Jon Krakauer's Into the Wild is the haunting, heartbreaking, true story of Chris McCandless, who died alone in the Alaskan wilderness at the age of 24, trying to survive by hunting and gathering all of his food. Krakauer's article on McCandless for Outside magazine apparently brought a number of Chris's friends and acquaintances out of the woodwork, giving Krakauer enough material to fill in some of the blanks in Chris's two-year odyssey, as well as correct a few errors. Krakauer argues convincingly that McCandless was not as unprepared and foolhardy as many people believed for a stint in the wild. McCandless did, however, make some tragic mistakes that cost him his life. Krakauer also includes in the book the story of his own solo trek in Alaska that could have very easily resulted in the same fate. McCandless was a fascinating but frustrating and headstrong young man and remains an enigma. He was smart, musical, athletic, and well-liked by almost everyone who came in contact with him, but he struck out on his own for two years without a word to his family. Time and again, people he met on the road helped him out despite their initial reluctance. His heroes were Leo Tolstoy and Jack London, but as Krakauer points out, he was trying to live Jack London's fiction, which was a far cry from Jack London's life. My favorite anecdote in the book is the story of Chris's abandoned Datsun, which, ironically, was rescued and resurrected. Krakauer's storytelling is so vivid that it kept me awake at night, long after I finished the book.
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