
A comedic adventure of environmental activism, fighting against corporate pollution.
The book's four main characters are ecologically minded misfits—"Seldom Seen" Smith, a Jack Mormon river guide; Doc Sarvis, an odd but wealthy and wise surgeon; Bonnie Abbzug, his young Jewish ... (Wikipedia)
Boundary Waters
by William Kent Krueger
A gripping wilderness adventure exploring the depths of a man's courage and the power of friendship.
The Quetico-Superior Wilderness: more than two million acres of forest, white-water rapids, and uncharted islands on the Canadian/American border. Somewhere in the heart of this unforgiving ... (Goodreads)
Heaven's Keep
by William Kent Krueger
A wealthy businessman's plane crashes in the wilderness, leading to a search for him and a dark secret hidden in the mountains.
You can’t keep Cork down, and in the next riveting novel in William Kent Krueger’s award-winning mystery series, Cork O’Connor again rises to the top as he investigates the disappearance of his ... (Goodreads)
Follow the River
by James Alexander Thom
A woman's epic journey of survival and courage, escaping captivity in the American wilderness.
Mary Ingles was twenty-three, married, and pregnant, when Shawnee Indians invaded her peaceful Virginia settlement, killed the men and women, then took her captive. For months, she lived with them, ... (Goodreads)
Track of the Cat
by Nevada Barr
A murder mystery set in the wilderness of West Texas, where a park ranger must solve the crime before becoming the next victim.
Anna Pigeon has fled New York and her memories to find work as a ranger in the country’s national parks. In the remote backcountry of West Texas, however, she discovers murder and violence. Fellow ... (Goodreads)
The Loop
by Nicholas Evans
A story of a love triangle between two brothers and a woman set against the backdrop of the Wild West.
Helen Ross is a 29-year-old biologist, sent into a hostile place to protect the wolves from those who seek to destroy them. She struggles for survival and for self-esteem, embarking on a love affair ... (Goodreads)
A River Runs Through It
by Norman Maclean
A semi-autobiographical novella about fly-fishing and family relationships in rural Montana.
From its first magnificent sentence, "In our family, there was no clear line between religion and fly fishing," to the last, "I am haunted by waters," "A River Runs Through It" is an American ... (Goodreads)
Coming Into the Country
by John McPhee
A vivid portrayal of Alaska's wilderness and its inhabitants, exploring the state's history, culture, and politics.
This is the story of Alaska and the Alaskans. Written with a vividness and clarity which shifts scenes frequently, and yet manages to tie the work into a rewarding whole, McPhee segues from the ... (Goodreads)
Legends of the Fall
by Jim Harrison
Epic tale of three brothers and their father living in the wilderness of Montana, facing love, war, and tragedy.
Three novellas by the, New York Times, bestselling author, including the classic tale of brotherhood from the Montana plains through the horrors of WWI. Jim Harrison’s critically acclaimed novella ... (Barnes & Noble)
My Side of the Mountain
by Jean Craighead George
A young boy runs away to the Catskill Mountains, where he learns to survive on his own and befriends a falcon.
Sam Gribley is a 12-year-old boy who intensely dislikes living in his parents' cramped New York City apartment with his eight brothers and sisters. He decides to run away to his great-grandfather's ... (Wikipedia)
Never Cry Wolf: The Amazing True Story of Life Among Arctic Wolves
by Farley Mowat
A scientist's immersive study of Arctic wolves in the wild, challenging preconceptions of predator behavior.
More than a half-century ago the naturalist Farley Mowat was sent to investigate why wolves were killing arctic caribou. Mowat's account of the summer he lived in the frozen tundra alone—studying the ... (Goodreads)
Alaska
by James A. Michener
Epic tale of Alaskan history and culture tracing the lives of several generations of characters.
A sweeping description of the formation of the North American continent . The reader follows the development of the Alaskan terrain over millennia. The city of Los Angeles is now some twenty-four ... (Wikipedia)
The Year of the Hare
by Arto Paasilinna
A man's journey of self-discovery, learning to let go of societal norms and expectations.
A journalist and a photographer set out on an assignment on lovely sunny evening. As they drive through the country they hit a young hare. Vatanen, the journalist, leaves the car and goes in search ... (Goodreads)
To Build a Fire
by Jack London
A man's struggle for survival in the harsh Alaskan wilderness.
"To Build a Fire" is one of Jack London's most beloved short stories. A heartbreaking tale set in the vast wintry landscape of the North, it endures as one of the greatest adventures ever written. ... (Goodreads)
The Dog Stars
by Peter Heller
A man struggles to survive in post-apocalyptic world, searching for a better life.
