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Brian's Winter (Brian's Saga #3)

3.87 of 5 stars 3.87 · rating details · 9,114 ratings · 587 reviews

In Hatchet, 13-year-old Brian Robeson learned to survive alone in the Canadian wilderness, armed only with his hatchet. He was rescued at the end of the summer. Brian's Winter begins where Hatchet might have ended: Brian is not rescued, but must build on his survival skills to face his deadliest enemy�a northern winter.

Paperback, 133 pages

Published February 1st 1996 by Scholastic Inc.

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Jun 29, 2009 karen rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: teen-faves

more survivals for me! this book wasn't as fun as the first one - the book seemed less immediate than hatchet. maybe because of the way it was presented; as a "what if", rather than a regular story, the stakes seem lower, even though it is exactly the same. it's more like a writer's exercise than a proper story. or maybe i am reading too many woodsy type books too closely together. i will pause now and get on with my summer of classix. teeny books, get thee behind me!

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Oct 21, 2008 David rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. The title of my book is “Brian’s Winter”, and it is the sequel to Gary Paulsen’s last book, Hatchet. This book is about how Brian must have survived if he had n teen rescued; and like Gary Paulsen states in the summary: “What if Brian had been left to confront his deadliest enemy-winter?” Although I disliked the book, I must admit that the author (Gary Paulsen) does a great job of emphasizing the fat tat you must never give up in this cracking read that shows how Brian is set to survive winter b...more

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Mar 05, 2009 Nathan Simpson rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Everyone who likes survival

Recommended to Nathan by: Gary Paulsen's The Hatchet

Shelves: book-club

Again, I review that I love these books, not only am I a Gary Paulsen Fan, but I also like survival books; and if you like survival this book is not for you. The book takes you back to the spot where we left Brian, the Canadian Wilderness. This time instead of setting the radio transmitter of Gary Paulsen writes about a diffrent ending to the book Hatchet. Brian finds the survival kit and continues to hunt for small game and "fowl bird" as he calls it. Brian knows that the seasons are coming and...more

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Apr 01, 2009 Alberto rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I´ve learned about this book a lot. Now, when i hear someone has been stranded out in the wilderness, I always think about Brian. This book teaches you have to do a lot of things and speccially never give up and less when your life is on the line. I also liked that the book was very interesting, for example when Brian was attacked by a moose or how he learned to make snowshoes. I really like adventure stories and even more survival stories, and this book covers all of it. I think it was very int...more

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Mar 09, 2009 Matt rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

What would've happened if Brian had never been rescued by the helicopter and had to stay for the winter? "Brian's Winter" was a book that showed me that someone can survive out in the wilderness. Brian was boy in his teens that got stranded in an island. Winter was coming soon so he had to build shelter. With his imagination in his left pocket, he made a little hut out of dried mud. He sometimes came in conflict with a bear that wreaked his hut, but other than that, it was safe. The way he hunts...more

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Apr 16, 2013 April Fell rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Name: April Fell
Genre: Adventure
APA: Paulsen, Gary.(1996). Brian's Winter. New York: Random House Children's Books.
Highly Recommended/read 1st two books Hatchet and The River/this is the final book in the series

Brain's Winter is the 3rd book in the Hatchet series. Gary Paulsen received feedback from his readers that they wanted to know what happened to Brian in book II. He felt an obligation to his readers to finish what he had started in Hatchet.

Brian is stranded in the Alaskan wilderness when...more

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Apr 08, 2013 Taya Mills rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: second-13-reads

This book is about what would have happened to Brian Robeson in the book Hatchet, if he had never been rescued. It is basically a continuation of his story, assuming he was never found. This book details his experience in this new world called winter. He must find new ways to survive and new ways to live in order to do just that--live. He makes many mistakes and has a few mishaps, however, he learns quickly and adapts to the cold, frozen woods. In this place, he finds his true nature and in turn...more

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Jan 30, 2013 Liam Hines rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A young man is in a plane crash, and he was the only survivor. He left the plane gathered all the supplies that was on the plane and went out to find somewhere to camp. He left during the summer and was able to survive hunting off the land. He first realized winter was coming when the cold breeze hit his cheek. he had to to survive and it was very difficult because he had no warm clothing, his rifle broke while shooting at an animal, and ended up using the bow and arrow. He thought the rifle cou...more

