and for me - Jon Krakauer's writing is the kind of stuff that makes for late nights and tired workdays. I can't pay him a higher compliment. This one was a bit different than his other efforts in that Krakuer plays more the role of detective/sociologist rather than an an insightful expedition biographer. However, the story was as rivetting and perhaps even more powerful. I'm anxiously awaiting his next one! I'd also recommend reading Georgiou's masterpiece-- THE FATES, Fates (classic) if you haven't yet. I stumbled upon it at a book store and can't stop talking about it. His writing style is very similar to Jon Krakauer

This book it s really great if have already seen the movie it doesn't metter cause there so much more in this book and if you close your eyes seems to be on the road with Alex.

I found this book to be highly engrossing and quite frankly hard to put down, I stayed up till 3 a.m. reading it one night. I think everyone can take something away from this book after reading it which is really a true compliment. I have to wonder about the people who gave this book one star reviews and who call Chris stupid, naive and foolish. People like you have no problem with governments drafting young people for "their" wars only to killed for whatever the goverments cause was. Well Chris died for his own cause and I personally can't fault the man for that. Secondly, each of us in the end has a chance to live life the way they choose or at least how they will approach mentally and this was his choice. We must remember that we are reviewing actual books here and how it was written not the actual person in the book. I want to encourage everyone to read this book and then do some serious thinking afterward taking that inward journey which will only make you stronger.

I was disappointed in this book. As others have said, it should have remained a magazine article because there really isn't enough substance, in my opinion, for a book. I think the main character was part immature (for a 24 year old man) and part crazy. I had some difficulty following the time-line. It was never real clear to me just exactly what this guy was searching for.

I loved the detailed pieces of the puzzle that Krakauer assembled. I did not particularly like his story "into thin air", but I loved "into the wild". I also liked the movie too. In the end, I thought Krakauer left a favorable testimonial to the kid. He rambled and lived as he wanted. He may not have meant to die, but he should not have had any regrets. Contrary to what many people tell me, I do not find this to be a sad or depressing story and I do not feel that he should be considered to have wasted his life.

This book left me feeling very sad, and my heart aches for his family. Many young people do foolish things like Alex did. Some survive (like the author), and some don't. I enjoyed the insight the author provided through his research. I thought he did a good job collecting information from people who had crossed paths with Alex. I still don't understand what compelled him to such an extreme lifestyle.

This is an amazing story that touches on every emotion contained within us all! I'm hard pressed to understand why this is only the second review but this is a story that will go down as one of the most powerful, enlightening, and heart wrenching ever told! Sean Penn has from what I have seen secured his place not only as one of the greatest actors to ever live, but also one of the greatest directors to ever live!

I intend to own both the movie and the book and add them to my collection of books you just don't read once and movies you can always go back to when it becomes a necessary to be reminded of what truly matters.

Lastly, I've seen the interviews and I take my hat off to the family for being so brave as to allow what I feel having learned of it, a must story to be allowed to be told...

Not only do I believe Chris is looking down from Heaven with only pure love for his family...

Part of me feels he is looking down on us all with love as well...

With the ultimate respects to the Family, The Author, and Sean Penn and Eddie Vedder for from what I've seen, being able to bring this to life in such a way that it is completely fulfilling the ultimate beauty this story contains...

Chase Von

Also would like to share this with all involved...

~Vibrations~

The sweetest of words
Need not be uttered
To be heard
Unspoken Whispers
Are carried to
Their intended source
By Messengers
From Heaven
That is why
Loud Statements
Often are not heard
Or are vaguely
Understood
And why
Silent Truths
Delivered by the Angels
Vibrate
The Very Soul

By Chase Von
tlp
The Last Panther
All rights reserved

I share that because

I think this story will be vibrating mine

Until I too leave as well as so many others

With respect and love and light again

Chase Von

(As a poet I see so much of my own story reflected in this as well)

Your Chance to Hear The Last Panther Speak

Into the wild is a story of a young man searhing for more out of life. He goes on a journey into the depths of Alaska but doesn't live to tell his tale.
Krakauer decides it's his job to tell McCandless' story on his behalf. With only a journal and a few eye witnesses Krakauer pieces together McCandless trip from beginning to end. He even writes himself into the story eplaining his own mountain climbing trip to the Devils Thumb. He uses so much description that you feel yourself walking on thin ice, fearing that at any moment you could fall to your death.
McCandless and Krakauer share many things in common for example they both went into the wild searching for answers but on Krakauer's voyage he didn't receive any of them. Another similarity they shared is their screwed up relationship with their fathers.
Throughout McCandless pilgrimage he touched the lives of many people he met along the way. And they all had their side of the story to tell. They made had their doubts and opinions to why McCandless left in the first place but it never stopped them for keeping a special place in their hearts for him.
The story is such a tragic one and while reading this book I admit I shed a few tears but no matter how hard it became to read about this unfortunate tale I just couldn't put it down. Every chapter Krakauer left you wanting more. I just had to know how it ended from the moment I started reading. We can all relate to this book because I think we all have a little bit of McCandless in us. No matter how we feel about the choices McCandless made we all have to confess this if probaly one of the best nonfiction books ever written and I must congratulate Krakauer for being able to pull it off so well. Thats why it deserves five stars.

"Into the Wild" is an engrossing read...it grabs and keeps your attention, traces an interesting story arc and covers a unique subject matter. That being said, the real draw and merit of this book is the character study enmeshed in the broader story.

Krakauer's strong storytelling skills, his subject matter expertise and his in-depth reporting on the story of Chris McCandless combine to weave an engaging...and disturbing...tale. This tale addresses the "what" part of McCandless's journey into the wild, but it is the "why" part of the journey that really makes this book interesting.

