Books like 'Brian's Winter'
Readers who enjoyed Brian's Winter by Gary Paulsen also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
contemporary action / adventure north-america canada survival realistic classics children season-winter outdoors
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Sugar Birds by Cheryl Grey Bostrom
Rated: 4.64 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsNorthwest Washington State, 1985For years, Harris Hayes has taught his daughter, Aggie, the ways of the northern woods. So when her mother's depression worsens, Harris shows the girl how to find and sketch the nests of wild birds as an antidote to sadness. Aggie is in a tree far overhead when her unpredictable mother spots her and forbids her to climb...Categorized as:
coming-of-age historical-fiction outdoors realistic suspense action-adventure audiobook book -
Captains of the Sands by Jorge Amado
Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsLiving by their wits in the steamy slums of Bahia, a gang of orphans and runaways, led by fifteen-year-old "Bullet," spend their time stealing from Brazil's rich and privileged until public outcry demands their capture...Categorized as:
children classics coming-of-age drama historical-fiction 20th-century action-adventure audiobook -
Dan Brown Inferno (Robert Langdon) Unofficial Guide by Stephen Eastment
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsThe Dan Brown Inferno Unofficial Guide will allow you to decode the masterful and clever codes, symbols and art history of Dan Brown's fourth international blockbuster, Inferno and follow in the footsteps of the great puzzle solver Robert Langdon. Dan Brown's new international blockbuster, Inferno, will be his fourth book fusing history, art, codes and symbols... -
The Dealer by Robert Muchamore
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsDrugs, cars and guns!Keith Moore is Europe's biggest cocaine dealer. The police have been trying to get enough evidence to nail him for more than twenty years.Now, four CHERUB agents are joining the hunt... -
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How to Stay Invisible by Maggie C. Rudd
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsMy Side of the Mountain meets How to Steal a Dog in this high-stakes and heartfelt middle-grade story of a young boy and his dog surviving on their own in the woods.Being alone is something Raymond is used to.Twelve-year-old Raymond Hurley has never had a place to call home...Categorized as:
survival realistic children outdoors coming-of-age middle-grade action-adventure animals -
Leaving Blythe River by Catherine Ryan Hyde
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsNew York Times bestselling author Catherine Ryan Hyde returns with an unforgettable story of courage. Seventeen-year-old Ethan Underwood is totally unprepared to search for his father in the Blythe River National Wilderness. Not only is he small, scrawny, and skittish but he’s barely speaking to the man after a traumatic betrayal...Categorized as:
coming-of-age drama historical-fiction outdoors survival suspense action-adventure anthologies -
Wild Pork and Watercress by Barry Crump
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA tale of raw adventure as Uncle Hec and Ricky use all their skills to survive in the hard world of precipitous hills and impassable forest. It uncovers the slow maturing of love and trust between two loners in a hard world...Categorized as:
survival outdoors classics children realistic coming-of-age fiction action-adventure -
The Recruit by Robert Muchamore
Rated: 4.23 of 5 stars · 44 ratingsCHERUB agents are highly trained, extremely talented--and all under the age of seventeen. For official purposes, these agents do not exist. They are sent out on missions to spy on terrorists, hack into crucial documents, and gather intel on global threats—all without gadgets or weapons...Categorized as:
children coming-of-age high-school historical-fiction male-mc realistic survival suspense -
The Truth of the Matter by Andrew Klavan
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 16 ratings"Never give in." Ever since he woke up in a terrorist torture chamber--with a year of his life erased from his mind--Charlie West has been on the run. He has one desperate hope of getting his life back: track down the mysterious agent named Waterman. But in fact, reaching Waterman--and recovering the secrets lost in his own memory--will only increase his danger... -
Wild Bird by Wendelin Van Draanen
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 18 ratings3:47 a.m. That's when they come for Wren Clemens. She's hustled out of her house and into a waiting car, then a plane, and then taken on a forced march into the desert. This is what happens to kids who've gone so far off the rails, their parents don't know what to do with them any more. This is wilderness therapy camp... -
The Black Stallion Returns by Walter Farley
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsIn this, the second book in the series, the heart-stopping adventures of the Black Stallion continue as Alec discovers that two men are after the Black. One claims to be the Black’s rightful owner and one is trying to kill the beautiful steed. An Arab chieftain proves his ownership of the Black and takes him away, but Alec is determined to find his horse again...Categorized as:
children classics coming-of-age drama historical-fiction realistic 20th-century action-adventure -
The Bitter Side of Sweet by Tara Sullivan
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsFor fans of Linda Sue Park and A Long Way Gone, two young boys must escape a life of slavery in modern-day Ivory CoastFifteen-year-old Amadou counts the things that matter. For two years what has mattered are the number of cacao pods he and his younger brother, Seydou, can chop down in a day. The higher the number the safer they are...Categorized as:
