Brian's Hunt

This one was surprisingly graphic for a middle-grade novel, but I like that Gary Paulsen doesn't sugar coat the realities of surviving in the wilderness.
I love that Gary ends this book with the possibility that he could revisit Brian's story in the future, but it also feels final, in case he doesn't want to revisit it.

Gary Paulsen delivers another gripping wilderness tale with Brian Robeson as he reconnects with the Canadian wild. The dynamic relationship between Brian and the injured dog alongside thrilling wildlife encounters brings a fresh emotional depth. Paulsen’s vivid descriptions and tension-filled survival scenes make this a compelling read for middle-grade and teen readers.

Yearly re-read. Absolutely a step down from its predecessor, but still a thrilling, sentimental read. He gets a dog in this one, which does a LOT to keep the reader compelled.

I am officially a fan of Gary Paulsen’s writing after reading this book. I have not read Hatchet or any of his other books but now I plan to. I know this book would appeal to young male readers elementary through middle school. It would be a bit of a sell to girls of the same age though. That may be why I hadn’t read it until I became a middle school librarian. In the story, a young man named Brian embarks on a trip back into the wilderness that he had learned to love and long for. Paulsen doesn’t shy away from writing unpleasant (but accurate) and gory details about an injured dog that Brian finds and the horrific scene of carnage left by a bear that he stumbles across later. I suspect many people have a hard time believing that show more the main character, Brian, could be drawn to living life the way he does in the story. This book is believable because I have had a great deal of experience in wilderness survival, canoeing and camping in Northern Minnesota and the Canadian wilderness. During my travels (much of it in my teen years) I learned a great deal about French Voyageurs and Anishinabe (Ojibwe) ways. It is the details that make the story so interesting. The descriptions were so accurate at times that it made me curious about the author. So I did research on Gary Paulsen and found out that his stories are in fact based on his own experiences. This story would definitely appeal to an adventurous and independent sort of person. show less

It's early autumn, and Brian is canoeing his way north to visit with friends when he makes a horrifying discovery, leading to a resolution that could cost him his life.

This is a worthy and suspenseful addition to the Hatchet series.

I personally don't enjoy Paulsen at all, but appreciate his importance to our young boys. Suspenseful hunting scenes, graphic animal-gutting & death. My son was fascinated with the basic wilderness survival facts.

I also did like the Afterward to this, where Paulsen speaks frankly about how dangerous it is to think of predators such as bears & orkas as cute and harmless.

Brian’s Hunt starts out with Brian Robeson on summer vacation and spending his time in the wilderness away from all the things he disliked from the city, namely the noise, pollution and people in general. While canoeing, Brian runs in an injured dog and nurses it back to health. While nursing the dog back to health, Brian realized that the dog has owners and wonders what happened to them if the dog was in such bad condition. He then remembers the Smallhorn family that rescued him in Brian’s Winter. He pushes his way to where the family’s cabin is and finds the owners are dead and their young child is hiding. Upon investigating, Brian finds out a bear is to blame for all the damage to the family and dog. Brian returns Susan to show more safety and then goes hunting for the bear. He ultimately ends up killing the bear in the last and final chapter of the Hatchet series by Gary Paulsen. I enjoyed this book and the series. This book was considerably shorter than the other four books but theme and storyline were like the other four. Paulsen again used great writing to put readers in Brian’s shoes all the way through his long and harrowing journey. Good compare and contrast story to have readers read the Hatchet series. A good series and book to have readers write an autobiography about Brian Robeson. show less