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Dec 17, 2012 Alden rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Summary:
First Brian starts off in the woods. This book is a continuation of the Hatchet book. So right now Brian has been stuck in the woods for over 50 days notices that its about to turn into the winter. So now he was looking for shelter and a better weapon then from what he already had, which was a hatchet. So what he did with his weapons was killing animals for food and clothing to survive. In the end Brian finds that in a hundred meters from him there is a Native-American family that is liv...more

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Dec 12, 2012 Josiah Janusz added it · review of another edition

This book to me was not as good as the last one because it was not as risky or the stakes were not as high. But other than that it was a great book but I had to read it two times just to understand half of it. My favorite part was either when he shoots that moose and then drags it back to camp in pieces. or when he thinks there is some one shooting high power rifles around him because there are bullet marks in the trees. But he finds out that it is just so cold that the sap in the trees are gett...more

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Nov 30, 2012 Anthony rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: juvenile-fiction

Being Alone in the middle of nowhere isn’t very fun, but being cold and alone takes it to a whole other level; just ask Brian Robeson.

“Brian’s Winter” is a continuation of Gary Paulsen’s book “Hatchet”. Actually it is a reimagining of what would have happened to Brian Robeson if he wasn’t rescued and had to get through the cold Northern Canada winter alone. Brian almost misses the signs that winter is coming, but when he finally gets it he realizes that he has a lot of work to do. There are many...more

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Feb 06, 2012 Carley rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: childrens, fiction, 2012-reading-challenge

"Brian's Winter" by Gary Paulsen picks up where the character Brian left off, had he not been rescued. In his foreward, Paulsen said that he received "as many as 200 letters a day" from readers saying that they felt that Brian's story was not finished, that he was rescued before things got really tough. In order to read this novel, you have to read it with the pretense that when he retrieved the survival pack from the plane, he did not turn on the radio signal. With winter on the horizon, Brian...more

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Nov 09, 2011 Austin rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Brains winter was an amazing book. I think that it picked up great after the book Hatchet with Brian alone stranded in the wilderness. Brian can tell that the seasons are changing and that summer is gone. He is stuck in fall time, with a loss of time because he has been spoiled by his survival pack that he had got from the plane. His rifle soon broke while out hunting and he had ate all of his dry food and was forced to find another way to continue to hunt for bigger game than just with his "wea...more

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Oct 26, 2011 Gallion Stallion added it · review of another edition

Alright so the book I have read is
Brains winter
Author: is Gary Paulsen
Publishing information: it was published February 9, 1996

Type: It is a science fiction
The theme: survival
Spoiler alert!
Back ground: A guy named brain his plane crashed and he needs to survive in wilderness
Summarizing: alright so the book starts out that he is going on a trip on like a really small air plane the air plane crashes and brain lives and he needs to survive out in the wilderness with the supplies he has from the...more

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Oct 12, 2011 Caroline rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: english-420-ya-literature

I read The Hatchet when I was in middle school and enjoyed the book. While I still like the character of Brian as well as Paulsen's writing style, I thought that this re-write of the ending of The Hatchet was not worth the read. It was really hard to get over the fact that this book was now pretending that Brian wasn't really saved from isolation simply to indulge Paulsen in telling some more narrating of Brian's treking through the woods. Ultimately, the ending is the same and nothing really pr...more

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May 26, 2011 Robert B. Miller added it · review of another edition

Read by Malinda, Summer 2006:
"The book that I read this week was Brian’s Winter by Gary Paulsen. I picked this book to read because I had read the book that came before it in the series with a student that I was tutoring. This book is about a 13 year old boy who is in a plain crash. The small plain that he is flying in goes down in a small lake and the pilot is killed. The plain crash does not happen in this book but you are given enough information to know that it happened. Brian has to survive...more

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Mar 20, 2011 Janette added it · review of another edition

This was one of the few books my son willingly read during elementary school, so I would recommend it to boys on that merit alone. I finally got around to listening to it on CD and had a few thoughts on it.

1) It would be really hard to write a book with only one character. Paulsen does it pretty well. I don't think I'll ever try it.
2) I bet Paulsen did all the things that he writes about. I mean, I could totally see him putting together a pair of snow shows from branches and hide just to be auth...more

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Nov 19, 2010 Michelle rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Have you ever wondered how you would survive if you found yourself alone in the wilderness? Where would you would you find water? How would you defend yourself against predators? What would you eat? Well, find out if a 13 year old teenager survives the Canadian wilderness read Brian’s Winter, READ, READ, READ!

