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Books based on isolation/solitude

Chris_Morey

Chris_Morey

Member
I'm very fascinated with stories where the character is completely by themselves, preferably isolated from the world in some form. Are there any books that you folks could recommend that have the protagonist in such a predicament?
 
I immediately thought of Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, although it isn't exactly what you're looking for.
Also, they're YA books and old ones at that, but I loved My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George, Hatchet by Gary Paulsen, and The Island Keeper by Harry Mazer.
 
Thanks guys, I'll definitely check out Geralds Game.

Into The Wild! How did I not think of this? I loved the movie, but especially love the concept. Thank you so much, I'll be getting this one soon.
 
Perhaps The Universal Baseball Association, Inc, J. Henry Waugh, Proprietor by Robert Coover, about a man who withdraws completely into his own personal fantasy baseball league.
 
My favourite book - ''A Fine and Private Place'' by Peter s. Beagle.

Book overview
Conversing in a mausoleum with the dead, an eccentric recluse is tugged back into the world by a pair of ghostly lovers bearing an extraordinary gift-the final chance for his own happiness. When challenged by a faithless wife and aided by a talking raven, the lives of the living and the dead may be renewed by courage and passion, but only if not belatedly. Told with an elegiac wisdom, this&delightful tale of magic and otherworldly love&is a timeless work of fantasy imbued with hope and wonder. After multiple printings since 1960, this newest edition will contain the author's recent revisions and will stand as the definitive version of an ageless classic.
 
Are you only interested in fiction? There are plenty of great books about POWs that provide great insight into surviving solitude.
 
Never Cry Wolf - Farley Mowat
Into the Wild - Jon Krakauer
The Final Frontiersman - James Campbell

None are perfect fits, but maybe something you'd enjoy just the same.
 
See if you can find a copy of Seven Years Solitary by Dr. Edith Bone - she was an incredibly intelligent woman held in solitary for 7 years in Hungary by the USSR.

Thomas Hargrove's Long March to Freedom[/U is about his kidnapping by Columbian Guerillas

Nick Rowe's Five Years to Freedom is the story of his time as a POW - he's pretty much considered the founder of the military's SERE (Survive/Evade/Resist/Escape) program.

Anything by James Stockdale is also going to be good. He was very philosophical about his confinement.

(all of these recommendations come from my husband who is a SERE instructor)
 
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