“It’s not always necessary to be strong, but to feel strong.”
In April 1992, a young from an affluent family hitchhiked to Alaska and traversed alone into the wilderness north of Mt. McKinley. He had given $25,000 to charity, abandoned all of his belongings and invented a whole new life for himself. Four months on, the decomposed body of Christopher Johnson McCandless was discovered by a moose hunter. John Krakauer’s Into the Wild is a thrilling and fascinating look at the motivations, adventures and tragedies that made up McCandless’ fateful pilgrimage. Candid and mesmerising in its real-life storytelling, Krakauer uses his empathy to bring McCandless back to life and, through his story, raises poignant philosophical questions that we can apply to our own lives. If you love tales of adventure, resilience and self-discovery, join us at What We Reading for the best books like Into the Wild!
Into Thin Air: A Personal Account Of The Mt. Everest Disaster – Jon Krakauer
If you loved Krakauer’s unflinching storytelling, where better place to start in a list of books like Into the Wild than with another one of his best works, Into Thin Air? When he reached the summit of Mt. Everest on May 10 1996, Krakauer hadn’t slept for fifty-seven hours and was still racked by the brain-altering effects of oxygen deprivation. As he began his long descent from 29,028 feet, twenty other climbers were still doggedly reaching for the summit. After collapsing in his tent and enduring a night of freezing temperatures, hallucinations and hypoxia, he would wake the next morning and discover five of his fellow climbers had died.
Into the Air is a chronicle of the deadliest season in the history of Everest. Through his account of his time on the mountain, Krakauer explores what compels so many individuals to take on the highest peak in the world, throwing caution to the wind and ignoring the concerns of their loved ones. With incredible clarity and impeccable reporting, it is one of the best adventure memoirs ever written.
Desert Solitaire – Edward Abbey
First published back in 1968, Desert Solitaire is a nature memoir by Edward Abbey. Written whilst he was working as a ranger at Arches National Park outside Moab, Utah, it is a raw look at one man’s quest to experience the natural world in its purest form.
Through hypnotic prose, Abbey reflects on the remaining wilderness in the world, the future of a civilisation that struggles so much to preserve it, as well as his own inner struggles with morality. Desert Solitaire remains just as relevant today, if not more so, as our world grapples with the effects of increasing urbanisation and the effects of global warming. Timely and beautiful, Desert Solitaire is one of the best books similar to Into the Wild for readers looking for another reflection on solitude, isolation and the natural world.
The Final Frontiersman: Heimo Korth And His Family, Alone In Alaska’s Arctic Wilderness – James Campbell
Like McCandless, hundreds of people have tried to carve a living in the Alaskan wilderness. But seldom few have had as much success as Heimo Korth. Originally a Wisconsin native, Heimo travelled to Alaska in his twenties. Three decades on, he continues to live with his wife and two daughters, roughly two hundred miles from civilisation.
In The Final Frontiersman, Heimo’s cousin, James Campbell, documents the Korth family’s adventures, experiences and tragedies in their perfectly sustainable nomadic life. Another one of the best books like Into the Wild for capturing the feel of the American Dream in its rawest form, The Final Frontiersman reveals a life lived in a stunning wilderness that so many of us find impossible to picture.
Tracks: A Woman’s Solo Trek Across 1700 Miles Of Australian Outback – Robyn Davidson
Tracks is Robyn Davidson’s memoir of her perilous 1,700-mile journey across the hostile Australian desert to the sea with just four camels and a dog for company.
Enduring sweltering heat, fending off poisonous snakes and lecherous men, chasing her camels when they get startled and nursing them when they get injured, Davidson shines as one of the most empowered and inspiring heroes over the span of her remarkable trek. Fuelled by a love for her natural surroundings and its indigenous inhabitants, and a desire to rid herself of her former identity, it is the perfect follow-up for anyone who loved Into the Wild. Candid and compelling, Tracks is the ultimate Australian adventure of self-discovery.
Endurance: Shackleton’s Incredible Voyage – Alfred Lansing
In August 1914, polar explorer Ernest Shackleton’s Endurance became locked in an island of ice. What followed was the legendary ordeal of Shackleton and his twenty-seven-strong crew. After their ship was crushed between two ice floes, they embarked on a foolhardy journey of over 850 miles of the South Atlantic’s coldest, roughest seas to the nearest outpost of civilisation.