children coming-of-age drama high-school historical-fiction realistic survival suspense -
Malgudi Days by R.K. Narayan
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 35 ratingsFour gems, with new introductions, mark acclaimed Indian writer R. K. Narayan’s centennialIntroducing this collection of stories, R. K. Narayan describes how in India “the writer has only to look out of the window to pick up a character and thereby a story...Categorized as:
children classics drama high-school historical-fiction 20th-century action-adventure anthologies -
A Wolf Called Wander by Rosanne Parry
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsSwift, a young wolf cub, lives with his pack in the mountains learning to hunt, competing with his brothers and sisters for hierarchy, and watching over a new litter of cubs. Then a rival pack attacks, and Swift and his family scatter.Alone and scared, Swift must flee and find a new home. His journey takes him a remarkable one thousand miles across the Pacific Northwest...Categorized as:
children historical-fiction outdoors realistic survival action-adventure animals anthropomorphism -
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Tyrell by Coe Booth
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsAn astonishing new voice in teen literature, writing what is sure to be one of the most talked-about debuts of the year.Tyrell is a young, African American teen who can't get a break. He's living (for now) with his spaced-out mother and little brother in a homeless shelter. His father's in jail... -
Picture Perfect by Holly Smale
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratings"My name is Harriet Manners, and I'll always be a geek." It's the hilarious third book in the No.1 bestselling, award winning GEEK GIRL series! Harriet Manners knows more facts that most. She knows that New York is the most populous city in the United States. She knows that its official motto is "Ever Upward". She knows that 28% of Americans believe we never landed on the moon... -
The Yellow Bus by Loren Long
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsPerfect for fans of Love and Hello, Lighthouse , The Yellow Bus from #1 New York Times bestselling Loren Long is a tender and soulful story about a forgotten school bus that finds happiness and purpose in the most unexpected places--and in the journey along the way.There is a bright yellow bus who spends her days driving. She loves carrying children from one important place to another...Categorized as:
outdoors children realistic children-books fiction action-adventure contemporary book -
Yara's Spring by Jamal Saeed, Sharon McKay
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsComing of age against all odds in the midst of the Arab Spring.Growing up in Aleppo, Yara’s childhood has long been shadowed by the coming revolution. But when the Arab Spring finally arrives at Yara’s doorstep, it is worse than even her Nana imagined: sudden, violent, and deadly. When rescuers dig Yara out from under the rubble that was once her family’s home, she emerges to a changed world...Categorized as:
historical-fiction realistic coming-of-age survival high-school children young-adult family -
Deep Water by Watt Key
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsA middle grade survival story about a scuba dive gone wrong and two enemies who must unite to survive.It's the most important rule of scuba diving: If you don't feel right, don't go down.So after her father falls ill, twelve-year-old Julie Sims must take over and lead two of his clients on a dive miles off the coast of Alabama while her father stays behind in the boat... -
Crocodile Tears by Anthony Horowitz
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 43 ratingsNew Year's Eve in Scotland and for once Alex Rider is enjoying a normal life. But then he meets Desmond McCain, the dynamic chief of an international charity, First Aid, and what starts as a simple card game rapidly becomes a duel to the death. Suddenly Alex is in more danger than ever before and his life is threatened without his even knowing why... -
Ice Dogs by Terry Lynn Johnson
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsVictoria Secord, a fourteen-year-old Alaskan dogsled racer, loses her way on a routine outing with her dogs. With food gone and temperatures dropping, her survival and that of her dogs and the mysterious boy she meets in the woods is entirely up to her... -
Ordinary Wolves by Seth Kantner
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsIn the tradition of Jack London, Seth Kantner presents an Alaska far removed from majestic clichés of exotic travelogues and picture postcards. Kantner’s vivid and poetic prose lets readers experience Cutuk Hawcly’s life on the Alaskan plains through the character’s own words — feeling the pliers pinch of cold and hunkering in an igloo in blinding blizzards...Categorized as:
coming-of-age outdoors realistic season-winter survival action-adventure animals book -
Družba Pere Kvržice by Mato Lovrak
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratings...Categorized as:
children classics coming-of-age male-mc action-adventure book children-books contemporary -
Kalahari by Jessica Khoury
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsDeep in the Kalahari Desert, a Corpus lab protects a dangerous secret…But what happens when that secret takes on a life of its own? When an educational safari goes wrong, five teens find themselves stranded in the Kalahari Desert without a guide... -
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Everything Beautiful Is Not Ruined by Danielle Younge-Ullman
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsWild meets The Breakfast Club in this story of a girl who must survive an extreme wilderness experience to prove to her mother that she has the strength to pursue her dreams. Then Ingrid traveled all over Europe with her opera star mother, Margot-Sophia. Life was beautiful and bright, and every day soared with music... -
