Book

The Stranger in the Woods

: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit

A National Geographic Best Book of the Year National Bestseller Many people dream of escaping modern life. Most will never act on it—but in 1986, twenty-year-old Christopher Knight did just that when he left his home in Massac

(5 total)

Characters

Michael Finkel (5)

“He was confounded by the idea that passing the prime of your life in a cubicle, spending hours a day at a computer, in exchange for money, was considered acceptable, but relaxing in a tent in the woods was disturbed. Observing the trees was indolent; cutting them down was enterprising. What did Knig…”

— Michael Finkel, amazon.com

Tagged: How To Think, Solitude

“I understand I've made an unusual lifestyle choice. But the label 'crazy' bothers me. Annoys me. Because it prevents response. When someone asks if you're crazy, Knight lamented, you can either say yes, which makes you crazy, or you can say no, which makes you sound defensive, as if you fear that yo…”

— Michael Finkel, amazon.com

Tagged: How To Think, Solitude

“I read. That's my form of travel.”

— Michael Finkel, amazon.com

Tagged: How To Think, Philosophy

“Modern life seems set up so that we can avoid loneliness at all costs, but maybe it’s worthwhile to face it occasionally. The further we push aloneness away, the less are we able to cope with it, and the more terrifying it gets.”

— Michael Finkel, amazon.com

Tagged: Loneliness, How To Think, Aloneness, Woods

“I think that most of us feel like something is missing from our lives. And I wondered then if Knight's journey was to seek it. But life isn't about searching endlessly to find what's missing. It's about learning to live with the missing parts.”

— Michael Finkel, amazon.com

Tagged: How To Think, The Person You'll Become, Philosophy