Every winter, John Borne looked forward to the days when he and his grandfather headed into the snowy Minnesota woods to hunt together. John admired the reverent, familiar way the old man had with the woods. But this year his grandfather is dying and 13-year-old John must make the hunt alone. Without his beloved grandfather, the hunt is cold and lonely-until John spots the doe watching and waiting for him in the clearing. She is an easy target, but as John raises his rifle to shoot, he knows he cannot kill the vulnerable creature. There is something strangely familiar about this doe, something that John recognizes in her eyes that stops him. Vivid and reflective, Newbery Honor-winner Gary Paulsen's tale of a boy coming to terms with death displays the wholesome optimism and the adventurous spirit that makes his books so popular.