In addressing the question of "why"...why would McCandless do what he did...Krakauer draws on a number of other like stories to build an interesting and introspective character study.

As with another book written by this author, Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster, Krakauer's own persona looms large. In the case of "Into the Wild," I found Krakauer brought his own experiences too far into the center of the character study aspect of this book. That being said, the author's perspective is interesting and relevant, just too front-and-center when compared to the other personalities paralleled over the course of the book.

All in all, this is a good book and I recommend it to readers interested in a general entertaining and informative book, as well as to readers with an interest in a good character study.

Jon Krakauer's `Into the Wild' is a very interesting look into the late life of a college graduate who gives away all his possessions and becomes a vagabond: Only to meet his demise in an abandoned school bus in the wilderness outside Fairbanks, Alaska.

The trip between graduation and death is a bizarre study of Christopher McCandless (aka Alexander Supertramp) and his 2 year journey across south-western and mid-west America, ending-up in Alaska.

The book is a strong testament of a young man with an upper-class upbringing who becomes seduced by wilderness and adventure, only to ultimately become its prisoner. Krakauer's book is primarily testimonials of people who knew Chris and their experiences with him. Most were fleeting, few lasting for more than several weeks. McCandless' journey without any destination took him many places and cultures within the US. Yet his intent was to learn - then flee. An escape artist, his final destination to Alaska is testament that even the bright and educated can learn plenty from sheer experience. McCandless almost obsessive introversion and despondency of his father sets the stage for a disastrous ending.

Anyone who has camped outdoors for any length of time will be amazed this man made it that far: Until finally, when the luck that protected McCandless' runs out. His meager writings found in the bus, initially show more cockiness than respect for nature. Later, when his body begins relying on itself for survival, McCandless becomes scared and aware of his imminent end. Only then does the educated idealist come to terms with the power of nature and the serious lack of planning on his behalf.

Sadly, this is another testament to why no one goes into a forest without the necessities: A map, compass, shelter and food.

I highly recommend this book. If there is anything one can learn from this book is what NOT to do outdoors, then this is it. The writing style of Krakauer is fluid and easy to ready. The character study of McCandless is much more abstract. I do appreciate the writer's attempts to rationalize the mentality and actions behind McCandless. Yet the writer, himself a seasoned outdoorsman, can't help but detail the futility of this misadventure. The writer's own outdoor experiences help paint a better picture of the enviroment McCandless experienced in his travels. I commend him on tackling such a complex character.

Like a few other reviewers, I felt this was a padded short story. I was looking forward to being done with it. I suppose 3 stars rather than 2 is appropriate, because I've given long thought to this. It's hard to decide whether I'm reviewing the book, or the choices that Chris McCandless made.

His choices I could relate to, as I was young myself once, and thought "there is more to life" if I just travel and experience. But, as for Krakauer painting a picture of a special guy: bright, kind, brilliant, understandably dealing with demons, and some analogies to underscore his point -- well, I only partly bought it. Perhaps the survivalist is a guy-thing, because I prefer to work out problems without risking my life.

The question remained of his death: was he reckless and niave? Suicidal? Mentally ill? Perhaps this is the most intriguing part of the story. If it's true that he made an innocent mistake in choosing a plant to eat, then it is tragic that he almost survived but some relatively trivial choice was his downfall. But no one knows for sure. And he was happy and content, until the final couple of weeks. I'm glad for him, and glad for the peace of mind this must give his family. But, what he learned, he just barely passed on with highlighted texts and some scant notes in his journal.

So, the book, because of its woeful lack of a complete story, launches into speculation and a romantic Kerouac-like tale of a long line of frustration, due to lack of maps, planning, and money. So, then more speculation follows of analogies to other tramps in the wilderness: wise, crazy, suicidal, determined. What happened to them? Suicide, disappearance... Leaving behind distraught families. No one knows if they found what they were looking for. And what about the 2 chapters on mountain climbing? The author understands the need to push it to the limits because of this inner conflict and machismo; I could almost understand, but not relate. Sounded like a terrible ordeal.

Therefore, the author tries really hard to explain why we should not just write this guy off as a wacko. In the end, I saw his point, but still thought it was a bad idea all around. It was difficult to get to the end of the book, and I was waiting for the big conclusion. So, "Chris read this book and highlighted this part". Big deal. I was not convinced that the experience was worth it. So, am I judging "Alex" or Krakauer? I guess that is why I'm still pondering. I've concluded that Alex is not someone I can relate to. And the author doesn't completely convince me that it was worth it. In the end, it was all about the food... yeah, surviving. Not the beauty of nature- not the lessons learned from nature. Just finding enough to eat. Tragic that it didn't yield a more profound conclusion.

By the way, I am a big fan of Eddie Vedder and his soundtrack to the movie! Incredible! And, I have the DVD at home, but haven't watched it yet. Maybe the movie will "reach" me better. We'll see.

I haven't read through the book yet but the cover and overall condition is good.

Ordered for high school summer reading assignment for two of my boys. They enjoyed it well enough.
I was impressed with how fast it arrived after I ordered it.

I have been fascinated with the story of Christopher McCandless ever since I first heard of him - a young man who walked off into the Alaskan wilderness to live off the land. When I visited Alaska in 2005, I found myself dreaming of backpacking the Yukon Trail and getting lost in the wilderness. For me, of course, it was just a pipe dream and I kissed it goodbye when I boarded the cruise ship that would take me home. McCandless, on the other hand, made his dream a reality. Unfortunately, his story does not have a happy ending.

