Into the Wild

Into the Wild

Author:  Jon Krakauer

Publisher:  Anchor Books, A Division of Random House (1996, 2015)

215 Pages

Recommended Grade Level:  9^th and up

Into the Wild is the tragic story of Chris McCandless, who after graduating from Emory with honors and a youth filled with successful academic, athletic, and work achievements, gives away the money in his bank account and disappears from society, his whereabouts unknown to his friends and family.  After years of travelling around the West while living on the road, taking trips into the wilderness, working odd jobs to get to his next destination from time to time, and meeting people in his travels; he decides to take an Alaskan trip into the wilderness to “embark on an ‘ultimate adventure’” (p. 51).  He goes into the Alaskan wilderness completely unprepared with little food because he wanted to live off the land.  He ignored continual advice that it was too early in the year for that.  He did not bring the map that would have saved his life, purposely deciding not to bring a map so he could live completely free from society:  “In coming to Alaska, McCandless yearned to wander uncharted country, to find a blank spot on the map.  In 1992, however, there were no more blank spots on the map…But Chris, with his idiosyncratic logic…simply got rid of the map.  In his own mind, if nowhere else, the terra would remain incognita” (p. 174).

Krakauer identifies with McCandless due to Krakauer’s own behavior in his youth, which he also details in this book.  For this reason, Krakauer attempts to explain and rationalize McCandless’s behavior, in places painting him as a sort of hero.  However, while Krakauer includes the criticism from others of McCandless and his reckless behavior, the book seems to defend McCandless and his irresponsible behavior.  Krakauer insists that McCandless was not mentally ill but was undertaking his journey from a moral imperative and that he was a highly ethical individual.  I think based on the description of McCandless’s irresponsible and sometimes illegal behavior, he was suffering from mental health issues and perhaps, mental illness.  Because of his personal connection to the story of McCandless, Krakauer is unable to present an unbiased account of McCandless, his behavior, and the events that ultimately ended in his death. 

I have read this book twice.  Once when it was published in 1996, at the age of 23, and recently, 20 years later, when I reread it for this class.  While both times I read it, I found the story compelling and the book hard to put down, I had a completely different reaction reading it from the perspective of a middle-aged woman than that of a recent college graduate. Reading it as a young adult, I identified with McCandless and while finding his actions reckless and somewhat irrational, and the story very tragic; I saw him as an idealist taking his beliefs to the extreme. Reading it from my current perspective, I find McCandless to be histrionic, reckless, and selfish; in need of guidance, support of family and friends, and most likely mental health care.   

Working in Adult Services in the library, I know this book is often recommended to and read by young adults and high school students.  I think young adults will enjoy this book and find it interesting and compelling.  However, I hope they recognize McCandless for the troubled and reckless young man he was.  McCandless did live by his own ideals and pursue his own dreams and ambitions and there is something to be said for that kind of zeal and dedication.  However, he did this at the expense of his family and those who cared for him, and it ultimately cost him his life. 

I would recommend this as an optional choice for a book club as I feel like there are a lot of issues that would lead to interesting discussions.  In addition, this would be appropriate to include on a list of nonfiction choices for independent reading.  

Related Websites:

This is a website dedicated to Chris McCandless:

http://www.christophermccandless.info/bio.html

Jon Krakauer's website:

http://www.jonkrakauer.com/bios/jon-krakauer

Article from Outside magazine with McCandless slideshow:

https://www.outsideonline.com/1857751/chris-mccandless-back-wild#slide-1

Article detailing acts of admirers of McCandless who have been injured or perished on a pilgrimage to the site of his death in Alaska:

https://www.outsideonline.com/1920626/chris-mccandless-o

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