The most obvious theme of the novel, as Sam surrounds himself with the untrammeled and unforgiving wilderness of the Catskill Mountains. However, while this initial theme brings to mind a natural idyll of peaceful harmony, Sam's decision is in part a response to his past ' he is not simply going to nature, he is running away from urban life and towards this setting. Thus, Wilderness and Civilization is a related theme ' the main difference being that the first theme is about Nature on its own terms, while this second theme positions nature against progress as defined by human achievements. Thus, Wilderness and Civilization is a contrast between Sam's life and perspective in the mountainside versus what he left behind in the city.
As Sam's desire to run away and live on his own in the wild requires certain preparations and a specific mindset to succeed. Finally, Family and Community plays against Self- Sufficiency, providing a contrast of values that develops in importance over the course of the novel.
Literacy is an important minor theme of the book, a tool that is used both to Sam's advantage and his detriment.
The mood is relatively straightforward, a relatively unemotional and very rational recounting of what Sam lived through. This is most evident in the way Sam passes along notes of what he learned, as well as in his selfcriticism over his early inexperience. However, there are passages where he becomes deeply appreciative of nature.
Jean Craighead was born on July 2, 1919 in Washington, D.C. Raised in a family of naturalists ' her father was an entomologist and ecologist. She earned degrees in English and science from Pennsylvania State University and in the 1940s was a reporter for The Washington Post and a member of the White House Press Corps. In 1944, she married John Lothar George and collaborated with him for her first novels; the couple divorced in 1963, though she continued to use his last name as Jean Craighead George. From 1969 to 1982, she was an editor and contributor to Reader's Digest. She passed away at the age of 92, in 2012.
George wrote over eighty books, most dealing with nature and aimed for young readers. She is best known for the Mountain trilogy and the Jule trilogy. Both series were inspired in part by real life. The Mountain series came about from George's own experiences exploring the Potomac River in her youth: her father taught her how to survive in the wilderness and she was given her own falcon to train at the age of thirteen. The Mountain trilogy is made up of My Side of the Mountain (1959), On the Far Side of the Mountain (1990), and Frightful's Mountain (1999). She has since continued the series with picture books about the characters in the trilogy, starting with Frightful's Daughter (2002) and Frightful's Daughter Meets the Baron Weasel (2007). The Julie series was inspired by a summer spent at the Arctic Research Laboratory in Barrow, Alaska, where she studied wolves and the tundra. The Julie trilogy is made up of Julie of the Wolves (1972), Julie (1994), and Julie's Wolf Pack (1997). In both trilogies, the third book is written from the perspective of the animals in the first two books.
My Side of the Mountain was a Newbery Honor Book while Julie of the Wolves won the Newbery Medal. Among other series that George has written are the One Day series (set in different natural locales such as the woods, the prairie, and the Alpine Tundra), the Thirteen Moons series, and the Ecological Mystery series. George has also written and edited nonfiction books and cookbooks that are in keeping with her naturalist beliefs.
Jean Craighead George has three children ' Twig, Craig, and Luke ' as well as five grandchildren and lived in Chappaqua, New York. Her official website is http://www.jeancraigheadgeorge.com .
Mescallado, Ray. "TheBestNotes on And Still We Rise".
TheBestNotes.com.
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