Woods Runner by Gary Paulsen is a historical fiction novel I wish I had discovered and taught back when I was in the classroom. I first discovered this book last year and decided to use it as a novel unit with my 7th grader in our homeschool, since we were doing a year of historical fiction novels tied to our history curriculum. As I read it, I kept thinking about how perfect it would have been for my middle school ELA/History classroom during the years I spent teaching.
Woods Runner Summary: What Is the Novel About?
Woods Runner is about a thirteen-year-old boy, Samuel, living in the woods of Pennsylvania at the beginning of the Revolutionary War. While hunting in the forest one day, he discovers that attackers have ransacked his home in a bloody attack. The attackers brutally killed or captured the villagers and took his parents. On a quest to rescue his mother and father from the hands of the British and their Iroquois companions, Samuel uses his wilderness skills to go on a terrifying and courageous journey. Along the way, he meets helpful allies, makes unexpected friendships, and witnesses the cruelty and horrors of war. Samuel encounters people who secretly support the Patriot cause, Americans trying to avoid the war, and others who cannot escape its effects.
It’s one of those books that perfectly encapsulates the honesty and harsh realities of the Revolutionary War. I loved that my son and I read it together, and I highly recommend it to any homeschooler or teacher who is looking for a raw, informative novel that brings the Revolutionary War to life.
Woods Runner vs. Hatchet: Similarities and Differences
Gary Paulsen is well-known as the author of Hatchet, a gripping book about the survival of a thirteen-year-old boy when his bush plane goes down in the wilderness of Canada after his pilot dies of a massive heart attack. Hatchet and Woods Runner bear many similarities, from the main characters to the theme of survivalism to the gruesome details and to the changes the characters must undergo to endure their trials. Paulsen is known for his hard-hitting, unvarnished author’s craft, in which he does not attempt to hide the ugly parts of the trials and hardships his characters must undergo. Woods Runner is the same, if not even more. There are no attempts to hide the ugly parts of the Revolutionary War.
Teaching the Revolutionary War with Woods Runner
What’s different about Woods Runner than Hatchet that I immediately loved was that at the end of each chapter is a brief nonfiction article linking the previous chapter to actual historical information. For instance, in one chapter (SPOILER WARNING!), Samuel encounters a family in the countryside who feeds him dinner and helps him on his journey. Not long after he leaves them, the family is attacked by the British and the parents are brutally murdered, leaving behind their little girl, whom Samuel takes with him on his journey. The article after the chapter is about the orphans left behind in the war. Countless other articles include Covert Communication, Prisoners of War, and Civilian Intelligence, to name a few. Each article, including the book’s Afterward does an amazing job of teaching readers about the cold, bleak, stark realities of the Revolutionary War.
Gary Paulsen writes in his Author’s Note, “I wanted to set Samuel’s story against the larger context of the Revolutionary War…I wanted readers to understand what it was really like to live on the frontier at that time, with virtually nothing, no money, no electricity, no towns, few neighbors, nothing but your own strength.”
In his Afterword, he writes, “Some of the dreadful nuts and bolts of battle, the real and horrible truths, are frequently overlooked because other parts are more dramatic and appealing. There is a tendency to clean up the tales of war to make them more palatable, focusing on rousing stories of heroism and stirring examples of patriotism, all clean, pristine, antiseptic.”
Paulsen aims to convey the unsentimental, gritty aspects of war, and he does so in Woods Runner. My son learned more truth about the Revolutionary War through this novel than he did all year with our history textbook.
Woods Runner Novel Study Activities for Middle School ELA
Woods Runner Setting Analysis Activity
The setting is a central part of Woods Runner. Samuel lives in the woods of PA, far from civilization. This remoteness causes the villagers near him and his family to not realize the Revolutionary War had begun until months later. This remoteness leaves the villagers naive and vulnerable to the surprise attacks that drive the plot. Additionally, the “woods” has taught Samuel survival skills that he uses to find his parents, prisoners of the British. Samuel must journey through hundreds of miles of land and woods to find them, relying on his wilderness knowledge. The time period of the Revolutionary War is the core of the novel. With the setting being so crucial to the storyline, I had my son dive deeply into exploring it.
I used this Setting Analysis Activity for the novel.
Woods Runner Character Analysis Activity
Another huge part of Woods Runner are the characters. Samuel is a dynamic character who undergoes remarkable changes. From once an innocent, naive, almost-sheltered young boy, the realities of war turn Samuel into a man before his time. The Revolutionary War changes his destiny and his purposes. Doing a deep dive into the characterization of Samuel helps readers understand and connect to the novel even more. I used the characterization unit listed below.
I use this Characterization Character Analysis with Woods Runner.
Teaching Foreshadowing with Woods Runner
Woods Runner is an amazing novel to teach the concept of foreshadowing. Paulsen does an amazing job weaving in subtle examples of foreshadowing throughout the entire book. An example of this is when Samuel is hunting, he notices that the forest feels different. He has a strong instinct that something isn’t right. Then he sees smoke rising in the distance. Because Samuel is extremely observant and knows the forest so well, his uneasy feeling and the smoke are clues that something terrible has happened at home. This foreshadows Samuel returning to find the settlement burned and his neighbors dead and his parents missing. Paulsen’s natural author’s craft incorporates countless examples of foreshadowing.
I used Foreshadowing Activities and Projects for this novel.
Creative Woods Runner Book Report Project
Lastly, I am a big advocate for UNTRADITIONAL book reports, and this one fits the bill. My son analyzed Woods Runner, chose meaningful details, and created a one-of-a-kind collage using the included Canva template in this resource. This modern reading project combines reading comprehension, literary analysis, creativity, and technology into an activity my son loved completing.
More Gary Paulsen Novel Study Resources
If you are interested in more information about Gary Paulsen, read our blog post:
If you teach Hatchet, this blog post will be especially helpful.
Bring Hatchet to life with our Project-Based Learning Literature Unit:
Conclusion: Why Teach Woods Runner by Gary Paulsen?
If you’re looking for a novel that will pull your students into the Revolutionary War while giving them meaningful opportunities to explore history, literary elements, and character development, Woods Runner is one I highly recommend. It’s gutsy, honest, and unforgettable. It offers so much more than a traditional historical fiction novel. Whether you’re teaching in the classroom or homeschooling, this is a book that can spark real conversations, deepen historical understanding, and give students plenty to analyze, create, and explore. I only wish I had discovered it sooner.