This story is about a teenager boy named Brian who found himself in the wilderness from a plane crash, without warm clothing and food for the Winter. He is trying to survive the danger of...more Have you ever wondered how you would survive if you found yourself alone in the wilderness? Where would you would you find water? How would you defend yourself against predators? What would you eat? Well, find out if a 13 year old teenager survives the Canadian wilderness read Brian’s Winter, READ, READ, READ!

This story is about a teenager boy named Brian who found himself in the wilderness from a plane crash, without warm clothing and food for the Winter. He is trying to survive the danger of the wilderness and the animals within. Will he survive the Winter? Read Brian’s Winter to find out!

Our favorite part in the book is when Brian kicked the bear in the rear end, it was special because it’s a very risky thing to do. Also, Gary Paulsen used simple sentences which paints a clear picture in the reader’s mind without using big words and confusing readers with very long sentences. He also uses staccato writing, which is only one word in a sentence, but not a whole sentence.

We think Gary Paulsen wrote Brian’s Winter to teach readers that they are not the most important organisms in the wilderness, other animals and people want to survive too. For example: When Brian attacked the cow moose, the moose fought back, probably because the cow moose wanted to live, fight back, and kill Brian.

We think Brian’s Winter is a good book for you if you have a strong stomach. For example: When he cut along the belly the knife slipped and cut the membrane holding the stomach in and her guts fell on his feet, steaming, and he went ahead and pulled them the rest of the way out, amazed at how there was inside her. The part when Brian kicked the bear is better than when the guts fell on Brian’s feet because it is less disgusting and is more exciting.

We think people with strong stomachs and people who are not vegetarians should read Brian’s Winter, mainly because Brian’s Winter has a lot of disgusting things in it and because Brian is always going out to hunt for animals. For example: When the moose guts fall all over Brian’s feet and when Brian kills the rabbits and fool birds.
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Dec 24, 2009 Douglaseng04 rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

nicholas kausch ad/group,204
Did you enjoy the book?
I loved the Brian’s winter it’s so descriptive. It makes you feel like Brian your Brian himself like when he tears the flesh from his fingers after he fires his bow. That’s why I love Brian’s winter it’s a fantastic book.
Did the book end the way you expected?
The book didn’t end the way I expected. I expected Brian to stay in the wilderness it seemed like Brian liked the woods. I think Brian liked the fishing and hunting but missed home and the...more nicholas kausch ad/group,204
Did you enjoy the book?
I loved the Brian’s winter it’s so descriptive. It makes you feel like Brian your Brian himself like when he tears the flesh from his fingers after he fires his bow. That’s why I love Brian’s winter it’s a fantastic book.
Did the book end the way you expected?
The book didn’t end the way I expected. I expected Brian to stay in the wilderness it seemed like Brian liked the woods. I think Brian liked the fishing and hunting but missed home and the people he loves. But he decided go home on a plane.
Would you recommend this book to other readers? To your close friends?
I would recommend the book Brian’s winter to readers that enjoy a griping survival story that makes you want to keep reading the story. I think my friend john would enjoy the book since he can never find a good book that will satisfy him.
Did the book fill your expiations? Were you disappointed?
The book never disappointed I never wanted to put the book down. The book Brian’s winter is the best book I ever read it’s my favourite book and all ways will be including Brian’s return and hatchet all by Gary plusen.
How did the book compare to other books by the author?
It was the best of all of his books the seconded was Brian’s return. But Brian’s winter is the best book unless Gary pulsen makes a new book Brian’s winter will be the best. I think Brian’s winter is the best book because it moves you and it makes you feel like you are Brian himself.
What about the plot? Did it pull you in or did you have to force yourself to read it?
No I never wanted to put it down I would have loved if it was longer. It’s a fantastic book every one I know whose read it says they love it to. It’s just so descriptive it makes you feel like you’re there.
What was your favourite scene in the book?
My favourite scene in the book is when brain makes his first bow so at that part it finally gets more intense since he can hunt bigger stuff like mosses and dear instead of rabbits.
What was your least favourite scene in the book?
My least favourite part in the book Brian’s winter is when the book ended I wanted to read more about Brian’s fight for survival his intense hunting experiences and his calm fishing styles. But I understand that Brian missed his family and friends.
On a scale from- 1to 10- what would you give this book- what would have made this book better?
I would give the book Brian’s winter a 10 because it’s a great book for teenagers it will keep them interested and they won’t want to put it down. I would have made the book longer and put some better English and bigger words in the book.
(less)

