Amazing story, full of compelling twists and turns. I got a little bogged down in the middle and struggled with motivation to keep going, yet something kept drawing me back; perhaps a little too much detail.

It is a story of a teenager seeking independence and the struggle of his parents to try to bring him back to the fold and live the life they wanted for him, yet they continued to send him financial support, even during through the financially-tight depression.

So tragic that such a talented young man was apparently lost to the world. It is incredible the impact of this young man had to maintain public interest and countless efforts to find him for more than eight decades. ( )

I had never heard of Everett Ruess before this book, but now feel as if I've gone with him on part of his adventures. I appreciate how Roberts does his own research and doesn't rely on the opinions of others who have written about Everett before. The writing style is very good and draws the reader along through the details without languishing in them. Recommended for anyone who enjoys a biography and a bit of mystery.

This was an ARC First-Reads selection. ( )

This is another book I feel quite lucky to have won through the first-reads program. I can honestly say (though I am loath to admit it) that I had no idea who exactly Everett Ruess was when I began to read this book. Worse, I hadn't read [b:Into Thin Air|1898|Into Thin Air|Jon Krakauer|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1320529390s/1898.jpg|1816662] yet either, though it has been on my to-read shelf for ages. I went into this book with no expectations, and came out of it a bit bewildered.

Having been to some of the places Ruess explored in his lifetime, and having shared in some of his fascination with the land I have to admit I was converted into a bit of Ruess fan. While I found Ruess' diaries grating at times, who doesn't find a seventeen year old or a nineteen year old a bit immature? Who hasn't been an ignorant teenager at one point or another?

The narrative was fascinating, and the author's insights into both Ruess' life and the lives of those who later wrote about him extremely informative. I feel that Robert's gave each theory about Ruess' disappearance a fair hearing, and actually dispelled some of the more fantastic rumours about Ruess' life and orientation rather neatly. The book came off as a note of love, and a worthy one at that.

By the end of the book I was thoroughly swayed by this "vagabond for beauty" and I have to admit that I will not only be passing this book along to some of my relatives and friends, but I will also be keeping an ear open for any news on the Everett case. While I do agree that "he just doesn't want to be found" the disappearance is part of the allure.

Everett lives, indeed.. Or perhaps more appropriately, Nemo lives. ( )

Thoroughly enjoyed this book. Read the Rusho materials when they came out. The only criticism I have is the usual....better maps! Otherwise, Roberts is literate, knowledgeable, informed, and any other adjectives that apply making him the perfect person to write this book. Read the book in just over 2 days on my way to, and at the Grand Canyon's South Rim while Sarah is in training. ( )

I've read a number of David Robert's books and liked most of them (with a couple of exceptions) so I was happily surprised to find he was the author of "Finding Everett Ruess- the Life and Unsolved Disappearance of a Legendary Wilderness Explorer." The book had caught my interest a while ago due to the topic.

Everett Ruess was a 1930's version of Christopher McCandless... at the age of just 16, he started taking months long jaunts out in the wilderness of the southwest. He mysteriously disappeared in 1934 when he was just 20, and the youth's rapturous writings and woodblock prints of the natural world have build a bit of a cult around him. His body was never found.

Roberts does a pretty good job telling the story here... there were bits that were repetitive in the early narrative. The 1934 journal was lost! The 1934 journal was lost! His presentation of Ruess' story is mostly compelling though. I found I enjoyed the second half of the book more, when Robers focuses on the various searches for Ruess' remains over the years. Definitely a good read overall. ( )