Jon Krakauer did a fantastic job of bringing the story of Chris McCandless to life. Krakauer, who also traveled to Alaska at the age of 23, gives the reader rare insight into McCandless' mindset. Using McCandless' letters, quotes from his favorite authors, and passages from books in his possession at the time of his death, Krakauer pieces together a portrait of a determined young man, a "leather tramp", and a decent and caring friend.

Krakauer also manages to make the reader feel that he knows the answer to the big question: "Why would someone leave civilization behind and try to survive in the wilds f Alaska?"

According the McCandless himself:

"It is the experiences, the memories, the great triumphant joy of
living to the fullest extent in which real meaning is found. God
it's great to be alive! Thank you. Thank you."

Journal Entry dated 2/27/90

I thoroughly enjoyed this biography and would recommend it to anyone who has ever felt the pull of nature or the call of a simpler existence.

Usually, I hate to review a book on any grounds other than the quality of the book itself, but as I read the one-star reviews, I was very bothered by the number of people who said "well, the writing is great, but the kid was a fool/ an idiot/ etc." First, the writing....it's very good. It's a four-star book. There are moments where Krakauer gets a little hyperbolic and over the top, and in the early stages of the book he doesn't do a great job of keeping the narrative clear- I found it hard to follow Chris' journey through the lower 48. Also, at the end, when the author devotes a lot of time to explaining the potential seed pod poisoning that may have killed Chris, it seems a little out of place and drags the pace slightly. Other than that, the story is riveting and told with a great amount of passion.

As far as Chris McCandless, I was saddened and angered to read in the book about the hate mail Krakauer received and about the anger directed towards Chris McCandless. We live in a time when there are plenty of Americans, myself included, who think we are doing more than our fellows for the environment by turning the thermostat up to 80 during the day and putting out our recycling bins. There are many of us who feel very sincerely the plight of the poor but don't donate to Oxfam or Harvest Hope because we are too "poor", yet we own HD Televisions. This story is the story of a young man who had high ideals for himself- maybe not ideals we all share, but lofty ones nonetheless. He was truly concerned about hunger- so he gave almost every last penny he owned to charity. He believed in living a life of spiritual, not material value, and surviving in nature, and he did that. He never asked to be helped other than a ride or a sofa to crash on, he never asked to be pitied, and he never blamed anyone for anything. This young man lived his life fully in his ideals, alone. It ended tragically and he did some things that were foolish, no doubt. But this was not just some dilettante. This kid kayaked the colorado river on his own with no training. He spent two years rootless in the American west without coming to harm. And he lived in the bush in Alaska for nearly 4 months. There have been many highly skilled and trained hunters, climbers, and woodsmen who have died in the wild from nothing more than bad luck, and no one calls them "holy fools." McCandless, for living his ideals to the fullest with kindness and charity to those he met was more than admirable, he was virtuous, and those who castigate him are unkind and unjust.

Read the book and then see the movie. For all young adults who think they know everything and should actually be in counseling.

Jon Krakaur's Into the Wild chronicles the events of Chris McCandless journey out into Alaska, citing several sources and giving background into who the young man was, and why he decided to leave his family, give his entire saving to a charity, create a new identity for himself, and live "on his own." McCandless, whose journey into individualism and nature was somewhat influenced by classic authors such as Leo Tolstoy and Jack London, has a one-on-one experience with tramping from place to place, meeting strange people, and trying to make it alone out in the wild.

If there is one criticism, it is the trivial accounts from second-hand witnesses in the story from McCandless' background. I could see the areas where the author is trying to build background to who he was, but there are some parts where people are basically saying, "Yeah, I saw him once" and don't make much of a point. A little distracting from the story, and kind of makes the focus jump around a tad. Other than that, I found the information and story to be quite engrossing and factual, but in a somber, tragic way.

Some contend that Krakauer makes McCandless into some hero, which isn't the case. There are some moments where he appreciates McCandless' bold decision to go through this; however, this could be attributed mainly to the author's similar incident of going out into the wild. An objectivity is achieved in his narration and the facts he presents, but obviously he is going to bring in some of his own knowledge, and then fill in the gaps of some details that he can only speculate on. The young man drops hints to people about his "Alaskan odyssey", that he's going away "for some time" and many think he is a little over the top for trying this and even the author agrees at certain points. Inferences about who McCandless are investigated in accounts from witnesses, friends, relatives, and those who met him during his journey and the time prior. He is depicted as being reckless and compulsive, yet there were some noble things that Chris did in his life, like helping out the homeless and poverty-stricken people and not giving in to material needs. Still, his decision to make the trek to Alaska, and his disappearance, left his parents dismayed, upset, and alienated, which is unsettling.

A haunting part of Krakauer's novel is the section (ch 8 and 9) in which the author recounts several similar adventurists who went out and tried to be one with the Alaskan frontier. Krakauer uses these stories to point out that surely McCandless wasn't alone in his quest to sustain a solitary, natural existence, but also to show the obvious differences between these individuals. There is one story of a man who wound up killing himself rather than face certain starvation, pain and misery when he realizes he's used up his resources. In the subsequent chapter, Krakauer parallels McCandless with a venturous man from the 1930s, Everett Ruess, who went out in the wilderness, wrote acquaintances about the exhilarating experiences, and then vanished and was never heard from again.

And still, the author also readily identifies with the young man's quest. He relates his own tale of going out, being brash, and surviving out in the wild, but reflecting on this adventure and realizing that he was fortunate to be alive. He, like McCandless, didn't see eye to eye with his father, and also felt the rush of exploration in his spirit, but he takes time to rationale the distinction between being overly reckless and being independent.