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Aug 20, 2011 Nathan W. rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

At the end of Hatchet, Im thirteen-year-old Brian Robeson, who has been trapped in the Canadian wilderness after a plane accident, decides to dive for supplies from the submerged aircraft. I almost drown. I recover, among other things, an emergency transmitter. Within hours, a pilot receives the beacon and rescues me. The book ends with a note that I, learn wilderness survival through trial and error, probably would not have survived the upcoming harsh winter.
I read Brian's Winter by Gary Paul...more

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Dec 08, 2009 Josiah rated it 3 of 5 stars

This book is almost the equal of its predecessor Hatchet, and in my mind, to reach such a level of accomplishment twice is very impressive.

As with Hatchet, Brian's Winter is a powerfully evocative, supremely sensual experience, bringing the reader into a world in which the bitter frigidity of the cold, the mad panic of being run down by a furious five hundred pound moose, the deep, insanely driving hunger of days and weeks on end without proper nourishment, and the awesome splendor of nature,...more

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Aug 09, 2012 Drew Graham rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

(More like 3.5 rounded up.)

Presented as an alternate ending/sequel to Hatchet, this book follows the supposition that Brian wasn't rescued after finding the survival pack in the downed plane, but had to continue his adventure through the much more harsh and unforgiving environment that winter brings to the wild. Not only facing the ever-colder elements, but also the likes of skunk, moose and bear, Brian has to adapt the skills he learned during the summer in order to survive.

I learned that there...more (More like 3.5 rounded up.)

Presented as an alternate ending/sequel to Hatchet, this book follows the supposition that Brian wasn't rescued after finding the survival pack in the downed plane, but had to continue his adventure through the much more harsh and unforgiving environment that winter brings to the wild. Not only facing the ever-colder elements, but also the likes of skunk, moose and bear, Brian has to adapt the skills he learned during the summer in order to survive.

I learned that there were further books in this series only as I started reading Hatchet last month, so it's been an interesting journey so far. As I began this book it took me a while to get behind the idea of it. It seems to suppose that The River, the sequel Paulsen had already written for his first, very well-known book, didn't happen, or at least didn't happen yet. Apparently this book was the response to many readers' feedback that Brian was rescued a little too easily, and they were curious what would happen if he had been forced to continue his adventure during the harsher winter weather. For that reason, this almost came across as only slightly self-indulgent, and in some ways like some sort of fanfiction presentation of an alternate universe or something, but as my wife said, I would rather read a "what-if" book from the author himself than some other someone. SO, I enjoyed this book, not quite as much as Paulsen's first Brian story, and maybe not even quite as much as his second (the inclusion of another character in Derek added a lot, I think), but what I did like about it was the winter itself. I love the winter! I was afraid that this book would make me kind of want to hate and fear the colder months, but Brian's experience made me respect and admire it a little more, just like Brian came to do. It's clear that Brian would never have survived if he hadn't had his summer in the wilderness, and because of this experience it's forgivable that some things seemed to come just a little too easily for him. Brian's head is a pleasant place to be, and it's fun to see some of the psychology of how and why he does what he does. He's certainly not the 13-year-old that today's teen/YA literature would present, which is quite refreshing. The writing is good, but the story is once again basically a series of events, some life-threatening, some life-affirming. It seemed a tad tedious at the start, but then things happened and it became much more interesting. It's always nice when Brian takes a minute to just breathe and appreciate life and give thanks.

