A detailed true story of a trip of a lifetime for a young 17 year old Alex Messenger. He travels for a canoe trip with a group of 6 friends leaving Minnesota for the rugged Arctic. From creepy guys in a helicopter, to issues with ice, insects and wildlife, it makes for quite a harrowing adventure. The main premise of the book is the bear attack and survival, but it takes a bit to get to that point. The build up of bear sightings, to an incident where they almost tangle with a couple of musk oxen, builds up the apprehension of the attack to come. The book has pictures of the trip, and it really is quite a wild and beautiful place. There were also a few times I chuckled, like the experience when they made cinnamon rolls, took a bit and realized they used allspice instead of cinnamon. The bear attack is quite detailed, and occurred in the 13th chapter. The book is set up into parts, with the first part being the trip experience, then the attack. The second part deals with the issues of his friends helping him and trying to get help, which is really difficult as you can image. The third part the boys have to travel and camp farther downstream to await a helicopter. Seeing caribou and other people help to keep up the adventure. A well written story and one I highly recommend. Must admit I would have liked more the emphasis on the trip and less on the bear for the story line, as it became a focus and seemed a long time coming. I did like the ending note about the bear, and will let you read that yourself. Good story on a trip and adventure of a lifetime.

Wow, what an amazing story of survival in the deep tundra. This book is very descriptive of what happened to Alex on his journey. From the start you get sucked into this story and it is like you are there. You feel the anxiety growing and you know something is going to happen. One minus point because sometimes the technical terms for canoeing were a little too much for my taste but overall great read!

This was a very suspenseful and intriguing book as the reader knows at some point the author is going to get attacked by a bear. It is a fairly quick read & would recommend this to anyone who likes the outdoors/wilderness.

The final camping trip in a multi year outdoor program is a 40 day wilderness canoe trek. Campers are helicoptered in and then are utterly alone with limited supplies. For 28 days things go wonderfully well. The young men, all seasoned outdoorsmen, alternately canoe and portage their boats through the pristine wilderness. Then, on the 29th day, Alex goes alone up on a ridge to take a few photographs. A grizzly appears. Alex waits -- waits for the grizzly to either leave or to charge and kill him. The bear does neither. He charges and throws Alex through the air, knocking him unconscious. When he awakens and tries to head back for camp, his leg is at first numb but weak and then progressively worse. The horrific compression injury inflicted by the bear and the boys' courageous attempt to complete their canoe adventure without outside aid is fascinating. An absolutely amazing book and one I would happily re-read.

This book was a slow starter but if you can get through all the technical canoeing terms (or if canoeing is your thing!) it might not be an issue. That being said once you are used to it, this is an excellent read. It really harkens back to the tales of old school adventurers of the 19th and 20th centuries. Any fans of nature or adventure tales, or even just readers of stories like A Walk in the Woods and Wild will enjoy this one. Throughout the book there are quiet glimpses into a wild frontier most of us will only dream of seeing. Its well written and the photographs are beautiful.

If you are looking for a book that will keep you on the edge of your seat, here it is! This book is very well written and makes you feel like you are there. This would make a wonderful gift for anyone who loves the great outdoors! Thank you Blackstone Publishing via NetGalley for the ARC copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

One quarter of an inch more and this author would not have been around to write his book. When he was seventeen, Alex Messenger went on a dream-of-a-lifetime adventure with a canoeing team in the Canadian wilderness. On the 29th day (hence the title of the book) he was attacked by a grizzly. As fact would have it, the bear inexplicably stopped attacking him and he was able to walk back to camp to get the help of his teammates.

I did not find the first one-third of the book interesting but continued reading in anticipation of the 29th day. I couldn't wait to find out how he survived the attack, how his friends helped him to survive and whether or not he continued with the journey. I found the last two-thirds a compelling read.

Thank you, Netgalley and Blackstone, for this ARC. This is my honest review.

This book was very well written. Nice and easy to read and flowed well. Had me on the edge of my seat. Wondering which way it was going to go. Great mystery can’t beat it.

This book will give you chills like no other. The story is very intense so be ready for it. It really is a life and death struggle in the pages.

This is a day by day account of a group of students embark g on a 600+ Mike canoe journey in the northern Canadian wilderness.
When one of them suffers a bear attack, you journey along with him through the horrible aftermath.
This is very well written and the wilderness they canoe through is breathing described.à

Oh my Goodness! What a wonderful book! I was on the edge of my seat
through most of the book, going back to it quickly if I had to deal with something
around the house.
These guys were prepared, they did everything by the book for safety. Like
anything bad that can happen, it's just that one time of letting your guard down. The book
held my attention even without the grizzly attack. There was plenty of action in the
canoes fighting the weather!
I loved this book, as a Grandma. I think it would be even more fun to read
for someone that enjoys the outdoors, photography, camping, canoeing, hiking or
just Bears in general as I do. From a distance.
The writer explained everything in detail, I felt like I was experiencing everything
he went through. I did not want the book to end! This is one I must purchase and
buy as a gift for friends.

Thank you so much, NetGalley, the writer, and the Publisher for giving me the chance
to enjoy this book!