The later chapters are dedicated to retracing the steps McCandless took a year after he was found (which was in August 1992). The author, and three colleagues, go to Fairbanks and survey the scene, trying to piece together not only how and why the young man went out there, but what led to his ultimate demise. Krakauer speculates on motives for the young man not trying to cross the river, or his ultimate decision to not have an accurate map during this exploration.

If you take this book in with some reflection, it will stay with you for awhile. Normally we don't reflect that much on common literature after reading, but being this is based on a true event, it makes you think about the meaning of life, and what the young man must have been thinking while out there in the wilderness.

The newer, edited version of Into the Wild has an epilogue which chronicles McCandless' family going out to the spot of the "magic bus," the place where McCandless set up camp during his time out in the Alaskan wilderness.

Into the Wild is tough to put down, but also solemn in its narration. It would be tough to read more than once just because you have to be in the right frame of mind, but still I'm glad that I did read it because I had heard so much about the story.

Excellent book, one of the best I have read in a long time. Krakauer's vivid descriptions allow one to feel as though (s)he is walking right along in the wilderness with Chris McCandless. The dialogue between Chris and the folks he meets helps one obtain a better insight into his frame of mind, almost like reading his diary. I found it sad yet understandable how a young man could embark on such a life-altering jouney that would unfortunately end in tragedy. Highly recommended read!!!

Wow, an anthem for idealistic, self-serving morons the world over. It's a shame people glorify this kind of weakness in a human being. The kid was obviously mentally ill. I'd recently bought the book but decided to go ahead and rent the movie. What a disappointment. Sean Penn tries much too hard to sell this poor, stupid kid as some kind of hero. Stop begging Sean.

and for me - Jon Krakauer's writing is the kind of stuff that makes for late nights and tired workdays. I can't pay him a higher compliment. This one was a bit different than his other efforts in that Krakuer plays more the role of detective/sociologist rather than an an insightful expedition biographer. However, the story was as rivetting and perhaps even more powerful. I'm anxiously awaiting his next one! I'd also recommend reading TIN0's masterpiece-- THE FATES, Fates (classic) if you haven't yet. I stumbled upon it at a book store and can't stop talking about it. His writing style is very similar to Jon Krakauer

This book was a great journey through nature, society, and the inner being. The movie and book have both had a lot of controversy surrounding them. With many people calling Chris a fool and the book glorifying his mistakes, and others idolizing Chris and wishing they could go on their own journey. And while i can see how people would get both of these views i don't think the book is either.

I think the author did an excellent job at telling the story of Chris. You feel like your going down the river, working in the cornfields, and enjoying Alaska's wilderness. Mixed in with Chris's story are some of the authors own and other peoples similar journey's. I think these add to the book a lot. They help you see a little more into the type of person Chris was.

If you approach this book with a level head and open mind you will enjoy it. Read it an think about who Chris was, why he went on this journey, and what did he do wrong. Don't idolize him for what he did. Don't criticize him for who he was. Accept the fact that he was and that he experienced things in life most never will. Enjoy walking into the wild.

The book as a work of literature is okay. I guess. It seems to meander about looking for something to say. In addition, I don't trust Krakauer as a chronicler, as it is my understanding that he played fast and loose with the facts in both "Into Thin Air" (to the fury of some of those who were there) and "Under the Banner of Heaven." My biggest problem with the book is that I found Chris McCandless to be a juvenile fool. Despite his alleged superior intellect, he behaved and wrote like a 14-year-old. I really see no reason for glorifying this idiot. His demise was nature's way of purifying the gene pool of a little lunacy.

Having loved the movie, and long put off reading the book (whose cover blurb sold me on it long before I knew of how well Krakauer wrote), I finally have read Into The Wild.

It is a life changing book, for me - a brilliant piece of work almost impossible to quantify for others, but I'll take a shot, briefly.

There are a lot of people (Alaskans, in particular) who resent the attention paid to Chris McCandless. He is considered by some to be an arrogant, and ill-prepared elite who had no sense at all to attempt what he accomplished. At the end of his great adventure he died, after all. As if that fact lays bare the nature and heart of what McCandless accomplished on his personal journey. The book spends a great deal of time addressing this attitude directly, and while everyone is all too aware of the errors and faults (some of which can be interpreted as arrogance, not using a map for instance), the author's impressions, research and conclusions tell a very different story.

This isn't about Alaska, or dying in Alaska. It is about our culture's detachment from honest, obvious and impacting rights of passage and how this natural need is bound to cost us the lives of some of our young - the ones daring enough to try to live life according to their own beliefs, passions and need for honest, truthful self discovery.

I shouldn't say what it is about, really. I've read many reviews and opinions wherein the writer gives their interpretation of 'what it is about' and accuse others of 'not getting it'. That is one of the beauties of this book - it is necessarily going to carry a different message to many different people.

Parents may face the cold reality that they do not ultimately control their children when they mature - and that the grey line between childhood and adulthood necessitates some dangerous transitions, if it is to benefit the adult in the making.

Mortality isn't something many in the West are comfortable with - to have died (whatever quality of life proceeds it) is the ultimate failure to many people. That this attitude prescribes a life of fear and limitation seems to escape most. Chris lived more life than many such people, and did so in 1/4 the time.

I'm predictably rambling and being less coherent than I'd like, so I'll start to close with a quote from the book:

"It is hardly unusual for a young man to be drawn to a pursuit considered reckless by his elders; engaging in risky behavior is a rite of passage in our culture no less that in most others. Danger always held a certain allure. That , in large part, is why so many teenagers drive too fast and drink too much and take too many drugs, why it has always been so easy for nations to recruit young men to go to war. It can be argued that youthful derring-do is in fact evolutionarily adaptive, a behavior encoded in our genes. McCandless, in his fashion, merely took risk-taking to its logical extreme."

