Into the Wild - Jon Krakauer

Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer

  • Release Date: 1997-01-20
  • Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Score: 4.5
4.5
From 1,581 Ratings

Description

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • In April 1992 a young man from a well-to-do family hitchhiked to Alaska and walked alone into the wilderness north of Mt. McKinley. Four months later, his decomposed body was found by a moose hunter. This is the unforgettable story of how Christopher Johnson McCandless came to die.

"It may be nonfiction, but Into the Wild is a mystery of the highest order." —Entertainment Weekly

McCandess had given $25,000 in savings to charity, abandoned his car and most of his possessions, burned all the cash in his wallet, and invented a new life for himself. Not long after, he was dead. Into the Wild is the mesmerizing, heartbreaking tale of an enigmatic young man who goes missing in the wild and whose story captured the world’s attention. 

Immediately after graduating from college in 1991, McCandless had roamed through the West and Southwest on a vision quest like those made by his heroes Jack London and John Muir. In the Mojave Desert he abandoned his car, stripped it of its license plates, and burned all of his cash. He would give himself a new name, Alexander Supertramp, and, unencumbered by money and belongings, he would be free to wallow in the raw, unfiltered experiences that nature presented. Craving a blank spot on the map, McCandless simply threw the maps away. Leaving behind his desperate parents and sister, he vanished into the wild.

Jon Krakauer constructs a clarifying prism through which he reassembles the disquieting facts of McCandless's short life. Admitting an interest that borders on obsession, he searches for the clues to the drives and desires that propelled McCandless. 

When McCandless's innocent mistakes turn out to be irreversible and fatal, he becomes the stuff of tabloid headlines and is dismissed for his naiveté, pretensions, and hubris. He is said to have had a death wish but wanting to die is a very different thing from being compelled to look over the edge. Krakauer brings McCandless's uncompromising pilgrimage out of the shadows, and the peril, adversity, and renunciation sought by this enigmatic young man are illuminated with a rare understanding—and not an ounce of sentimentality. Into the Wild is a tour de force. The power and luminosity of Jon Krakauer's stoytelling blaze through every page.

Reviews

  • Is Chris McCandless death happening to us all?

    5
    By SPeanutz
    I am taken back upon reading this book, how similar the theory of McCandless death presented by Krakauer is to the theory presented by Dr. Steven Gundry in the Plant Paradox. Gundry’s theory is one that effects the dietary norms of our modern populous and the debilitating diseases that are caused by the consistent consumption of Lectins. Krakauer’s theory is one that effects a very minuend amount of human beings to have ever existed. I am tempted to disclose that demographic but will refrain upon reflection that my hubris to sound smart, in a book review, might effect the reading experience your about to embark upon.
  • A classic

    5
    By mckinleyrach
    This book is thrilling and transcends contemporary literature.
  • summer

    5
    By Rey Scist
    read this for school over the summer break going into my senior year, really gave me a new insight on life and what to do with it, to see the beauty in every good and bad day i have. made me realize that something’s are out of my control and to keep pushing on day by day into the wild that we call life
  • Dear McCandless

    4
    By tombradyloves2
    An incredible book, that seemed to really resonate with me. Chris McCandless, while his death was tragic, was an incredible man who lived life to the fullest. To see it documented in a book was quite incredible and I found it incredibly hard to put down. The only problem with this book was the writing was at times all over the place, but I would highly recommend otherwise
  • Amazing Story

    5
    By JeredJ87
    I finished this book in a very short period of time. It captures and holds your attention the entire time. All in all, a great read.
  • Into the woods

    4
    By Noeluis72
    For my Ap lang class my teacher made every student choose any biography, an autobiography, or a memoir book that they wanted to read. After looking at a few books I came crossed Into the woods I read the summary online and it got my attention. I really liked this book it has a good story learning about Chris McCandless and how he was trying to find who he was. A few things that I loved about the book was how the author kept me interested in Chris life , making me want to learn more about what he was doing in his journey. Also, the author Jon knew how to add the other characters perfectly to the story. The author is good at explaining the story and when he is telling the story he gives a lot of detail to really show everything and make it feel like you are there. Even though it was a good book and I recommend people to ready it there was a few things that I personally didn’t like. The major thing that I didn’t like about the book was the way the author decided to write this book made it a little confusion. Another thing that I didn’t like was that it feels like the book is jumping all over the place. I also didn’t like that they tell you so soon in the book how Chris died with made it a little boring sometimes. But over all this this book was good this is one if the few books that I would probably read again this book is a good 8.5 out if 10 
  • Into The Wild

    3
    By max twerking cat
    Great book, easy to understand and follow. i I needed it for school and was able to finish it in two days.
  • RIP Super Tramp.

    5
    By elt223
    Just read it. Something so simple could cost you so much.
  • Into The Wild

    3
    By Alaskan tourist
    I became aware of this book and the story of Chris’ disappearance in 2016 while I was touring in Alaska. I was intrigued because we went through the area where he was last seen and the tour guide mentioned it as did a few others in places we stopped. Reading this book I was interested in all the other described locations as we’ve also been along the Colorado, Salton Sea, Joshua Tree area so I could envision his situation wandering and living in those locations. Clearly Krakauer did tremendous research, and worked to understand all the details of the trek Chris was on. It’s an adventure story yes, but not in the usual way that they are exhilarating or scary or triumphant. This book left me still questioning, not what happened, as it became apparent, but the “why” of the life he chose. He seemed to abandon all normalcy and a regular life for the life of a nomadic drifter, and the why he did that still remains unknown. It seems like such a wasted life.
  • Amazing

    5
    By Mommyof04
    This is now my favorite book, Jon did an amazing job of sharing Chris’ journey. Excited to read The Wild Truth by Carine McCandless next!