Thursday, February 27, 2014

Wild - Book Beginnings on Friday and Friday56

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I just featured WILD - From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail on my Teaser Tuesday post (here), but I thought the book deserved more than two sentences so I'm posting about it again today. This story really impressed me. It's the nonfiction tale of a woman who hiked the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mojave Desert of California to the Oregon-Washington border. What a feat!

Here's the book's beginning (prologue):
The trees were tall, but I was taller, standing above them on a steep mountain slope in northern California. Moments before, I'd removed my hiking boots and the left one had fallen into those trees, first catapulting into the air when my enormous backpack toppled onto it, then skittering across the gravelly trail and flying over the edge. It bounced off of a rocky outcropping several feet beneath me before disappearing into the forest canopy below, impossible to retrieve.

And here are a few sentences from 56% on my Kindle:
I ate the Slim Jim first, washing it down with the last of my Budweiser, and then the butterscotch candies, all six of them, one after the other, and then--still hungry, always hungry--turned my attention to the can of baked beans. I pried it open in tiny increments with the impossible can-opening device on my Swiss army knife, and then, too lazy to rummage through my pack for my spoon, I scooped them out with the knife itself and ate them--hobo-style--from the blade.

Genre: Nonfiction / Women's Adventure
Length: 338 Pages
Amazon Link: Wild

If you're curious about the Pacific Crest Trail or would like more info, here's a link to a beautiful video: Tell It On The Mountain

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32 comments:

  1. That does not sound like something you want to happen out on the trail. Thanks for sharing.

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  2. I've already added this one to my list :)

    My Post

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  3. What a wonderful cover! Love it!

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    1. I guess she took this picture before her boot flew over the edge of the trail!

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  4. Oh God, whenever we go hiking in the Alps and I take of my boots for a minute I hold onto them terrified they'll fall into a ravine or something! Thanks for sharing, it sounds really good :) I hope you have a great weekend

    My Friday Post

    Juli @ Universe in Words

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    1. If you read the book, you'll be surprised at how she dealt with this crisis.

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  5. Yikes. Doesn't sound like a good place to be, but looks like a fascinating read.

    Hope you'll visit me at http://www.thebusymomsdaily.com/2014/02/the-friday-56-week-167.html

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  6. I just finished a non-fiction and loved it. This one sounds very interesting I will have to check it out. Great share.

    Hugs
    Caroline

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    1. It's written in such a way that you'd think it was fiction. I was fascinated.

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    1. Thank you for stopping by. I'll check out your post too.

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  8. I have this book on my TBR and on my Nook! It sounds so good- thanks for the sneak peeks :)

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    1. I think you'll enjoy the story. Thank you for visiting my blog today.

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  9. I really like the cover of this book, and enjoy walking and going on walking holidays but nothing to this extent! Glad you enjoyed this one, thanks for highlighting it.

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    1. I agree. It's really a great cover. Even if you can't remember the book's title, you'll remember the hiking boot!

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  10. I'm glad you featured this on both the Tuesday and Friday posts. This book sounds really good.

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    1. I'm glad you enjoyed the posts. This was a book that will stay with me.

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  11. Hummm - I have seen this book around and been vaguely interested. A hiker without their boots is like a cowboy without their hat - just begging for something terrible to happen so I will be putting this on my TBR list just to find out what she did.

    I have to say though I have opened plenty of cans with my Swiss Army knife and never had a problem with it. Those things work just fine if you know how to work them.

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    1. This hiker was not at all prepared for her trek, but she met a lot of helpful people along the way.

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  12. Wow! She is a lot braver than I am. What a feat! Thanks for introducing me to this book.

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    1. She's braver than I am too! The Pacific Crest Trail is approximately 2,650 miles long.

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  13. I'm really intrigued by the beginning! Happy weekend!

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  14. I recognized the cover and remembered checking this book out before. There's a movie based on this book, starring Reese Witherspoon, coming out later this year. I was gonna watch the movie and not read the book, but it sounds like the book is worth the read! Thanks for sharing! =)

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    1. I just found out about the movie too. It should be a good one. I usually like to read a book first and then see the movie.

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  15. Replies
    1. Absolutely. Nobody carries a spare pair of boots in their backpack.

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  16. Well, that's an attention grabbing opening! I'm glad it wasn't me. The book sounds fascinating.

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    1. The opening grabbed me too. I wondered how she could possibly handle that catastrophe. Of course I had to read on to find out.

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  17. I keep hearing good things about WILD. THANKS for sharing and for stopping my blog earlier.


    Elizabeth
    Silver's Reviews
    My Book Beginnings

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