I feel that McCandless ultimately gave us a worthy example mixed perfectly with a cautionary tale, and the jewels he unearthed through hard work most of us would never dream of attempting. After all was said and done, he concluded "HAPPINESS ONLY REAL WHEN SHARED", an intensely powerful conclusion for someone to attain after leaving everyone else behind.

It's rare that I'm motivated to both read a book and watch the same movie, but the Into the Wild movie was so impressive that I checked this book out from the library as well. It fills in a lot of additional information in the storyline, but also has a few major shortcomings.

It was impressive to see the book elaborate so much on the McCandless family's history. Krakauer went into much more detail in building up Walt and Billie as success stories in the American Dream, having both come up from working-class backgrounds in the West and Michigan respectively to run a lucrative consulting firm. At the same time, he emphasized their tragic flaws in detailing how they carried on an affair and had illegitimate children, then hid the truth from those children. I got the impression from both the book and the movie that there was a lot of self-centeredness and resentment around the household, both from Chris and from his parents. We didn't see much more from Carine, though; she was a narrator who tried to be fair to both parties in the movie, and also didn't seem to take much of a side in the book.

Chris himself was also filled in around the edges a lot in the book. The reader can see how his academic prowess came long before Emory, at Woodson High School--although his stubborn nature also did, as he had one F on his transcript in a physics class where he did not follow the format on lab reports. His political views are shown as conflicted, as many young, intellectually curious men and women are; his tending to the poor is supplanted with an unusual combination of founding (re-founding? Newt Gingrich was there once) the Emory College Republicans, railing against religious right leaders, and railing against "rich kids at Emory" in general (even if he was one himself.) It has been debated on here whether McCandless' foolishness was a sign of liberalism or conservatism, and whether Dennis Kucinich supporter Sean Penn was trying to prove a point about materialism and upper-class suburbia in the movie, but some of the answers are right there. McCandless is shown as emotionally distant, not much for human relationships or romance, and preferential of books over human friendship during his time at Emory, just as he was in the remaining two years of his life. His spartan lifestyle is also exposed, as he had a bare-bones living in his Atlanta apartment, without even a telephone. His trying relationship with his family is shown in even more detail; one has to wonder what led him to not have a potential "internship" with his parents' consulting firm during one of the summers that he instead drove across America the first time--an opportunity that would surely have helped him achieve his goals of attending Harvard Law School and becoming a great human rights attorney (not to mention he may have many more gaps of meaningful employment to explain from his final trip, had he returned alive.) It is intriguing that the book explains how he nearly blew his cover and revealed his whereabouts to his parents, and that we find out what happened to his washed-out car (it is used as a police car.)

Many of the characters he meets along the way--Ron Franz and the hippies, for instance--are carried almost verbatim from the book to the movie, and they are also executed well here. The book doesn't have Hal Holbrook delivering a phenomenal Franz performance, but it does allow the reader to emotionally connect with the minor characters, and sense their anxiety over Chris's abandonment of his family. The farms of South Dakota are also portrayed well, as Chris's work ethic in comparison to other wanderers is described in more detail. Much more detail is given to how poorly McCandless planned the Alaskan expedition, how he died, and how the natives of the state reacted (rightly and wrongly) to his blunders.

But the glaring flaw of the book is much of its midsection. There was absolutely no reason that it had to talk about many other travelers, whose circumstances were only tangentially related to McCandless' (or even Krakauer's.) Those chapters completely distracted from the book and added almost nothing to it.

However, due to the outstanding content of the rest of the book, which supplemented the content of the movie very well and both helped me loathe McCandless' disrespect for his family (as much as their own failings stood out) and his haphazard planning and execution of his trip, but also allowed me to identify a lot with his free spirit and intellectual nature, these chapters only subtract one star from an outstanding work.

I read Into the Wild in conjunction with reading The Final Frontiersman by James Campbell. Into the Wild is the biography of Chris McCandless, a pathetic and self-centered, and self-destructive screw-up who died trying to be a "supertramp" (his term) in Alaska. The Final Frontiersman, on the other hand, is about the life of Heimo Korth, a successful backcountry trapper and survivalist in ANWR (see my Amazon review). I cannot avoid comparing Korth and McCandless. The main difference is that Korth is planfully competent, whereas McCandless seemed incompetent in every way. Study the life of McCandless to learn what not to do, how not to go wrong.

McCandless was a distinct failure as a human being and his life is not worth a biography except as an example of negative teaching. As a valuable negative lesson Into the Wild is a worthy book and I think superior to The Final Frontiersman. Krakauer is able to probe the depths of his subject and inject it with a sense of angst and wonder that is missing from The Final Frontiersman.

Two passages especially in Into the Wild make it a classic of adventure literature. One is the absolutely definitive statement of the adventure mentality of the young male on pages 56-57 of the paperback edition. This passage from a letter written by McCandless to a friend should be read and studied and critiqued by every young man--and every young woman. It contains the clearest, most gripping statement of a view that is at once exhilarating and dangerous. I will only quote two sentences from a much longer passage. "...in reality nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. The very basic core of a man's living spirit is his passion for adventure." I guess as long as these sentiments lead only to forays into the wild I have no problem with them. It is when they lead to warfare, destruction, rampage, and vandalism, as they most certainly do, that I withdraw assent. I suppose the passion for adventure is selected for by evolution and is thus inevitable. The problem comes when the passion for adventure becomes the passion for violence as it often does; not however with Chris McCandless--except violence towards himself, and perhaps vandalism of cabins in Alaska. Into the Wild is a basic text for studying this most creative, destructive, and seductive "passion for adventure."