The Other Side of Lost by Jessi Kirby
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsGirl Online meets Wild in this emotionally charged story of girl who takes to the wilderness to rediscover herself and escape the superficial persona she created on social media.Mari Turner’s life is perfect. That is, at least to her thousands of followers who have helped her become an internet starlet... -
My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 35 ratingsEvery kid thinks about running away at one point or another; few get farther than the end of the block. Young Sam Gribley gets to the end of the block and keeps going--all the way to the Catskill Mountains of upstate New York. There he sets up house in a huge hollowed-out tree, with a falcon and a weasel for companions and his wits as his tool for survival...Categorized as:
children classics coming-of-age high-school historical-fiction outdoors realistic survival -
The Room on the Roof by Ruskin Bond
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsThe Room on the Roof is a timeless coming-of-age novel that will resonate with a whole new generation of readers. Written by renowned author Ruskin Bond when he was just seventeen, it is the story of Rusty, a teenage Anglo-Indian boy who is orphaned and has to live with his English guardian in the stifling European quarter of Dehra Dun...Categorized as:
children classics coming-of-age drama teens 20th-century action-adventure bildungsroman -
Snakehead by Anthony Horowitz
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 46 ratingsSplashing down off the coast of Australia, Alex is soon working undercover – this time for ASIS, the Australian Secret Service – on a mission to infiltrate the criminal underworld of South-East Asia: the ruthless world of the Snakehead... -
Eagle Strike by Anthony Horowitz
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 45 ratingsROGUE AGENT!Sir Damian Cray: Millions adore him. He is a philanthropist, peace activist, and the world's most famous vintage pop star. But still it's not enough - not if he is to save the world. Trouble is, only Alex Rider recognizes that it's the world that needs saving from Sir Damian Cray... -
The Dead of Night by John Marsden
Rated: 4.09 of 5 stars · 40 ratingsA few months after the first fighter jets landed in their own backyard, Ellie and her five terrified but defiant friends struggle to survive amid a baffling conflict. Their families are unreachable; the mountains are now their home. When two of them fall behind enemy lines, Ellie knows what must happen next: a rescue mission...Categorized as:
classics coming-of-age drama high-school historical-fiction realistic survival suspense -
Falcon Wild by Terry Lynn Johnson
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsAn action-packed, contemporary novel about surviving in the wilderness.Thirteen-year-old Karma is desperate to become a certified falconer. At her dad's bird education center, she helps give demonstrations to guests and can fly the birds. But when her favorite rescued falcon, Stark, hurts Karma, her parents insist that they return the bird to its previous owner--in Canada...Categorized as:
children high-school realistic survival teens action-adventure animals anthropomorphism -
The Journey Back by Priscilla Cummings
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsEscaped and on the run, can Digger find redemption? His bold escape from a juvenile detention facility nearly kills him, but soon an angry fourteen-year-old Digger is on the run, hijacking a tractor trailer, "borrowing" a bicycle, and stealing a canoe. When injuries stop him, Digger hides at a riverside campground, where he befriends a young boy and a girl his own age... -
Collateral Damage by Katie Klein
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsTrue love can blossom in unexpected places. This is Parker pretending not to care. . . . Parker Whalen and Jaden McEntyre are a wrong fit from the start. Jaden is driven and focused, Harvard Med School within reach. Parker has a past—a reputation—and the rumors about his mysterious habits abound...Categorized as:
coming-of-age drama high-school male-mc realistic action-adventure book contemporary -
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This Golden State by Marit Weisenberg
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe Winslow family lives by five principles:1. No one can know your real name.2. Don’t stay in one place too long.3. If you sense anything is wrong, go immediately to the meeting spot.4. Keeping our family together is everything.5. We wish we could tell you who we are, but we can’t. Please—do not ask... -
Far from You by Lisa Schroeder
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsLost and alone...down the rabbit hole.Years have passed since Alice lost her mother to cancer, but time hasn't quite healed the wound. Alice copes the best she can by writing her music, losing herself in her love for her boyfriend, and distancing herself from her father and his new wife...Categorized as:
coming-of-age high-school north-america realistic season-winter survival teens action-adventure -
Alabama Moon by Watt Key
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsAfter the death of his father, ten-year-old Moon leaves their forest shelter home and is sent to an Alabama institution, becoming entangled in the outside world he has never known and making good friends, a relentless enemy, and finally a new life... -
A Summer to Die by Lois Lowry
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThirteen-year-old Meg envies her sister's beauty and popularity. Her feelings don't make it any easier for her to cope with Molly's strange illness and eventual death...Categorized as:
children classics coming-of-age drama historical-fiction north-america outdoors realistic -
Endangered by Eliot Schrefer
