To ask for ideas for children's literature about living in the wilderness

[Ohyesiam]

It's all my 10 yo ds talks about.
Living in a log cabin, hunting animals, gathering plants, using roots to dye cloth.

He's into books, and has no idea what he wants for Christmas, so I'm wanting to source a books about his passion.
Novels and non fiction, but he has the SAS survival guide.

I will get him the Little House series( Laura Ingles), but I'd like to find something with a male protagonist too.

TIA

Walkabout is great too.

I think I must habe been like your son op because I've read and loved all but two books on this thread as a kid

As well as a number of the above, he might like Lois Lenski's Prairie School - it's set in 1950's America and is about what happens when the new teacher and her 'welcome committee' (two children) get snowed into the shack that serves as a school-room.

The Bear Grylls YA fiction series

Alternatively if he likes non-fiction then Baden-Powell’s original Scouting for Boys from 1908 is still in print and has loads of stuff about tracking, woodcarving etc.

Brendon Chase!

Another vote for Children on the Oregon Trail. I read it over and over again at about that age.

Yes to Arthur Ransome. If you (or another relative has the budget) a complete set of the twelve children's novels in hardback would make a fantastic present. They are all still available, and if you go to the Arthur Ransome Society website they have occasional activities for children.

Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome

Children of The New Forest by Frederick Marryat

There are a good few Enid Blyton books as well though at 10 they might be a bit young. The Secret Island, The Island of Adventure, The Valley of Adventure.

Y y to all these

You lot are great, thanks so much.
And especially to lucked for that great list.
I'm going to have fun researching all these.

The children who lived in a barn.

Just be aware, "Into the Forest" has a fairly traumatic death via a chainsaw accident, and a rape leading to pregnancy of a teenage girl, so possibly a bit full on for a ten year old.
Ruth Park's "Sixpenny Island" is good if you can find a copy.
I love the Willard Price series too, I still have all mine from when I was young.
My 10 yr old DS loves the Enid Blyton "XXX of Adventure" series

I always felt that My Side of the Mountain was slightly let down by its failure to address lavatorial arrangements. Mind you, I was quite a nit-picky child.

I absolutely loved "Endurance" by Alfred Lansing when I was that age. Amazing book about Shackleton's voyage. A really life-changing thing to read (might need to skim the second chapter about preparing for the trip).

At that age I LOVED The Swiss Family Robinson.

The Dark Chronicles series by Michelle Paver. The first one is called Wolf Brother, I think there are five in the series. The male protagonist, Torah, is a hunter gatherer.

Do kids still read Z for Zachariah? We read it in first year of secondary - survival but very post apocalyptic!

Treasure Island of course!

Robinson Crusoe - why not?

The His Dark Materials books are quite survival and wilderness heavy

As is Lord of the Rings.

Day of the Triffids for a very British sci fi survival adventure.

Ooh and Journey to the Centre of the Earth- Jules Verne

Swiss Family Robinson

Abel's Island, anyone else love that? Swept away and survive on remote island story, featuring a townie mouse as the main character (but humanised, iyswim).

Thank you to this tread for reminding me of "my side of the mountain', i absolutely loved that book as a child.

Echoing a PP on Brendan Chase - boys run off to live in woods one summer & manage months - it’s an old one but I saw a copy in my local Oxfam just today!

I loved the Willand Price books as a child.

My Side of the Mountain is fabulous.

For all those posters who are hankering after childhood books about survival, have you read "Our Endless Numbered Days" by Clare Fuller? Definitely NOT a children's book although it's told from a child's perspective. It's a survival story with very dark edge, but well written.

I’m surprised no one has mentioned “Hatchet” and it’s sequels. My very dyslexic son read them.
A boy gets stranded in the Canadian wilderness after a freak small plane crash, and survives. Written by Guy Paulsen who had lived in the wilds himself.

The children who lived in a barn is ace. And he might like Narnia for some of the rough living stuff eg the silver chair, same for The Hobbit and maybe Once and Future King but it's a bit harder.

Oh and the Wolves of Willoughby Chase has a boy who lives wild but he's not the MC.