Hig somehow survived the flu pandemic that killed everyone he knows. Now his wife is gone, his friends are dead, and he lives in the hangar of a small abandoned airport with his dog, Jasper, and a ... (Goodreads)
Back of Beyond
by C.J. Box
A thrilling mystery novel about a detective who must solve a murder in the remote wilderness of Montana.
Edgar Award-winning and, New York Times, bestselling author C.J. Box delivers a thriller about a troubled cop trying to save his son from a killer in Yellowstone, now reissued with additional bonus ... (Barnes & Noble)
Pilgrim's Wilderness: A True Story of Faith and Madness on the Alaska Frontier
by Tom Kizzia
A family's journey to the Alaskan wilderness in search of a religious utopia turns into a nightmare of abuse and isolation.
Into the Wild meets Helter Skelter in this riveting true story of a modern-day homesteading family in the deepest reaches of the Alaskan wilderness – and of the chilling secrets of its maniacal, ... (Goodreads)
The Rope
by Nevada Barr
A gripping mystery novel set in the Grand Canyon, where a park ranger investigates a murder and uncovers dark secrets.
Anna Pigeon's first case—this is the story her fans have been clamoring for...this is where it all starts. In The Rope, the latest in Nevada Barr’s bestselling novels featuring Anna Pigeon, Nevada ... (Goodreads)
Nature Girl
by Carl Hiaasen
A woman takes a man on a wild and dangerous adventure through the Florida Everglades.
In his latest New York Times bestseller, Hiaasen introduces impassioned, possibly bipolar, self-proclaimed queen of lost causes Honey Santana, who schemes to help rid the world of irresponsibility, ... (Goodreads)
My First Summer in the Sierra
by John Muir
Naturalist John Muir's account of his first summer in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, exploring and documenting the beauty of the wilderness.
In the summer of 1869, John Muir, a young Scottish immigrant, joined a crew of shepherds in the foothills of California's Sierra Nevada Mountains. The diary he kept while tending sheep formed the ... (Goodreads)
The Call of the Wild, White Fang and Other Stories
by Jack London
Adventure stories of survival in the wild, featuring animals and humans alike.
Of all Jack London's fictions none has been as popular as his dog stories. In addition to The Call of the Wild, the epic tale of a Californian dog's adventures during the Klondike gold rush, this ... (Goodreads)
Savage Run
by C.J. Box
A Wyoming game warden is on the hunt for a dangerous killer, while also trying to protect a herd of endangered wild horses.
In Savage Run C.J. Box's acclaimed follow-up to his career-making debut Open Season game warden Joe Pickett looks into the bizarre death of an environmental activist...and what he finds is bigger and ... (Goodreads)
Any Other Name
by Craig Johnson
A Wyoming Sheriff investigates a cold case murder that uncovers a tangled web of secrets.
A sheriff’s mysterious death spurs the new novel in the, New York Times, bestselling Walt Longmire series Sheriff Walt Longmire had already rounded up a sizable posse of devoted readers when the A&E ... (Goodreads)
The Endless Forest
by Sara Donati
A historical fiction novel set in the late 18th century, following the lives of a family in the wilderness of New York.
With a master storyteller’s skill and a historian’s precision, Sara Donati has delighted readers and critics alike with her bestselling novels of the nineteenth-century New York frontier. Now she ... (Goodreads)
Born Free: A Lioness of Two Worlds
by Joy Adamson
The true story of how a lioness was raised and released back into the wild.
There have been many accounts of the return to the wild of tame animals, but since its original publication in 1960, when, T,he, New York Times, hailed it as a “fascinating and remarkable book,”, ... (Barnes & Noble)
Tisha: The Story of a Young Teacher in the Alaskan Wilderness
by Robert Specht
A young teacher's journey to a remote Alaskan village, where she faces challenges and finds love and acceptance among the native people.
Anne Hobbs is a prim and proper 19-year-old schoolteacher who yearns for adventure. She finds this and much more in a town with the unlikely name of Chicken, located deep in the Alaskan interior. It ... (Goodreads)
One Man's Wilderness: An Alaskan Odyssey
by Sam Keith
The journal of Richard Proenneke, who left civilization to live alone in the Alaskan wilderness, building his own cabin and living off the land.
To live in a pristine land unchanged by man...to roam a wilderness through which few other humans have passed...to choose an idyllic site, cut trees and build a log cabin...to be a self-sufficient ... (Goodreads)
Trout Fishing in America
by Richard Brautigan
A poetic and humorous exploration of the American experience.
Richard Brautigan was a literary idol of the 1960s and 1970s whose comic genius and iconoclastic vision of American life caught the imagination of young people everywhere. He came of age during the ... (Goodreads)
Off the Grid
by C.J. Box
A thrilling adventure story of a family trying to survive in the wilderness.
