Hatchet Video Summary

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Hatchet, published in 1987, is Gary Paulsen's best-known novel. The author tells the story of a thirteen-year-old boy’s resourcefulness and resilience after being stranded in the Canadian wilderness. This tale of survival remains a popular novel for young adults.

As the novel opens, the young Brian Robeson is on a bush plane for the first time. His parents have gotten divorced and he is flying into Canada to spend the summer with his father, who is working in the oil fields. In the plane with just one pilot, he is thinking about his divorced parents and a “Secret.” The reader will learn soon enough that Brian is angry with his mother, having observed her with another man. His mother has given him a hatchet as a gift to take with him.

During the flight, the pilot shows Brian how to fly the plane and Brian learns of the plane’s stash of survival gear. Then, suddenly, the pilot has a heart attack and dies. Brian manages to keep the plane level until it crashes into a remote lake. He swims out, surviving the crash and then falls asleep on the shore in exhaustion.

After waking up, Brian first sets out to find water and soon realizes he also needs shelter and food. He finds berries and eats until he gets sick. Once the boy finishes building a shelter, he collapses from exhaustion, getting sick again in the middle of the night.

The next morning, Brian searches for berries that won’t make him sick. He is picking delicious raspberries when a large black bear appears behind him. He remains still until the bear eventually leaves. That night, hearing an unknown animal in his shelter, he throws his hatchet at it, causing sparks to appear and the animal to flee. Brian feels piercing in his leg and realizes he has been stung by eight porcupine quills.

Brian discovers how he can make a fire when he remembers how the hatchet created sparks as it hit the shelter’s rock wall. He succeeds in igniting flames that keeps the animals and mosquitos away. He begins to observe how he has changed. His body has slimmed down and he hears things he previously would not have heard. He is determined to survive but to do so he must find another source of food.

To try to catch fish, Brian first uses his hatchet to craft a spear from a branch. When that doesn’t work, he finds success by making a bow and arrow. One day, he hears an airplane engine overhead. He races back to his shelter but is too late to reach the signal fire he created and begins to believe he will never be rescued.

But Brian doesn’t give up. He gets better at catching fish; he builds a pen for live fish so that he always has a fresh supply. He also finds some turtle eggs to eat. When a skunk steals them from his shelter, Brian realizes he must make a stronger door. He longs for meat and begins to hunt and kill the birds he calls “fool birds.”

Brian is attacked by a moose and nearly drowns in the lake. Then, a huge tornado touches down, rips his shelter and knocks him against the wall. The boy is disheartened, but sees that the tornado has also moved the plane’s tail above the surface of the lake.

The next day, he assesses the damage and begins to rebuild. He remembers there is a survival bag in the plane. He builds a raft to get out to the plane, but once there can’t get inside. Frustrated, he punches the side of the wreckage. The outer shell gives way and he realizes he can use his hatchet to make a bigger hole in the metal. Then, he accidentally drops his hatchet into the lake! He dives to the bottom several times and finally retrieves it.

When Brian opens the survival bag, it is filled with matches, a .22 survival rifle, two bars of soap, and packs of freeze-dried food. There is also a radio-like device. He fiddles with the switches, but it seems to be broken.

As he makes a feast for himself of freeze-dried food, he is surprised to hear the sound of a plane overhead. The pilot lands on the lake and tells Brian that he heard the emergency transmitter.

Brian’s rescue changes him in ways that make him stronger and wiser. He had spent 54 days in the Canadian wilderness. Once home, he learns about the wildlife he ate and has a new appreciation for food. His parents are overjoyed to see Brian, but they remain separated.

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I remembered when I was in middle school and we had to read this book in class. I all was wanted to read it again, because I never finished the story, and couldn't remember the name. Came across this video and the moment I heard plane crash and turtle eggs memories of being back in class reading this book came back to me. I'm going to pick up this book one day and read it.

nerdy_posta

Rest In Peace Gary Paulsen. Thank you for this gem.

Dcsportsfanatic

Bro it took me like 2 weeks to finish the book and here you are just summing it up in like 5 mins

duck

I remember the class reading this back in 4th grade.... I miss those days

papicazpa

This was a great book I read it a few years ago and still love it

brocksgamingcnl

I was introduced to this book by a couple of strangers while I was on vacation when I was around 13 or 14. I met a man and woman when I was traveling from Florida to Michigan and Wisconsin in my grandpa's RV. At an RV park I met a random couple a man and woman who was traveling by motorcycle.For some reason they seemed fascinated by me and we talked, they told me about the two books. Although it wasn't smart I gave them a mailing address when we parted ways and they wrote me a letter containing the books. Unfortunately I never took the time to write them back and lost the letter. As a child sharing one's address with a stranger was absolutely stupid of course, but I'm glad I did it. I always feel bad I never wrote them back, they probably never knew I got the books sure because of that. This was around 2007 or so. But I did get the books and I did read them and I did enjoy it. If you were that random couple I met in some random state in 2007 or so who rode motorcycles and told me about the books and took the time to mail them to me, thanks I greatly appreciate it and sorry I never wrote back.

kevincloud

I remember my mom got the audiobook from our local library when I was a kid and we used to listen to it everyday waiting for what comes next in each chapter 🥺🙏

urbanj

I read this as a kid, and loved it so much because I always had carried a hatchet around when I was younger for chopping down trees to build forts and etc. I read the Transall Saga after this, which is a similar sci-fi variation of the same situation, authored by Paulson as well. They are both fantastic books, and I'm truly glad to have experienced their influence.

threegreencharms

I have no Idea when I read it, but this is one of the few books that is so embedded into my mind, I still remembered some key parts.

For some odd reason lately it popped up in my mind. And I finally found it again.

ItsIdaho

For every English class that I had from elementary school, all the way up through high school, I wrote one book report on hatchet per year. My favorite book of all time and each year I read it my book report got better and better lol

ataylor

My 5th grade teacher made us read this and write 60-80 page book report the hardest project i’ve ever done in my life i am now in highschool and still have never done a project near as hard as that was the book was amazing though, i love that teacher!

juanbarahona

I feel like reading this book as a kid and watching Lost growing up is the reason I love survival stories so much

Hardrive

in the book they use a lot of details, and that’s how i remember every single part of this book 😅 the details make the book so interesting!

imsupahot

I have a test next week and I'm gonna watch this video multiple times until I memorize it so all I wanted to say is thank you for making this video

GIGIGigyat

About the book Hatchet, the part of the book where he goes underwater into the submerged
airplane with a month old rotting corpse right there in the plane too is
quite a psychological thriller for a young child. They had us read
this when we were in 8th or 9th grade if i can remember correcty, which
means i was about 13 years old.

bhaktapeter