The other passage that I especially valued was Krakauer's description of his own attempt at a first ascent of the north face of the Devil's Thumb, a remote peak in Alaska. This also was the result of a young man's "passion for adventure" and Krakauer almost lost his life in the pursuit. Krakauer's lengthy description of his adventure--the dangers, and horrors, and failures--is a brilliant piece of adventure writing. For me, this is the best and most exciting part of the book.

Krakauer also has absorbing discussions of other wilderness adventurers and the entire history of the American "passion for wilderness adventure."

The author of Into the Wild is a more interesting, sensitive, perceptive, and intelligent person than his subject in this biography. I look forward to reading Krakauer's autobiography when he writes it. It will be an even better book than Into the Wild.

This is the best non-fiction book I have ever read. It embodies brilliantly the theme of the search for God. Defintly the greatest nonfiction book I've ever read, even if the author talked a little too much about himself. Far better than the likes of the fictional "Touching spirit Bear" or whatnot. This book is so magical and is perfect for anyone, especially a teen, who feel depressed or alienated.

I enjoyed the movie, but I was happy to read the book. An excellent author Jon Krakauer not only tells more true stories about young people, challenged by their free spirits and adventures nature, but also makes a good point on why they do it. It is a great choice for older teens and up, parents or any adventures sole.
I also recommend his breathtaking story "Into Thin Air".

This was a book my son had to read for his high school summer reading. I have also been reading the book. I found it to be an interesting character study of a young man who was trying to find out who he was but met with a tragic end when he could not find a way out of the Alskan wilderness.

I needed a few books for a class. I selected this book because of the low price. It was better than expected. There were no marks or bent pages. It is very important that nothing was highlighted.

Into the Wild Great Book! It helped to understand why a person would want to do this. Very interesting. Also didnt know about the rest of them...............

This book was awsome. Chris McCandless is one of my true heroes and i was pleased to see this book came out after the small article about in in outdoor magazine. For anyone who like the movie, the book is 10 times better and more informative. i loved every minute i read of this book. GET IT.

This story shares a tale about life and death--real life and real death. Make no mistake, you know how this ends. But it's not the ending--it's the journey. It's about the people left behind, and the effect one soul can have when paths cross on the street called life.

I read few non-fiction books like this. I recommend fewer. But I humbly request you read this one.

Listen, learn, and live what Into the Wild tells you. It'll change the way you look at life.

Wolfe

I loved this story, and finished it in one sitting. How many of us ever dream of just dropping everything and going off, exploring nature and taking in the landscape around us, instead of the steady day to day rat race of life? I grew up into the area that Chris did, and can understand the pressures of competition, the hassle, and the need to just crawl inside yourself for awhile and be alone.
My only irritation with this story was the fact that the author cut in with his own. I see the author trying to compare his experiences in understanding Chris's thought process, but it was a deviation most distracting. It made things feel out of order and even took some of the punch out of the ending. I didn't feel the need of the authors interruptions and musings.

I read this book to my husband and while we finished it in about 4 nights, I can't say that I loved it. The author took to many opportunities to give mini biographies about other people, including himself, which I found irritating. Also, the author seemed to scour his dictionary for obscure words that the average college graduate and avid reader would not recognize. I ended up keeping a list of words I had never heard before and looked them up on Dictionary.com. And lastly, the kid was self absorbed and a real jerk to his family. Interesting because it is a true story, but...

I first picked up this book because of all the hype around the movie. I had not seen the movie and decided that I really wanted to check out the book before hand. All I needed to do was read the author's notes in the front to know that I had to read it.

Jon Krakauer's words stopped me from putting it down until the book was finished. I enjoyed how the book was woven together for good and bad on Chris Mc Candless's relationships. It made me appreciate my own experiences with people and helped me to understand how our approach to life has influences on those around us. Even when relationships are brief the outcome can be life altering.

Into the Wild is a great read. I could not put it down and I was happy that I read the book before seeing the movie.

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I give Krakauer credit for not musing more then he did and sticking to the facts he was able to uncover. It was an interesting and sad story. I think McCandless was presented in a reasonably honest manner but did not understand his character so could sympathize with the parents. At some point you let go and hope. In this case McCandless was interesting, intelligent, charming but not world wise practical. There just wasn't enough here for an entire book, albeit short. The story was longer then a magazine article but to write a book meant including details in greater length then I thought necessary to appreciate the story. I would have enjoyed the book more if the author has filled the pages with some detail of Alaska and the trouble others encounter and how Alaskans deal with the wild.

It seems to me that many have missed the point of this book by Krakauer, which is a journalistic assessment of a young man, not unlike many in today's up and coming generation, who views the world as a sort of extended Disneyland. McCandless' adventures are tainted by his own egocentric methods of refusing to listen to good advice, to learn anything useful about what he is planning to do (for many have done it before), and to literally avoid information that might help him prepare, all in an effort to naively increase "the adventure." It may be a sign of an ever-shrinking world, when those looking for the next adventures must heighten the effect of it by being intentionally naive about what they are doing, and by avoiding all guidance or knowledge. Those that cite McCandless as intelligent may be missing the point about intelligence. Intelligence is not something you gain in college, or that you are naturally gifted with from birth; it is a factor in how you deal with your own experience of the world. Intelligence is exactly what McCandless was lacking. He survives longer than he probably would have with even a slightly different turn of events. It is not too far to go to say that he had a latent suicidal tendency, a deathwish (his eating habits alone suggest this), and fulfilled it slowly over the course of a few years. What is dangerous in our attempts to make heroes of such young men, of such actions, is that in Romanticizing the death of these individuals we fail to see the difference when someone actually does perform beyond their capabilities to achieve selfless ends. Krakauer's book is a must read, but we must also read what its author is saying about the society that produces such new adventurers. This kind of faulty idealism should not be deified but examined for the uncanny sense of disaster it presages in a self-satisfied society.

