Wild

From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail

By: Cheryl Strayed

Narrated by: Bernadette Dunne

Length: 13 hrs and 2 mins

Publisher's summary

Wild is a powerful, blazingly honest memoir: the story of an 1100-mile solo hike that broke down a young woman reeling from catastrophe - and built her back up again.

At 22, Cheryl Strayed thought she had lost everything. In the wake of her mother's death, her family scattered and her own marriage was soon destroyed. Four years later, with nothing more to lose, she made the most impulsive decision of her life: to hike the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mojave Desert through California and Oregon to Washington State - and to do it alone. She had no experience as a long-distance hiker, and the trail was little more than “an idea, vague and outlandish and full of promise.” But it was a promise of piecing back together a life that had come undone.

Strayed faced down rattlesnakes and black bears, intense heat and record snowfalls, and both the beauty and loneliness of the trail. Told with great suspense and style, sparkling with warmth and humor, Wild vividly captures the terrors and pleasures of one young woman forging ahead against all odds on a journey that maddened, strengthened, and ultimately healed her.

©2012 Cheryl Strayed (P)2012 Random House

Critic reviews

“No one can write like Cheryl Strayed. Wild is one of the most unflinching and emotionally honest books I've read in a long time. It is about forgiveness and grief, bravery and hope. It is unforgettable.” (Ann Hood, author of The Knitting Circle)

“While reading Cheryl Strayed’s stunning book about her arduous solo journey along the Pacific Crest Trail, I kept asking myself - what would I do if I were stripped bare of everything - money, job, community, even family and love? Thoreau once said, ‘In wildness is the preservation of the world.’ For Strayed, it is clear that in wildness was the preservation of her soul. She reminds us, in her lyrical and courageous memoir Wild, of what it means to be fully alive, even in the face of catastrophe, physical and psychic hardship, and loss." (Mira Bartók, author of The Memory Palace)

“Cheryl Strayed can sure tell a story. In Wild, she describes her journey from despair to transcendence with honesty, humor, and heart-cracking poignancy. This is a great book.” (Mary Pipher, author of Reviving Ophelia and Seeking Peace)

Wonderful story

Simple wonderful. Can connect and relate on more levels then one. Loved her story. Makes me want to hike the trail myself or to have a type of awakening she had.

Great!!

This book kept me engrossed from the start, I really like her writing style and that its a true story. Makes me wish I'd done more hiking!!

Excellent, intriguing

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, highly. while not overly dramatic, this account of a woman's journey towards self understanding, and discovering her ow strengths and center,was interesting and evocative. As a psychologist, I found myself drawn into her journey both in the physical and the psychological sense,
. Great read.

If you are looking to lose yourself in a good read...this is the book for you!!

This book takes you on an emotional roller coaster through the Pacific Crest Trail. This is about a women losing herself through personal destruction and having the courage to set out and find herself. Throughout her hike we learn about her early childhood, relationship with her family, a broken marriage, and a drug addiction.

Loved it!

What did you love best about Wild?

I liked how she was really honest about every aspect of her experience.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Wild?

When she lost her boots but had the courage to go on.

What about Bernadette Dunne’s performance did you like?

She was a good narrator but I wish she had a "younger" sounding voice. The character in the book was 26 at the time but the audio performance sounded like an older woman. It just didn't match up.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

no, I listen about 2 hours per day during my commute.

so good!

I felt like I was along for the journey with Cheryl Strayed! So evocative and powerful, highly I reccomend this book.

good book

not Stellar writing and the reader somehow made the writer sound a bit childish.

I enjoyed the stories of the trail and her journey regarding her mother

Entertaining

As a grandmother of 3 young boys and having raised my family in the great outdoors, hiking, camping, fishing etc, I found this story amazing she actually survived! There are a lot of scary things in the wild. Preparation is imperative! She was ill prepared but preserved and made it through. Humans are the scariest things in the forest! I applaud her effort and her healing (including her feet).

Great listen!

I really enjoyed this book. There was something about the descriptions of the landscape and mountains, the trees and the weather, the experience, that called to me. I kept thinking, "I want to do this!" Glad I listened.

Find yourself with Wild

If ever there was a memoir to read about self discovery and the long journey to get there, Wild is it. You’ll envision yourself walking right beside the author as she journeys the Pacific Crest Trail in the wake of her mother’s death, and not only does she find her purpose but also looks back to her past. I loved the movie starring Reese Witherspoon however listening to the book fully rounds out the Wild story.