Perspective

"Wild: From Lost to found on the Pacific Crest Trail" is written by author, Cheryl Strayed. Because the book is autobiographical in nature, the story is told through Cheryl's perspective. She engaged in and completed her hike of the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) at the age of 26, approximately four years after the unexpected death of her mother. Although Cheryl decided to embark on the three-month trip alone, she makes it clear that she was an amateur hiker and that she virtually made an impulsive decision to hike the PCT, feeling she had nothing left in her life to lose. Although she did research on the materials she would need, she clearly lets the reader know that she was highly unprepared to hike the PCT.

Based on the stories she told of her childhood, Cheryl was not exactly a stranger to nature. She spent much of her childhood on...