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A review by mariahistryingtoread
Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
4.0
I read Hatchet for the first time when I was in the sixth grade. I remembered the experience fondly, but no details outside of there being a plane crash and the knowledge that at the end . After thinking on it off and on for years I finally found the wherewithal to read it this month (i.e. April 2024).
I liked it quite a lot despite the intervening time. I was immediately immersed in Brian's story not just because he was going through something traumatic, but the way that Paulsen described his circumstances could be so evocative. I found the repetition of phrases very annoying and did not remember it at all from my first readthrough yet it was weirdly compelling? Like I think it was a good way to emphasize Brian's mental state even while I was frustrated by the circularity.
Survivalist fiction is very popular for kids nowadays (it could have been popular then too, but I don't recall there being much of it when I was 11 in like 2009 so I doubt it was huge in the 80s either) and this is a cornerstone of the genre in many ways. It can be a heavy read depending on how empathetic a person you are, but I would say it's an easy read overall in that it moves quickly and isn't particularly graphic. A even-keeled recommendation from me though not an emphatic one.
Spoiler
Brian is rescuedI liked it quite a lot despite the intervening time. I was immediately immersed in Brian's story not just because he was going through something traumatic, but the way that Paulsen described his circumstances could be so evocative. I found the repetition of phrases very annoying and did not remember it at all from my first readthrough yet it was weirdly compelling? Like I think it was a good way to emphasize Brian's mental state even while I was frustrated by the circularity.
Survivalist fiction is very popular for kids nowadays (it could have been popular then too, but I don't recall there being much of it when I was 11 in like 2009 so I doubt it was huge in the 80s either) and this is a cornerstone of the genre in many ways. It can be a heavy read depending on how empathetic a person you are, but I would say it's an easy read overall in that it moves quickly and isn't particularly graphic. A even-keeled recommendation from me though not an emphatic one.