Girl in the Woods: A Memoir

· Sold by Harper Collins
4.6
19 reviews
Ebook
416
Pages
Eligible

About this ebook

Girl in the Woods is Aspen Matis's exhilarating true-life adventure of hiking from Mexico to Canada—a coming of age story, a survival story, and a triumphant story of overcoming emotional devastation. On her second night of college, Aspen was raped by a fellow student. Overprotected by her parents who discouraged her from telling of the attack, Aspen was confused and ashamed. Dealing with a problem that has sadly become all too common on college campuses around the country, she stumbled through her first semester—a challenging time made even harder by the coldness of her college's "conflict mediation" process. Her desperation growing, she made a bold decision: She would seek healing in the freedom of the wild, on the 2,650-mile Pacific Crest Trail leading from Mexico to Canada.

In this inspiring memoir, Aspen chronicles her journey, a five-month trek that was ambitious, dangerous, and transformative. A nineteen-year-old girl alone and lost, she conquered desolate mountain passes and met rattlesnakes, bears, and fellow desert pilgrims. Exhausted after each thirty-mile day, at times on the verge of starvation, Aspen was forced to confront her numbness, coming to terms with the sexual assault and her parents' disappointing reaction. On the trail and on her own, she found that survival is predicated on persistent self-reliance. She found her strength. After a thousand miles of solitude, she found a man who helped her learn to love and trust again—and heal.

Told with elegance and suspense, Girl in the Woods is a beautifully rendered story of eroding emotional and physical boundaries to reveal the truths that lie beyond the edges of the map.

Ratings and reviews

4.6
19 reviews
Sara Demler
January 23, 2016
I felt like I was in her world. It is a fast read yet, I found myself wanting to really take in her story with empathy-to learn from and capture a little bit of her soul. Highly recommend.
6 people found this review helpful
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Terri Stevens
December 30, 2016
Great- keeps you involved and wondering all the time if she's going to continue or give up.
10 people found this review helpful
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Iva Reckling
November 7, 2015
Eye opening with soulful and eloquent language. Engages the reader completely
11 people found this review helpful
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About the author

Aspen Matis is a writer living in Greenwich Village, where she's finishing her degree at The New School and working on a novel.

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