I read "Into the Wild" after watching the movie, which I don't regret doing. I thought the movie was pretty good but was surprised too find that I could not stop thinking about Chris McCandless and the people he that impacted. So I picked up a copy of the book.
I have read several negative reviews about this book, complaining about Jon Krakauer glorifies an ignorant young man who died as a result of his lack of experience and respect for the Alaska wilderness. As well as Jon's attempt to compare Chris to other individuals who took similar risks and lost their lives as a result. And then offering his own account to a time in his life that he felt matched the path that Chris had taken.
However, I don't think that this should discourage someone from reading this novel. I found it fasinating and feel that Jon did an impeccable job of doing his research, bringing in the stories of people who were impacted by Chris, as well as doing his best to bring some sort of understanding as to WHY Chris did what he did.
Only Chris McCandless knows what went on in those last days of his life, everyone can speculate but it's for a lost cause. I think that the fact that the McCandless family trusted Jon Kraukauer with the story of their sons struggles and ultimately his death says something about Jon as an author as well as the story he has brought to life.
I highly recommend this book. I could not put it down and have been talking about it non-stop to whomever will listen. It gets you thinking and isn't that one of the primary reasons why we read?

I'm not entirely sure how much I can offer. Hopefully I can provide my unique perspective, and hopefully it will help someone in their decision making.

I read "Into the Wild" after watching the movie. I was intrigued by McCandless's story, and hoped the book would provide more information than the movie.

It didn't, not exactly. It provided a few more details, the "correct" version of events. A few more insights the author offers directly about his subject. The book was solidly written, well researched, enjoyable. While trying to explain the "why" behind McCandless and his actions, Krakauer gave me what I was looking for--other examples of people who shunned society and lived in the wild, other places to learn more about Chris and others who shared his worldview.

If you're hoping to find large chunks of information in the book that Hollywood cropped out, you will probably be disappointed. If, like me, you watched the film and had a desire to simply learn more this book will be an excellent read.

Into the Wild begins with the ending - the body of a starved young man is found in a sleeping bag in Alaska. So there's no suspense as to where Alex Supertramp (born Christopher McCandless) is going to wind up. Reading his story, I found myself too much of an old fart to appreciate it. McCandless hits the road in rebellion against his suburban middle class parents. Author Jon Krakauer explores the culture and tradition of extreme minimalist travel, from Henry David Thoreau and John Muir to lesser-known figures like Everett Ruess, who was lost in the California desert in 1934. When I read about some nineteen year old young man setting off alone with no map and no money, all I think is, "What a dumb kid". I never succumbed to the romance of Kerouac's On the Road (Penguin Classics) back in the day either. I read Into the Wild on the recommendation of a younger coworker who found it a romantic and tragic tale. I can see how it could strike people that way, but not me. I acknowledge that adventurers' lives are theirs to risk, but I don't find McCandless's story romantic, but more like a submission for the Darwin Award.

I anctually watched the movie prior to reading it. I would suggest reading the book first, then watching the movie. It goes into further depth and explains a lot of obscure parts of the movie in more detail. A lot of people have said some harsh things about Chris Mccandles in their reviews. I can relate to his story. In each generation, there are always a group of individuals who feel disenfranchised from our society. Our culture has become morally corrupt, and that is why Chris did what he did. It's about true freedom, and separating ourselves from the socialistic aristocracy that our country is on it's way to becomming. Without getting into a huge heated political debate, this is truly an American classic in nonfiction. Chris was a modern day Thorreau/Kerouac, it's a must read.

Think adventure, dream of being free, living each day as it comes, never really knowing what joys or hardships tomorrow may bring.

This is the story of Chris McCandless, who in 1992 abondoned everything in search of adventure and survival in the Alaskan wilderness. Notes, lettersw and diaries discovered after he was found dead in an old bus detailed his day to day adventure after leaving his home state of Atlanta.

This true story ends in tragedy, but the very way Chris lives freely during that time has a rather uplifting affect.

Whether you read the book or see the film, I highly recommend this one.

Real Life Dramas - Volume One

Darren G. Burton

This is a book about a young man going on a vision quest. Fate dealt him a horrible hand. He is a wonderful soul caught in the wilds of Alaska with no way to get out. Yes he was careless. He was young and full of life, he was taken too soon. When you read about him and see those pictures you realize what a wonderful soul he was. This book is very worthwhile. The movie is worth seeing too. It hurts every time I see his photos. May he rest in peace.

This book was a really great story and I am so glad that i read it. The authors writing style became a little boring at times, but all in all i would recommend you to read this book if you like the road trip, and adventurer themes.

Into the Wild is an excellent read, telling the tragic tale of Chris McCandless's ill-fated journey to the heart of the Alaskan wilderness. Krakauer clearly did his due diligence when it came to researching the book, and the inclusion of his own time in Alaska draws interesting parallels between himself and McCandless. Many young men have journeyed to the wilderness in the hopes of find themselves (Thoreau, McCandless, John Muir, Krakauer), and many have narrowly escaped death in such expeditions. Unfortunately for McCandless, he was not afforded the luck to ever walk out with a new sense of purpose in his life. Thankfully for us, Krakauer does a fine job of reconstructing his multi-year journey, and analyzing the circumstances that ultimately led to his death.

