Into the Wild

I haven't written about non-fiction yet. That's because most non-fiction doesn't stick with me. I'm a novel kind of girl and good stories are what stick with me the most. Occasionally, non-fiction and good story converge into one. That's how it is with Into The Wild, the biography of Chris McCandless, written by John Krakauer.

It's the story of young adult Chris, who upon graduation from college, sold all his stuff and drove out west on an adventure. His family didn't know where he was until a few years later, when his body was found in the Alaskan wilderness.

Sounds gruesome, right? It kind of is. It's also exciting.

The movie version of his story came out in 2007. I haven't seen it, so I don't know how Chris was portrayed. Krakauer writes about him as if he's a kid trying to escape his old life of fortune and entitlement. I've heard others call him just plain stupid. You'll have to decide for yourself.

Krakauer followed Chris' footsteps to piece together those missing years. He also mixes in the stories of other adventurers who left society and ventured into the Alaskan bush, including his own story of survival.

It's an interesting read. I spent much of the time with mixed feelings of worry and admiration. If you can handle the horror of people dying in the wilderness, then I recommend it.