New York Times,–bestselling author C. J. Box returns with a suspenseful new Joe Pickett novel. Nate Romanowski is off the grid, recuperating from wounds and trying to deal with past crimes, when he ... (Goodreads)
Hard Truth
by Nevada Barr
A National Park ranger investigates a murder and uncovers a web of deceit and corruption.
Just days after marrying Sheriff Paul Davidson, Anna Pigeon moves to Colorado to assume her new post as district ranger at Rocky Mountain National Park. When two of three children who'd gone missing ... (Goodreads)
Letters of a Woman Homesteader
by Elinore Pruitt Stewart
A collection of letters from a woman who moves to Wyoming to homestead, detailing her struggles and triumphs in the American West.
"Peopled with the kinds of characters most novelists only dream of"(Christian Science Monitor), this classic account of American frontier living captures the rambunctious spirit of a pioneer who set ... (Goodreads)
Ghost Hunter
by Michelle Paver
A chilling tale of a ghost hunter's journey to a haunted mountain in the Himalayas.
Ghost hunter is the final book in the series. Set in the high mountains, it tells of Torak's battle against the most fearsome of all the Soul-Eaters, Eostra the Eagle Owl Mage, who seeks to rule both ... (Wikipedia)
Purgatory Ridge
by William Kent Krueger
A small town sheriff investigates a murder that leads to a dangerous confrontation with a powerful family.
Winner of the prestigious Loft-McKnight Fiction Award and the Anthony Award for Best First Novel, William Kent Krueger has established himself as a startlingly original voice in thriller fiction. ... (Goodreads)
Frightful's Mountain
by Jean Craighead George
Frightful, a peregrine falcon, faces challenges as she tries to survive in the wilderness and protect her offspring.
Sam Gribley is a 12-year-old boy who intensely dislikes living in his parents' cramped New York City apartment with his eight brothers and sisters. He decides to run away to his great-grandfather's ... (Wikipedia)
The Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit
by Michael Finkel
Story of a man who isolated himself in the woods for 27 years, and the journey of understanding his motivations.
Many people dream of escaping modern life, but most will never act on it. This is the remarkable true story of a man who lived alone in the woods of Maine for 27 years, making this dream a ... (Goodreads)
AWOL on the Appalachian Trail
by David Miller
A man's journey of self-discovery on a 2,200 mile hike along the Appalachian Trail.
In 2003, software engineer David Miller left his job, family, and friends to hike 2,172 miles of the Appalachian Trail., AWOL on the Appalachian Trail, is Miller’s account of this thru-hike from ... (Barnes & Noble)
Below Zero
by C.J. Box
Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett investigates a mysterious and dangerous cult in the frozen wilderness.
In this thriller in the #1, New York Times, bestselling series, a voice from the past has a chilling effect on Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett and his family... Six years ago, Joe Pickett's foster ... (Goodreads)
Manitou Canyon
by William Kent Krueger
Private investigator Cork O'Connor searches for a missing hiker in the rugged terrain of Minnesota's Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.
Since the violent deaths of his wife, father, and best friend all occurred in previous Novembers, Cork O’Connor has always considered it to be the cruelest of months. Yet, his daughter has chosen ... (Goodreads)
The First Eagle
by Tony Hillerman
Navajo Tribal Police investigate the murder of a wealthy art collector, uncovering a web of greed and deception.
Anderson Nez dies in the hospital of bubonic plague in a virulent new form. Dr Woody brought him in, and is now demanding details on everything that happened as Nez died in Northern Arizona Medical ... (Wikipedia)
Julie of the Wolves
by Jean Craighead George
A young girl's journey to find her true identity, guided by a pack of wolves.
Julie/Miyax (My-yax) is an Inuk girl torn between modern Alaska and the old Inuit tradition . After her mother's death, she is raised by her father Kapugen (Kah-Pue-Jen). In his care, Miyax becomes ... (Wikipedia)
High Country
by Nevada Barr
A national park ranger investigates a murder in the Rocky Mountains, facing danger and betrayal in the wilderness.
It's fall in the Sierra Mountains, and Anna Pigeon is slinging hash in Yosemite National Park's historic Ahwahnee Hotel. Four young people, all seasonal park employees, have disappeared, and two ... (Goodreads)
The Haunted Mesa
by Louis L'Amour
A man searches for a lost civilization in the American Southwest, encountering supernatural forces and danger.
Mike Raglan, a middle-aged man who specializes in paranormal investigations (and normally debunking the phenomena) has received urgent phone calls and mail from an old friend of his, Erik Hokart. ... (Wikipedia)
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