Gary Paulsen: A Life of Adventure and SurvivalGary Paulsen's entire life reflects his life of adventure and survival in the wilderness and his writings reflect his experiences. Living in the remote woods of Minnesota, Paulsen published Some Birds Don't Fly in 1966 (Trelease), and began his professional writing career and has now achieved three Newbery Honor Books with his novels - Hatchet, The Winter Room and Dogsong (Pendergast). Paulsen's most popular book, Hatchet, the story of a young boy named Brian who lands a plane after the pilot dies of a heart attack and must survive alone in an isolated wilderness, reflects some of the Paulsen's real-life experiences while responding to emergency calls. and dealing with many heart attack victims (Paulsen 2). The plane crash at Hatchet was also created by Paulsen after he was at the scene of a plane crash where the pilots died (Paulsen 7). Gary Paulsen's experiences, from living alone in the woods of Minnesota to racing dogs in the Iditarod, have been exposed and reflected in the majority of his writings. Gary Paulsen was born on May 17, 1939 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Pendergast) was the third child of Oscar Paulsen, an army officer, and Eunice Paulsen (Pendergast). Paulsen would live nine years before meeting his father for the first time, as his father was in the military and spent a lot of time away from home during World War II (Pendergast). His father was an alcoholic and he had many heated arguments with his father during his childhood, but no child abuse was reflected in his literature (Trelease). On the other hand, Paulsen's mother worked in munitions factories for much of his childhood, requiring Paulsen to often stay with his aunt or grandmother (Trelease). In Paulsen's novel, Harris and Me, the middle of the paper reflects this. Works Cited Cornett, Jolain. “Harris and Me by Gary Paulsen.” HARRIS AND ME by Gary Paulsen. Np, and Web. May 13, 2014. "Hatchet by Gary Paulsen | Scholastic.com." School teachers. Scholastic, nd Web. May 13, 2014.McCormick, Annie. “Brian’s Winter.” Booklist April 15, 2007: Biography in Web Context 4.May 2014Paulsen, Gary. Guts: The True Stories Behind Hatchet and the Brian Books. New York: Delacorte, 2001. Print. Pendergast Tom, “Gary Paulsen.” St. James Guide to Young Adult Writers. Gale, 1999. Biography in Context. Web May 7, 2014. Reutter, Vicki “Gary Paulsen, Brian's Hunt” School Library Journal May 2014: 64. Biography in Context. Web May 3, 2014Trelease, Jim. "Gary Paulsen-Author Profile-p.1." Gary Paulsen-author Profile-p.1. ReadingTree Productions, June 18, 13. Web. May 8 2014.