Wilderness Hacks - by Joslin Brorsen (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Hatchet meets Survivor in this high-action, humor-filled middle grade adventure about two kids stranded in the wilderness, whose annoyance with each other rivals the roaring rapids and ferocious predators they must face.

12-year-old Sadie Hahn didn't plan to eat grubs on camera to win a contest. And she definitely didn't plan to win first prize--a guest appearance on a Youtube show hosted by America's favorite 13-year-old survivalist Radley Shaw. But she'll do anything to cheer up her little brother Silas, who's too young to qualify.

Rad has millions of followers and exactly zero real-life friends, so the contest is a great chance for him to hang out with kids his own age. But it's hate-at-first-sight when Silas throws a wrench in his plan and Sadie decides Rad is just a clueless poser who doesn't know the first thing about survival.

Disaster strikes when their scripted rafting trip turns into a real fight for survival. Lost in the mountains, Rad and Sadie must find shelter, build a fire, forage for food and try not to become food for a hungry predator. But can they stop bickering long enough to hack it in the wilderness? And will that be enough to keep them alive?

Review Quotes

"A breathtaking adventure with irresistible characters, this riveting survival story explores family, friendship, and the courage to love in the aftermath of loss. Readers won't be able to put this one down." --Megan E. Freeman, New York Times bestselling author of Alone and Away

"Filled with heart-pounding adventure and heart-warming friendship, I couldn't put it down." --Stacy McAnulty, author of The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl

★ "Heady topics such as injury, grief, and death are handled with grit and grace across a rip-roaring plot, resulting in a gripping adventure." --Publishers Weekly, starred review

"A strong balance of pulse-pounding perils and emotional depth . . . The dual narration helps readers empathize with both leads and ramps up the tension during three days of life-or-death wilderness survival." --Kirkus Reviews

"The author devotes enough attention to showing how Rad and Sadie help each other through personal fears and griefs as their friendship develops that her tale is as much driven by character as action." --Booklist

"Readers looking for a nail-biting thriller need look no further." --The Horn Book

"Brorsen presents a fast-paced adventure with plenty of heart." --The Bulletin

"Fans of Bear Grylls or similar outdoor adventurers will enjoy this fast-paced, kid-centered wilderness experience." --School Library Journal

About the Author

JOSLIN BRORSEN lives in Oklahoma with her husband and five kids, and loves writing the kind of high-stakes stories that kept her younger self up all night reading with a flashlight. She wants her own children and the next generation of readers to have the same great stories, but with a few added elements she realizes now she was always searching for. Going through childhood with both an invisible disease (Celiac) and an invisible difference (neurodivergence) makes her strive to write books that make kids want to read "just one more chapter," while normalizing neurodivergence and other unseen struggles within its pages. Her ultimate aim is for her readers to realize that each of us is unique, and all of us are equally worthy of being main characters. Wilderness Hacks is her first novel.