I was so excited when my hold for this came in. Brian's Saga is such a pure, simple, fun series. I've been having a lot of fun reading it. Brian's Return is pretty much objectively worse than the first three books. There is barely a plot and the stakes feel incredibly low because we already know Brian has the survival skills to survive. But this book is soooo Paulsen. It is crazy to see so much of an author in a book. From the dissociative brawl that kicks off the story, to the random Shakespeare quotes, to the woo woo "medicine," to the fuck it all moment at the very end. I love this shit.

Brian's Return is really specific in that it's about Brian having a really hard time letting go of his time in the woods and readjusting to "normal life." I think it's super relatable to anyone who's ever felt like they don't seem to care about the same things everyone else cares about. Eventually you just have to say fuck it and find your own path. That's what the barely there story of Brian's Return is about. It ends with an author's note where Paulsen basically explains how a lot of Brian's Saga was based on his real life and how for most of his life, he struggled with finding his place in the world.

So this 4.5/5 star rating is really more for the vibes and the message than the story. ( )

Book 4 of 5 ( )

This fourth book in the series has Brian back at home in the city, but longing to be back in nature and really not fitting in. He manages to convince his counsellor and his mom that he should head back out to the wilderness.

This one was super short, so only about ½ of it was in the wilderness. Which for me is the most interesting part. Also, very unrealistic – to think the adults would let him go back on his own (he was supposed to be meeting up with someone, but how come an adult didn’t accompany him that far?). I did find the author’s note at the end very interesting, though. ( )

I'm on a Paulsen reading frenzy. ( )

This is book #4 of the Hatchet series and one of my favorites. It's explained why he felt he couldn't fit in, the reasons he wanted to return and I really liked the new character of Caleb. ( )