"...there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun...we just have to have the courage to turn against our habitual lifestyle and engage in unconventional living..."
-Alexander Supertramp
Certainly unconventional, Into the Wild, is not your typical coming of age story. Christopher McCandless, a graduate fresh from college abandoned all aspects of the predictable way of life to be immersed in nature and his personal ideals. Leaving behind family, his few friends, and his own name, McCandless or Alexander Supertramp was, "a man of means, by no means...king of the road." However Into the Wild is not chronological fiction-esque novel, but more of a scavenger hunt jumbled with Krakauer's personal and historical anecdotes. Into the Wild is not only informative on the life of Chris McCandless, but also of other figures with similar stories, and some of Krakauer's past as well.
This novel, as it follows a young boy through his journey, is not just a memoir, but more of a warning and source of inspiration. If I would take anything away from this story it would be the need for personal experiences. McCandless warns against a stationary life, not only physically but mentally and to perpetually change. The story begins as Chris road trips across the US in a run down old car, and ends in a run down old bus in semi-Alaskan wilderness. And between those two circumstances lay hippie camps, encounters with southwestern farmers, danger on the railroad, kayaking on the Mexican border, bonding with strangers, and a final trek into the Alaskan wilderness. Chris heeds all to find themselves in nature and to travel by ever-changing scenery
McCandless, stated in Into the Wild, was criticized as a young naïve radical, without the common sense to take on an adventure of this proportion. However, McCandless was an extremely intelligent young man, not only a college graduate, but always earning high marks in all courses, an avid reader of philosophy and a follower of Thoreau. The novel doesn't really focus on Chris's life before his cross-country adventure, so its hard to see if his experiences we read about really affected him as a person, or if he was the same way his entire time.
This story was an eye-opening experience. As Chris wandered around the American continent I wandered my own mind. Chris's attitude and way of life melted through the pages of this novel and into my own fingertips. His individual character, and never-ending love of nature and his charismatic way of drawing in the people he met in his life. I can only offer my sincere recommendation for this novel as the story gives so much to you.

I wanted to read this book before I saw the movie and I actually regret that decision. A compelling and mysterious story, it's well told by Krakauer, who is wise enough to warn you about his non-objective slant on the subject matter right in the introduction.

The book really was 'hard to put down', except in chapters 14 and 15 where Chris McCandless is scarcely mentioned and Krakauer instead dissolves into a memoir about his own time spent trekking the Alaskan wilderness.

To his credit, this is the author's attempt at giving the reader a comparable viewpoint into the mind of an adventure-seeking young man, but he tended to delve too far into his own experiences leaving me wondering if I was ever going to hear the rest of Chris' story.

Overall, a good read, especially if you're a fan of travel/adventure books. To be frank, however, I think the movie might be (a) more exciting and (b) stick to the subject at hand better.

I'll let you know once I see it :)

I bought this for le' fiance as one of her birthday gifts after recently watching the film based on it. She can't stop talking about how great it is, so it has become one of those books I am dying to read, and will be after I finish "Autobiography of a Yogi" by Paramahansa Yogananda, which is another great one.

Please forgive me if this review is a little rambling. This is my first time as an Amazon reviewer, but several books I've been into recently really pushed me to start writing reviews, just so people won't miss out on great reads, and this is one of them. As a librarian, I see thousands of books every day, and normally, people's requests don't change my mind on what I like to read - historical fiction or historical romance. But after people began continuously asking for INTO THE WILD, I thought I might pick it up a try it myself.

The author, more widely known for his book INTO THIN AIR, tells the story of "Alexander SuperTramp", as he called himself, in a strange - but immensely satisfying - sequence of events. He begins with his death by probable starvation, then goes onto account how Alex, born in a well to-do family and actually named Chris, decided to eschew life as a college grad joining the business world for a life as a vagabond. His incredible journey across the US, his survival for a time in the wild, and his sad innocence make this book unputdownable. It's a wonderful read for anyone into survival (or not) stories, wilderness stories, or just great nonfiction.

Firmly Five Stars.

Into the Wild was our May book club selection, and I put off reading it until a few days before our meeting. Thinking it was a "guy book," I didn't even bother buying my own copy. That was a mistake, for once I began reading my borrowed book, I was entranced. Krakauer's writing style was captivating and managed to hold my attention from page one. Not only do we learn about Chris McCandless (a.k.a. Alexander Supertramp) and his family, but we learn about Krakauer's experiences, meet some fascinating folks who befriended Chris, and discover much about the geography and nature of various parts of the United States.

Yes, the writing itself was great. It's the story of Chris McCandless, however, that haunts me. How could someone with such promise act so foolishly? I can well understand the inner voice to "Go west, young man," but to travel into the Alaskan wilderness without compass or adequate provisions is utter folly. And this was a intelligent young man, a recent college graduate who had been raised with advantages unknown to many.

Chris was, like most of us, a bundle of contradictions. He was idealistic and gave all of his remaining college fund to an organization to feed the hungry; yet he sponged off of many of the people who befriended him. He was angry with his parents for living a lie, but he couldn't see that without his parents he wouldn't have had the resources that allowed him to finish Emory. He's perturbed at their treatment of him, but he treats them even more abominably by not even letting them know he's alive. Yes, he had "issues," but don't most people? Was he too fragile to handle them? If he had survived the wilderness, would he have returned to West Virginia with a softened heart and a more mature attitude?

Was he just a narcissist? Was he another affluent, sheltered, idealistic young man angry with society? Was he a typical young person in search of adventure? Did he feel any guilt at all about capturing the hearts of those he met when he bid them adieu?

I have my own copy of Into the Wild now. It's a great story about an intense, idealistic, determined young man who died in a deserted bus after eating a poisonous plant. While the reader will learn a great deal about nature, geography, and "adventure," he or she will also be forced to look at the psychological questions that Chris and his choices evoke.