WE BECAME WILD

Two hopelessly unprepared teens, processing their grief after the mysterious death of their best friend, set out to hike the Pacific Crest Trail.

Lottie and Messina have both survived difficult home lives—Lottie with an indifferent grandmother and Messina with an abusive stepfather. Val’s death, a fall from a mountain after a party, is widely speculated to have been suicide following her breakup with a cheating boyfriend. When a customer drops off hiking gear Val wanted to borrow at the ice cream shop where she and Lottie worked, Lottie learns that Val had a secret plan: to hike the PCT after graduation. Lottie, who recently slept with Val’s brother, Gabe, decides to undertake the hike with Messina. The two steal supplies, Val’s ashes, and her cherished copy of Cheryl Strayed’s Wild and venture into the high desert, escaping their homes and past decisions. The story unfolds through multiple third-person viewpoints, primarily Lottie’s and Messina’s (with occasional appearances by Gabe), showcasing the girls’ characterization and transformation. Gabe functions more as a foil for Lottie, and he lacks the same agency and depth of development. Carver’s debut effectively illustrates that while nature can be harsh, for Lottie and Messina, growing up in the forgotten margins, home can be even more perilous. The book also conveys the important message that past choices don’t permanently define a person. Val and Gabe are of Mexican descent, and Messina and Lottie present white.

Visceral, healing, and transformative.