Gone to the Woods: Surviving a Lost Childhood

Gary Paulsen’s memoir offers his perspective on the beginnings of Hatchet and his other survival stories. It recounts the first time he experienced a stable family life, at his aunt’s farm. That period ended suddenly when his alcoholic mother arrived to take him to the Philippines. The book connects a childhood family disruption, a move to another country, and the experiences that informed Paulsen’s later survival writing.