This is one of the five books by Gary Paulsen about a 13-year-old left alone in the North Woods of Canada due to a pilot’s fatal heart attack and plane wreck. The first book, “The Hatchet,” tells of the guts*, intelligence, patience and luck of the boy with little wilderness experience in learning how to survive in a remote wilderness.

    Two years earlier, Brian was stranded* alone in the wilderness for 54 days with nothing but a small hatchet. Yet he survived.

    Now the government wants him to go back into the wilderness so that astronauts and the military can learn the survival techniques that kept Brian alive.

    Derek, a young psychologist*, and Brian are dropped off at another Canadian lake, near the first one, equipped only with knives and a radio that Derek has promised not to use except in emergency*.

    Everything goes well until their camp is struck by lightning, zapping* the radio and leaving Derek in a coma*. Brian manages to float Derek 100 miles down a river to a trading post, thus saving his life.

    The lyrically* described details of Brian’s adventure — building a fire, making a raft — are of most interest here; for all its graphically evoked perils*, the journey’s successful outcome seems less in doubt than did the outcome of the autobiographical* wilderness experiences described in “Woodsong” (1990).

    Paulsen is one of the most honored writers of contemporary literature for young readers. He has written more than 100 books. The book is available at online bookstores like amazon.cn.(SD-Agencies)