Part 1, Fall: Chapters 1-2 Summary

Gary Paulsen writes a novel called Hatchet in which his character, Brian Robeson, survives a plane crash only to be forced to survive for fifty-four days in the woods with only a hatchet. Many of Paulsen's fans write to him and complain that the experience should have been more difficult for Brian. In response to these letters, Paulsen writes Brian's Winter, a book that pretends Brian is not rescued after fifty-four days, but has to face winter alone in the woods.

In chapter 1, Brian has been lost in the woods for more than fifty days. The hunger bothers him the most, causing him to have dreams of all the food he would like to be eating. This hunger comes back after Brian uses up all the freeze-dried food he finds in the emergency pack on the plane...