The award-winning creator of popular survival stories turns his attention to his own real life adventures in Minnesota and Alaska as he prepares for the grueling Iditarod sled dog race.
“The lure of the wilderness is always a potent draw, and Paulsen evokes its mysteries as well as anyone has since Jack London.” (The Horn Book)
Samuel, 13, spends his days in the forest, hunting for food for his family. He has grown up on the frontier of a British colony, America. Far from any town, or news of the war against the King that American patriots have begun near Boston.
But the war comes to them. British soldiers and Iroquois attack. Samuel’s parents are taken away, prisoners. Samuel follows, hiding, moving silently, determined to find a way to rescue them. Each day he confronts the enemy, and the tragedy and horror of this war. But he also discovers allies, men and women working secretly for the patriot cause. And he learns that he must go deep into enemy territory to find his parents: all the way to the British headquarters, New York City.
From the Hardcover edition.
Fueled by a passion for running dogs, Gary Paulsen entered the Iditarod-the eleven hundred and eighty mile sled-dog race through the Alaskan wilderness-in dangerous ignorance and with a fierce determination. For seventeen days, he and his team of dogs endured blinding wind, snowstorms, frostbite, dogfights, moose attacks, sleeplessness, hallucinations-and the relentless push to go on. Winterdance is the enthralling account of a "stunning wilderness journey of discovery and transformation" (Chicago Tribune), lived and told by "the best author of man-against-nature adventures writing today" (Publishers Weekly).
Kevin Spencer is one lucky guy. Tina Zabinski, the World's Most Beautiful, Most Perfect, Best-Smelling Girl, is finally his girlfriend. But now that he's got the girl, will he be able to keep her? Enter his mortal enemy, Cash Devine. Handsome, smooth-talking Cash is running for class president, and he seems to have his eye on Tina. Kev's got to dazzle her, so he decides to exercise his great political mind and run against Cash. There's just one little problem: Kevin has to win. Gary Paulsen continues his exploration of the quirky, inventive mind of fourteen-year-old Kevin in this hilarious companion to Liar, Liar; Flat Broke; and Crush.
Francis Tucket's life has been exciting ever since his family headed to Oregon in a wagon train. First he was kidnapped by Pawnee Indians. Then Mr. Grimes, a one-armed mountain, man rescued him and taught him wilderness survival skills. Later when Francis set off alone to find his parents on the Oregon Trail, he ended up rescuing two young children stranded in the barren land. Now in Tucket's Ride, winter is forcing 15-year-old Francis to take Lottie and Billy south to avoid snowy mountains. Soon they are in the midst of a war between Mexico and the United States! But Francis' troubles really begin when they meet up with the West's most ruthless outlaw band, the Comancheros. Newbery Honor winner Gary Paulsen spins tales of the American frontier in the 1840s with realistic details and gritty honesty. Tucket's Ride continues Francis' action-packed adventure series that begins with Mr. Tucket , then Call Me Francis Tucket.
Fifteen-year-old Francis Tucket has been searching for his parents ever since Pawnees kidnapped him from their wagon train on the Oregon Trail. He owes his survival to a one-armed mountain man, Jason Grimes, who came to his rescue. Now Francis owes his life to the mountain man once again. Unfortunately, it's a debt he'll never be able to repay. Grimes is killed defending Francis and his young friends, Lottie and Billy, from a band of marauding robbers. As the three young people approach the end of their journey, they wonder if they can make it across the raging Columbia River. But a friendly young Indian offers Francis some good advice. Newbery Award-winning author Gary Paulsen skillfully juxtaposes exciting adventure with the dangers endured by pioneers on the Oregon Trail. This tale of heroism and courage is also a realistic look at the hardships endured by early settlers. John Randolf Jones' expert narration provides the perfect climax to this fifth and final book in the Francis Tucket saga.
In 1848, Francis Tucket was stolen from his family while they were travelling west along the Oregon Trail. After his escape, he spent a year learning the ways of the land from a one-armed mountain man. Trying to catch up with his family again, Francis found two stranded children, Lottie and Billy. Together, they're facing the dangers of the old West while making their way to Oregon. In this exciting continuation of the story from Mr. Tucket, Call Me Francis Tucket, and Tucket's Ride, Francis, Lottie, and Billy race to escape the outlaw Comancheros, discover hidden gold, and find a lost cliff city. As they struggle to survive, they discover that by working together, they can accomplish nearly anything. Newbery Honor-winning author Gary Paulsen fills this exciting, historically accurate adventure with gritty, realistic details. Narrator John Randolph Jones portrays each thrilling new encounter with zest.
Every winter, John Borne looked forward to the days when he and his grandfather headed into the snowy Minnesota woods to hunt together. John admired the reverent, familiar way the old man had with the woods. But this year his grandfather is dying and 13-year-old John must make the hunt alone. Without his beloved grandfather, the hunt is cold and lonely-until John spots the doe watching and waiting for him in the clearing. She is an easy target, but as John raises his rifle to shoot, he knows he cannot kill the vulnerable creature. There is something strangely familiar about this doe, something that John recognizes in her eyes that stops him. Vivid and reflective, Newbery Honor-winner Gary Paulsen's tale of a boy coming to terms with death displays the wholesome optimism and the adventurous spirit that makes his books so popular.
The Newbery Honor-winning author of Hatchet and Dogsong shares surprising true stories about his relationship with animals, highlighting their compassion, intellect, intuition, and sense of adventure.Gary Paulsen is an adventurer who competed in two Iditarods, survived the Minnesota wilderness, and climbed the Bighorns. None of this would have been possible without his truest companion: his animals. Sled dogs rescued him in Alaska, a sickened poodle guarded his well-being, and a horse led him across a desert. Through his interactions with dogs, horses, birds, and more, Gary has been struck with the belief that animals know more than we may fathom. His understanding and admiration of animals is well known, and in This Side of Wild, which has taken a lifetime to write, he proves the ways in which they have taught him to be a better person.
This story of two Norwegian-American farm boys who discover the remarkable magic of storytelling is vintage Gary Paulsen-earthy, gritty, and ultimately poignant. Following the turn of the seasons, eleven year old Eldon traces the daily routines of his life on a farm and his relationship with his older brother Wayne. During the winter, with little work to be done on the farm, Eldon and Wayne spend the quiet hours with their family, listening to their Uncle David's stories. But Eldon soon learns that, although he has lived on the same farm, in the same house with his uncle for eleven springs, summers, and winters, he hardly knows him.
The year is 2057. Endless wars have torn the USA apart and enslaved Americans to the evil CCR, the Confederation of Consolidated Republics. Growing up in wartime has made fourteen-year-old Cody Pierce wise in survival skills. Now he’s The White Fox, rebel leader of the children’s barracks in a CCR prison camp. Cody manages a terrifying escape and then plays cat and mouse with the CCR. Every day brings him closer to capture, but closer as well to his goal – to return and liberate the children he left behind.
“Paulsen has created a courageous hero who relies on his wits to survive, and whose take-charge approach and enviable skills will appeal to readers.” – School Library Journal
