Woodsong by Gary Paulsen

A LIFE AS EXCITING AS FICTION

Gary Paulsen, is no stranger to adventure. He has flown off the back of a dogsled and down a frozen waterfall to near disaster, and waited for a giant bear to seal his fate with one slap of a claw. He has led a team of sled dogs toward the Alaskan Mountain Range in an Iditarod -- the grueling, 1,180-mile dogsled race -- hallucinating from lack of sleep, but he determined to finish.

Here, in vivid detail, Paulsen recounts several of the remarkable experiences that shaped his life and inspired his award-winning writing.

Paperback, 144 pages

Published May 8, 2007

 by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

3/5 stars

I started reading Gary Paulsen with Hatchet and have been dipping in and out of his work ever since. Every once in a while I step away from the series and grab one of his standalones and Woodsong was exactly that kind of pick. At just 144 pages it was the perfect vacation read and that's exactly where I found myself when I finished it.

This one is a memoir, split into two parts. The first takes place in Minnesota where Paulsen learns some humbling lessons from nature and his sled dogs. The second is during the Iditarod, the grueling 1,180-mile dogsled race across Alaska and that's where things really come alive. Very on-brand for an author who seems happiest in the remote wilderness, this time it's rather chilly also.

If you have a middle grade reader in your life who loves the outdoors and adventure, this is a great one to hand them. Paulsen has a real gift for making the wilderness feel both breathtaking and unforgiving.

This book was part of my 2026 Reading Off My Shelf Challenge, #15