Brian's Winter

 Paulsen, Gary. Brian's Winter. Book 3 of Brian's Saga. 1996. 144p. ISBN 9780440227199.

What if, in Hatchet, Brian had in fact not been rescued by the end of the summer? What if he had to spend the winter in the wilderness? In Brian's Winter, this is exactly what happens. As summer days slowly go by, Brian at first does not notice that the days are getting shorter and the temperature cooler. But one morning, when he wakes up shivering and able to see his breath, he suddenly realizes he will have to content with the unforgiving winter without any cold gear.

His first order of business is to make his shelter as weatherproof as possible. With too much of a draft, he will need significantly more firewood than if he uses mud to seal all the cracks. Then there's the question of clothing. His t-shirt, pants, and sneakers will not be enough to survive the drop in temperature. He will need to salvage furs, and sew his own clothing with rabbit and deer pelts to resist the below freezing weather. Finally, he will need food. Lots and lots of food. With the lake freezing, Brian is not able to fish, so he must quickly find a new source of food. Using his ingenuity and his creativity, Brian builds arrows and a better bow, able to take down bigger game. Which is a good thing, because the wolves are sniffing on the border of his land, and bears don't care about borders at all. 

With night getting longer, Brian abandons all hopes of rescue, and instead focuses on surviving a winter in the wilderness. Will the lessons learned during the summer in Hatchet be enough for him to make it through?