Into the Wild

This is not a new book. It has obviously been read before. I will still read it, but it is not new!

Spannend en avontuurlijk, ook dramatisch.

Que l'on adhère ou non au choix de vie de Christopher McCandless, ce bouquin - une expansion d'un article de 9000 mots publié en 1993 - est incroyablement bien écrit. A l'instar des autres livres de Krakauer, il est agréable à lire. Veuillez cependant noter que ce livre n'est pas une histoire mais une biographie/récit/enquête écrite en anglais. Fait intéressant: chaque chapitre commence par une citation ou un petit passage de livres lus par McCandless. En conclusion: un chouette moment de détente et de réflexion à la fois sur notre style de vie et sur les choix de ce jeune homme.

Good

EXCELENTE

First things first: "Into the wild" is not a novel but rather a lengthy reportage in book format. Structure and style are strongly journalistic. Taking McCandless's vagabond life as a starting point, the author reflects on (as Jack London put it) the call of the wild, the yearning for isolation and loneliness and the will to test one's limits surrounded by a challenging nature. Roughly half of the book tells McCandless's story and how he ended up as a twentysomething leading a vagabond life in America's Southwest till he went to Alaska where he died of starvation. (The book starts with McCandless's death so don't think I spoiled it.) ;-) The other half deals with other rather famous people who succumbed to the call of the wild, Krakauer being one of them himself - yet unlike others he survived. The author also interviews McCandless's family, friends and acquaintances. He highlights the loss and pain the family suffered. Ultimately, Krakauer thinks that youth, idealism and a certain unwillingness to forgive other people's mistakes are some of the main reasons why people go into the wild and severe all contact with their families. On this edition: The Pan/Macmillan edition (ISBN-10: 0330455842, ISBN-13: 978-0330455848) is cheap - and not much else. I don't really like books with the cover of a movie, but this cover includes an especially awful "Now a Major Motion Picture blah blah blah". The font used is rather small (I guess about 10 or 9 points). On the positive side, this edition includes 4 black and white maps (2 Alaska, 2 Colorado River). In conclusion, despite the fact that I loved the book itself, I do not really recommend this particular edition.