shopping cart
Call us:  800-878-7323 HELP
McAfee SECURE helps keep you safe from identity theft, credit card fraud, spyware, spam, viruses and online scams.
Interviews | December 28, 2009

Megan: IMG Finding Lost Lore: The Powells.com Interview with Paul Jenner



unamcgovernandpauljennerPerhaps there's a line graph somewhere that explains the correlation between an abundance of available technology and one's increased interest in... Continue »
  1. $17.46 Sale Hardcover add to wish list

Into the Wild

by Jon Krakauer

Into the Wild Cover

Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

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. His name was Christopher Johnson McCandless. He 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. Four months later, his decomposed body was found by a moose hunter.  How McCandless came to die is the unforgettable story of Into the Wild.

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 interst that borders on obsession, he searches for the clues to the dries and desires that propelled McCandless.  Digging deeply, he takes an inherently compelling mystery and unravels the larger riddles it holds: the profound pull of the American wilderness on our imagination; the allure of high-risk activities to young men of a certain cast of mind; the complex, charged bond between fathers and sons.

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. Mesmerizing, heartbreaking, Into the Wild is a tour de force. The power and luminosity of Jon Krakauer's stoytelling blaze through every page.

Review:

"Terrifying...Eloquent...A heart-rending drama of human yearning."

--New York Times

"A narrative of arresting force.  Anyone who ever fancied wandering off to face nature on its own harsh terms should give a look.  It's gripping stuff."

--Washington Post

"Compelling and tragic...Hard to put down."  

--San Francisco Chronicle

"Engrossing...with a telling eye for detail, Krakauer has captured the sad saga of a stubborn, idealistic young man."

--Los Angeles Times Book Review

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

--Entertainment Weekly

Synopsis:

Admitting an interest that borders on obsession, Krakauer searches for the clues to the drives and desires that propelled 24-year-old Chris McCandless to leave civilization behind and head into the remote Alaskan wilderness. Four months later, McCandless's emaciated corpse was found at his campsite by a hunter. Mesmerizing and heartbreaking, Krakauer's powerful and luminous storytelling blaze through every page. Map.

Synopsis:

The extraordinary bestselling true story of a young man's uncompromising pilgrimage that ended in tragedy.

What Our Readers Are Saying

Add a comment for a chance to win!
Average customer rating based on 10 comments:
Arlene Sanders, August 21, 2009 (view all comments by Arlene Sanders)

I'm saddened to see so many people writing with little or no compassion for Chris McCandless, and such a limited effort to understand his quest.

Most of us know what he was running from -- problems at home, a society struggling with issues of materialism and morality. But an understanding of what he was searching for -- inner peace, closeness with nature, a quiet and beautiful place in which to think -- eludes many of us, just as it eluded him.

It could be lovely, could it not? Wild strawberries spilling down the riverbank, red poppies flaming the hills, cobalt mountains loping along the sky, like waves in a gently rolling sea. I am blessed to live in such a place, where I can reflect and write in perfect solitude, and I appreciate the beautiful life I have. I live a little like he did, but without his extraordinary deprivation -- the berries, the bag of rice, no way (as he perceived it at that time) to get out.

Jon Krakauer mined this tragedy for the beauty, the goodness, and the hope that could be found in it -- and this bounty was rich! -- and I applaud his book and his wonderful writing, as I applaud the deeply moving film Sean Penn waited so patiently, for ten years, to create.

I agree with some of the points other reviewers have made -- that the particular venture Chris McCandless chose was ill-advised, that he had not adequately prepared for it, and that his family need not have been abandoned and left in the dark.

But we have all screwed up in our lives and hurt people around us, at least once, have we not? Well, I certainly have.

When other people use poor judgment and make mistakes, it's so easy to judge, to criticize, to close our minds. That's the easy way out, isn't it?

Whether we see Chris McCandless as a crazy kid, or as a courageous and intensely spiritual young man, we do know that he died afraid and alone. For that reason, if for no other, I think we need to reach for all the understanding and compassion we can give.


Arlene Sanders
Blue Ridge Mountains, Virginia
www.ArleneSanders.com
Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No
(1 of 1 readers found this comment helpful)
DJ Heino, April 17, 2009 (view all comments by DJ Heino)
By far one of the best books I have ever read. John Krakauer did great research on the now famous Chris McCandless. Before this book I was not an indepth reader. Then I found this book at my local Powells and I cant stop reading! I would suggest this book to anyone who just want to get away from life, or if you love the outdoors. John Krakauer wrote this book without flaw! So read the book then watch the movie.
Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No
(6 of 11 readers found this comment helpful)
bmilliman, May 28, 2008 (view all comments by bmilliman)
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. His name was Christopher Johnson McCandless. He had given 25,000 dollars in savings to charity, abandoned his car and most of his possession, burned all the cash in his wallet, and invented a new life for himself. Four months later, his decomposed body was discovered by a moose hunter. No one knows what happened to him, except for the bits and pieces of information left behind in McCandless’s journal found with his body.
Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No
(16 of 22 readers found this comment helpful)
View all 10 comments

Product Details

ISBN:
9780385486804
Author:
Krakauer, Jon
Publisher:
Anchor Books
Author:
Krakauer, Jon
Location:
New York :
Subject:
Biography
Subject:
Adventure and adventurers
Subject:
United States - Pacific - Alaska
Subject:
Alaska
Subject:
Essays & Travelogues
Subject:
Mountaineering
Subject:
Camping
Subject:
Regional Subjects - West
Subject:
Travelers
Subject:
Hitchhiking
Subject:
West
Subject:
Wayfaring life
Subject:
West (U.S.) Biography.
Subject:
West (u.s.)
Copyright:
Edition Description:
1st Anchor Books trade pbk. ed.
Series Volume:
303
Publication Date:
January 1997
Binding:
Paperback
Language:
English
Illustrations:
Yes
Pages:
224
Dimensions:
7.98x5.28x.52 in. .38 lbs.

Other books you might like

  1. $6.95 Used Hardcover add to wish list
  2. $3.95 Used Trade Paper add to wish list

    Girl, Interrupted

    Susanna Kaysen
  3. $15.95 New Trade Paper add to wish list
  4. $4.95 Used Mass Market add to wish list

    The Catcher in the Rye

    J D Salinger
  5. $3.95 Used Mass Market add to wish list
  6. $5.50 Used Trade Paper add to wish list

    Speak

    Laurie Halse Anderson

Related Aisles

  • back to top

Powell's City of Books is an independent bookstore in Portland, Oregon, that fills a whole city block with more than a million new, used, and out of print books. Shop those shelves — plus literally millions more books, DVDs, and eBooks — here at Powells.com.