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsWhen Sophie has to visit her mother at her sanctuary for bonobos, she's not thrilled to be there. Then Otto, an infant bonobo, comes into her life, and for the first time she feels responsible for another creature. But peace does not last long for Sophie and Otto...Categorized as:
children coming-of-age high-school historical-fiction outdoors realistic survival suspense -
Son of the Black Stallion by Walter Farley
Rated: 4.05 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsWhen Alec receives the Black Stallion’s first son as a gift, he believes his dreams have come true, but Satan’s savage arrogance makes him dangerous and unpredictable. Still, Alec is resolved to gain the fiery colt’s trust, even if he must risk his life to do it...Categorized as:
children classics coming-of-age drama historical-fiction realistic 20th-century action-adventure -
Travel Team by Mike Lupica
Rated: 4.04 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsThe #1 Bestseller!Twelve-year-old Danny Walker may be the smallest kid on the basketball court -- but don't tell him that. Because no one plays with more heart or court sense. But none of that matters when he is cut from his local travel team, the very same team his father led to national prominence as a boy... -
Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff
Rated: 4.04 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsHollis Woods has been in so many foster homes she can hardly remember them all. When Hollis is sent to Josie, she’ll do everything in her power to make sure they stay together...Categorized as:
children classics coming-of-age drama high-school historical-fiction realistic survival -
I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak
Rated: 4.04 of 5 stars · 67 ratingsprotect the diamondssurvive the clubsdig deep through the spadesfeel the heartsEd Kennedy is an underage cabdriver without much of a future. He's pathetic at playing cards, hopelessly in love with his best friend, Audrey, and utterly devoted to his coffee-drinking dog, the Doorman. His life is one of peaceful routine and incompetence until he inadvertently stops a bank robbery...Categorized as:
children classics coming-of-age drama high-school historical-fiction male-mc realistic -
Skeleton Key by Anthony Horowitz
Rated: 4.05 of 5 stars · 51 ratingsAlex Rider has been through a lot for his fourteen years. He's been shot at by international terrorists, chased down a mountainside on a makeshift snowboard, and has stood face-to-face with pure evil. Twice, young Alex has managed to save the world. And twice, he has almost been killed doing it. But now Alex faces something even more dangerous... -
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The Maze Runner by James Dashner
Rated: 4.01 of 5 stars · 91 ratingsThere are alternate cover editions for this ASIN here and here.If you ain’t scared, you ain’t human. When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his name. He’s surrounded by strangers—boys whose memories are also gone. Nice to meet ya, shank. Welcome to the Glade. Outside the towering stone walls that surround the Glade is a limitless, ever-changing maze... -
Brian's Hunt by Gary Paulsen
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsMillions of readers of" Hatchet, The River, Brian's Winter," and "Brian's Return" know that Brian Robeson is at home in the Canadian wilderness. He has stood up to the challenge of surviving alone in the woods. He prefers being on his own in the natural world to civilization. When Brian finds a dog one night, a dog that is wounded and whimpering, he senses danger...Categorized as:
children classics coming-of-age historical-fiction outdoors realistic survival suspense -
The Rule of Three by Eric Walters
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsOne shocking afternoon, computers around the globe shut down in a viral catastrophe. At sixteen-year-old Adam Daley's high school, the problem first seems to be a typical electrical outage, until students discover that cell phones are down, municipal utilities are failing, and a few computer-free cars like Adam's are the only vehicles that function...Categorized as:
children coming-of-age high-school realistic survival suspense teens action-adventure -
A Solitary Blue by Cynthia Voigt
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsJeff Greene was only seven when Melody, his mother, left him with his reserved, undemonstrative father, the Professor. So when she reenters his life years later with an invitation to spend the summer with her in Charleston, Jeff is captivated by her free spirit and warmth, and he eagerly looks forward to returning for another visit the following year...Categorized as:
children classics coming-of-age drama high-school historical-fiction male-mc outdoors -
Summer Term at St Clare's by Enid Blyton
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsSchooldays at St Clare's are never dull for twins Pat and Isabel O'Sullivan in Enid Blyton's much-loved boarding school series. In book three, Pat and Isabel look forward to their first summer term at St Clare's. They soon make friends with new girl Carlotta, who has a secret past that she's desperate to hide. But sneaky Prudence finds out and tells everybody...Categorized as:
children classics coming-of-age high-school historical-fiction realistic teens 20th-century -
The O'Sullivan Twins by Enid Blyton, Michael Johnson
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsAn Enid Blyton story read by Jan Francis, especially abridged for younger listeners. Pat and Isabel's second term at St Clare's is full of excitement. A secret midnight feast and defeat of a rival school are topped by a dramatic rescue by the bad-tempered Margery...Categorized as:
children classics historical-fiction realistic teens 20th-century action-adventure boarding-school
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