This was an engaging alternate ending to Hatchet, and it was interesting to see Brian in a completely different situation. Winter in the Canadian woods was beautiful and threatening, and I enjoyed Brian's continued story of survival, but probably not quite as much as Paulsen's previous Brian books. As far as reading order goes, it might have been better to read this book as the second in the series (more or less chronologically), rather than the third (in order of publication).(less)

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May 09, 2012 Cory Hernandez rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ya-lit-eng-356

Brian's Winter is part of the Hatchet series written by Gary Paulsen. In this book, Brian, the story's main character, is left in the Canadian wilderness to defend for himself. Brian's Winter is the story of what would have happened to Brian if he had not been found by the plane. It's a good adventure story that includes things such as survival, harsh weather, animals, and the realization of one's self. In the book, Brian is left to go through a harsh winter. During this winter he has to face di...more

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May 21, 2013 Robert Strandquist rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: while-in-belgium

My low rating is unfair. In its genre of teen fiction, it might rate higher. It's written with a 'boy scout' tone that gives a young reader a sense of confidence about living on your own in the wilderness. Paulsen keeps an urban perspective throughout,however, for example by using clock times. 'It took 15 minutes to...' In the woods, 15 minutes does not exist. Or, "I remember my 5th grade teacher said..." These touch points help to keep an urban reader connected to the the boy and his situation....more

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May 12, 2011 Jane Stewart rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult-adventure-fiction, 5-star-other

I thoroughly enjoyed this young adult survival adventure fiction (and I’m much older than that).

STORY BRIEF:
This is a sequel to Hatchet and should be read after Hatchet. At the end of Hatchet, Brian is rescued in the Fall after surviving 54 days alone in the Canadian wilderness. It was a hugely successful book, and many readers wanted to know how Brian would have survived in the winter. So the author wrote this sequel. It starts where Hatchet ends with the difference being Brian is “not rescued”...more

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Dec 09, 2010 Jessica rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

420 Gary Pualsen
Topics: Wilderness Survival

This novel should be read in companion with Hatchet. It answer the question: What if Brian hadn’t been rescued at the end of winter? In Pualsen style, Brian is on another adventure of survival. Stuck in the Canadian wilderness Brian has missed one of the most important signs nature was giving him: summer was ending. In this phase of Brian’s story he already pretty good at surviving, but he must glean off the wolves so he can have enough food, and find...more

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Mar 30, 2010 Jason Keddington rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book is part of a series in the Brian books, like Hatchet. It is about a kid named Brian Robeson that learns how to survive in the wilderness with only a hatchet. The more he learns the more he gets smarter. He learns how to create weapons and his hunting skills improve as days go by. This book is a kind of book that once you start reading you cannot put it down or just leave it, because the further you go into the book the more you want to read it. It is intense. I have learned that in sur...more

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May 03, 2011 Michael 4th added it · review of another edition

I thought that Brians Winter was a great book. It was amazing in my opinion. I loved it! I thought it was my favorite wilderness survivale book I have read. It explains how Brian survived in the dangerous forrests of Alaska. It was amazing how Gary Paulsen explained what Brian did and how he did it. In the first book "Hachet" Brian got saved at the end. But in this book it explores what if Brian didn't get saved and he had to face his biggest obstacle in the survivle The Winter. It was awesome h...more

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Aug 08, 2011 Carin rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: childrens

I never would have thought that I'd skip the second book in a series and go to the third, but in this series it kind of makes sense. The third book after Hatchet, goes back and erases the end of Hatchet when Brian was saved, and takes him into winter. I'm really glad Mr. Paulsen did this, as I did think when Brian was rescued just at the end of summer, that it was a bit of a cop-out.

Here we get more survival skills, more of Brian learning about the world, and relying on his ingenuity and observa...more

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Mar 11, 2011 T.J. Blackburn rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

When I learned that Paulsen wrote an alternate ending to The Hatchet one in which Brian was not rescued before winter, I was like: "What? What?" An alternate universe. I'm there. I will have to say that I like how this ending better. In The Hatchet Paulsen ended the book by going through how the being lost in the woods affected him for a lifetime; I think he should have done the same here. Oh well.

The Hatchet was originally followed by The River (Which I've read so long ago.) That sequel shows w...more

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About Gary Paulsen

Although he was never a dedicated student, Paulsen developed a passion for reading at an early age. After a librarian gave him a book to read--along with his own library card--he was hooked. He began spending hours alone in the basement of his apartment building, reading one book after another.

Running away from home at the age of 14 and traveling with a carnival, Paulsen acquired a taste for adve...more

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Quotes from Brian's Winter

“Initially, he worried that he might be going crazy. But then he decided if you felt you were crazy you weren't really crazy because he had heard somewhere that crazy people didn't know they were insane.” — 8 people liked it

“Do what you can as you can. Trouble, problems, will come no matter what you do , and you must respond as they come.” — 8 people liked it

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Brian's Winter (Brian's Saga #3)

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