One of the best books like Into the Wild for reporting and reliving one of the most perilous journeys through the natural world, Alfred Lansing’s definitive account of Shackleton’s trip is timeless in its ability to capture the harrowing and miraculous voyage that has defined heroism in exploring in the years since.
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Wild: From Lost To Found On The Pacific Crest Trail – Cheryl Strayed
No list of books similar to Into the Wild would be complete without mentioning Cheryl Strayed’s acclaimed travel memoir, Wild. At twenty-two, following the loss of her mother, her family’s scattering and the destruction of her own marriage, Strayed thought she had lost everything. Four years later, she made the most impulsive decision of her life. With no training or experience, she hiked more than a thousand miles of the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mojave Desert through California and Oregon to Washington State, all on her own.
Delivered with suspense and style, warmth and humour, Wild expertly captures the healing power of nature. Strayed chronicles the terrors and pleasures of a woman pushing on a journey against all odds that broke, strengthened and, eventually, healed her.
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Touching The Void: The True Story Of One Man’s Miraculous Survival – Joe Simpson
Touching the Void is the adrenaline-pumping account of Joe Simpson’s incredibly terrifying adventures in the Peruvian Andes. Both he and his climbing partner, Simon, reached the summit of the remote Siula Grande in June of 1985.
A few days later, Simon staggered into Base Camp, exhausted and frost-bitten, with the news that Joe had died. What happened to Joe, and how the pair dealt with the intense psychological traumas that arose when Simon was forced into the decision to cut the rope not only makes for an utterly compelling story of adventure and survival but also an unflinching look at a deep and meaningful friendship.
Adrift: Seventy-Six Days Lost At Sea – Steven Callahan
Steven Callahan’s dramatic tale of survival at sea was on the New York Times bestseller list for more than thirty-sixty weeks upon its publishing in 1986 and remains one of the best books like Into the Wild for any readers looking for another epic adventure of survival and resilience.
On February 4, 1982, midway between the Canary Islands off the coast of Africa and the Caribbean island of Antigua, Callahan’s boat Solo was struck in the middle of the night by what we think was a whale. For the next seventy-six days, he drifted across the Atlantic Ocean for 1,800 nautical miles, becoming the first individual to survive longer than a month alone at sea. All in a leaky inflatable raft. Told first-hand by Callahan, his ingenuity and survival skills help make Adrift one of the best adventure books of all time.
The Stranger In The Woods: The Extraordinary Story Of The Last True Hermit – Michael Finkel
In 1986, a shy and bright twenty-year-old named Christopher Knight left his home in Massachusetts, drove to Maine, and disappeared into the forest. It would be another three decades before he would have another conversation with a human again when he was arrested for stealing food. Living in a tent even throughout the brutal winter months, he had survived by devising ingenious ways of storing food and water. He broke into homes, only ever taking what he needed, but terrifying a community who were never able to solve the mystery of the burglaries.
The Stranger in the Woods is Michael Finkel’s fascinating biography of Christopher Knight. Featuring extensive interviews with Knight himself, this vividly descriptive account of his secluded life is a gripping story of survival that, like Into the Wild, ponders on solitude, community and a man who was determined to live life his own way.
The Wild Truth: A Memoir – Carine McCandless
One of the best books like Into the Wild comes from Chris McCandless’ best friend and most trusted confidant, his sister Carine. The Wild Truth provides readers with a deeper look at the family dynamics and personal history behind what led to McCandless’ now-infamous hike into the Alaskan wilderness.
Having wrestled with her brother’s legacy for over two decades, Carine McCandless tells her own story whilst also filling in the biggest gaps left across Krakauer’s original work. Having grown up in the same troubled household as her brother, no other account on why Chris chose to embrace the wilderness is as comprehensive as Carine’s. Touching and deeply personal, The Wild Truth speaks candidly about the realities of the McCandless family and how redemption can only come from speaking the truth. Finally, it provides a complete portrait of Chris McCandless’s life.
Part-time reader, part-time rambler, and full-time Horror enthusiast, James has been writing for What We Reading since 2022. His earliest reading memories involved Historical Fiction, Fantasy and Horror tales, which he has continued to take with him to this day. James’ favourite books include The Last (Hanna Jameson), The Troop (Nick Cutter) and Chasing The Boogeyman (Richard Chizmar).
