Guts : The True Stories Behind Hatchet and the Brian Books (Hardcover)

by Gary Paulsen (Author) "Perhaps the single most catastrophic event in Brian's life in Hatchet is when the pilot dies of a heart attack..." (more)
Key Phrases: north woods, Little Buck

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
What do you do when you're being charged by a red-eyed furious wall of brown fur that is an insane moose? How do you make a weapon with your bare hands? How do you sneak up on a grouse or a rabbit, kill it with a well-aimed arrow, and cook it over a fire--without a pot? All this and lots more is essential learning for Brian Robeson, the young wilderness survivor in Gary Paulsen's classic novel Hatchet. In writing that book, Paulsen was determined that everything that happened to Brian--the survival techniques and the physical and emotional traumas--would be drawn closely from reality and his own experiences. In Guts he reveals the stories behind Hatchet, as he lived them. Linked to specific incidents from Brian's ordeal are the skills and insights Paulsen learned as a teenager passionately in love with hunting in the north woods of Minnesota, the extremes of exhaustion and cold he knew in running the Iditarod dog races in Alaska, the chilling close-up knowledge of heart attacks from his experiences as a volunteer ambulance driver, the silence and majesty of the wilderness. Some great stories are told here: the child killed by two kicks from the razor-sharp hooves of a small deer, the difficulties of sharing a rescue helicopter ride with a terrified dog team, and some spectacular gross-outs about the nutritional need to eat every part of an animal. Hatchet fans will be agog, and parents and teachers will be thrilled to see the enthusiastic reaction of even the most reluctant readers. (Ages 10 to 14) --Patty Campbell

From School Library Journal

Gr 5 Up-Adding to his already considerable oeuvre, Paulsen offers this collection of wilderness survival/hunting essays that concentrates on drawing parallels between his own life and the fictional adventures and misadventures of Brian Robeson in Hatchet (Macmillan, 1986) and its sequels. The author's previous collection of hunting and fishing essays, Father Water, Mother Woods (Delacorte, 1994), was supposed to satisfy readers' need to know the stories behind the stories, but the flow of inquiries only increased. He wrote this collection, which focuses on specific events in the "Brian" books, to answer those fans' questions. Readers find out about moose attacks and plane crashes and attempts at eating raw turtle eggs. The writing is what we have come to expect from Paulsen-at times spare and at others lyrically descriptive of nature and life out of doors-but the repetition of ideas he wants to hammer home gets annoying in a couple of the essays. Every time he mentions money, he goes on to mention that he was working to pay for school supplies and clothes since his parents wouldn't. Guts is more meandering biographical musings than it is traditional essays. It does leave one wondering how he had time to pen his 100 plus books; he seems never to have been indoors since he discovered hunting as a teenager. This title is a must for libraries serving fans of the "Brian" adventures. It's also an excellent book to place in the hands of young readers interested in hunting since it imparts a responsible philosophy of hunting and gun usage.-Timothy Capehart, Leominster Public Library, MA

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers (January 23, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385326505
• ISBN-13: 978-0385326506
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (56 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #267,995 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Guts" is a must-read for Paulsen fans and anyone else, February 27, 2001

A Kid's Review

I started reading this book the day it came in the mail and couldn't put it down! I read the entire book in one sitting. In this book, Paulsen describes way more details than in his "Hatchet" series. It is very interesting how he got his information to make "Hatchet" very authentic, from being an ambulance driver, being in the air force, being in the Iditarod, flying planes, being attacked by animals, and having an exciting childhood. One thing I learned about Paulsen that I didn't know before was why and how he learned, as a boy, to be a survivor. You will have to read the book yourself to find this out. It is pretty amazing how he survived some of his experiences, all of which helped make the "Hatchet" series so captivating. Now I know why "Hatchet" has been my favorite book for such a long time. I think anyone would enjoy reading "Guts" by Gary Paulsen.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The paulsen Experience, February 22, 2005

By	a student (Versailles, OH USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Guts (Mass Market Paperback)

The book Guts is an autobiography about Gary Paulsen. All of the adventures he has been on. How he survived as a kid when he ran away or like the first time he got a book when he walked into a library and an old lady gave him a library card. He has many stories about how he was attacked by moose and how he was saving peoples lives by driving them to the hospital in an ambulance. All of the great stories he has for you it just captures you and makes you want to read and read till you get tiered. The part of the story I liked the most was when he was hunting and got attacked by a moose. A simile that really fits this book is hatchet. This is a great book and I would recommend it to any reader.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars true grit, high interest book, December 23, 2003

By	H.S. Cross - See all my reviews

This review is from: Guts (Mass Market Paperback)

There seems to be very little Gary Paulsen hasn't experienced first hand: crashing a bush plane, being pummeled half to death by an angry moose, attempting to drag a 200 pound deer out of a swamp, roasting squirrels over spits, eating bugs, eyeballs, and guts... This is a collection of real life adventures that inspired events in Paulsen's novels. A must-read for fans of these books and for anybody (esp. boys) who love disgusting, dangerous, modern-day survival stories. It's easy to read and gives an appreciation for true survival skills in a world that has largely lost touch with such values. ages 10+