Gone Wild

The characters are interesting with real problems that middle school and high school students will find relevant. This would be a good choice for students who are reading below grade level. I can see it used in a literature group because it has good opportunities both for predicting what will happen next, and it should spark lively classroom discussions.

I though this book took on some very real challenges that teenagers face today. Lundgren has created two really likable characters in Seth and Brook. They are easy to relate to and the story is very engaging. Lundgren is very direct with her language and does not shy away from some of the more difficult topics, but at the same time she is very sensitive in how she describes some of the more distressing scenes.
The story is very much about Seth’s and Brooke's emotional journey - although there is no happy ending - so to speak - because she is writing about life, not a fairy-tale. But, what Lundgren does leave her readers with is something far stronger than a happy-ever-after -- She leaves them with hope.
I would recommend this book to anyone with middle-school aged teenagers. The writing is not difficult to read and the story is of a good length. An enjoyable book.

A short and interesting novel about a pair of teenagers who meet on a trail along the Vancouver coastline. Self-sufficient Brooke and naive, conflicted Seth encounter each other in the wilderness and form a connection. The stories of their lives are interwoven with details about backpacking and surviving in the wilderness.

Jodi Lundgren takes a wise and understated approach to telling this story, and the relationship that develops between Brooke and Seth feels natural and tense. She also has the instincts not to force a romance between the two.