This is because The River was published in 1991, five years before the release of Brian's Winter. The River does not and includes no mention that the events of Brian's Winter ever took place as Brian tells Derek Holtzer that he only spent fifty-four days in the wilderness. Eventually, Brian meets a family of Cree trappers, the Smallhorns, who help him return home.īrian's Winter is followed chronologically by the two sequels, Brian's Return and Brian's Hunt as they recognize the book as a series canon. The story deals with Brian, still stranded at the L-shaped lake during the fall and winter, constructing a winter shelter, building snow shoes, being confronted by a bear, befriending and naming a skunk and learning how to make a bow more powerful. In response, Paulsen wrote Brian's Winter, which explores what would have happened if Brian had not activated the transmitter. Paulsen says that many readers wrote to him, complaining about the deus ex machina ending. The book ends with a note that Brian, who learned wilderness survival through trial and error, probably would not have survived the upcoming harsh winter on his own. In each chapter he tells of one special dog, among them Cookie, the sled dog who saved his life Snowball, the puppy he owned as a boy in the Philippines Ike, his mysterious hunting companion Dirk, the grim protector and his true friend Josh, a brilliant border collie. Within hours, a pilot receives the beacon and rescues him. Gary Paulsen has owned dozens of unforgettable and amazing dogs. He recovers, among other things, an emergency transmitter. He almost drowns trying to tear the plane open. It was also released as Hatchet: Winter by Pan Macmillan on February 9, 1996.Īt the end of Hatchet, thirteen-year-old Brian Robeson, who has been trapped in the Canadian wilderness after a plane accident, decides to dive for a 'survival pack' from the submerged aircraft.

It is the third novel in the Hatchet series, but second in terms of chronology as an alternate ending sequel to Hatchet. Children and Young Adult Literature portalīrian's Winter is a 1996 young adult novel by Gary Paulsen.

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