In
Leave
No Trace, out
June 29, a war veteran and his teenage daughter live off the grid in a forest
near Portland, Oregon, using their survivalist skills to fend off human and
animal threats. When they're caught by authorities, the movie opens up the
question of whether returning to mainstream society is civilized if it causes
so much separation and heartbreak. Peter Rock's excellent source novel, 2009's
My
Abandonment,
doesn't focus on the father's post-traumatic stress disorder status as deeply,
and it sends the two to a horse ranch instead of a Christmas tree farm. The
biggest distinction, though, is that the book, narrated by the girl, is more a
coming-of-age tale than a riff on survivalism or the social work system, rich
with keen observations about the peculiarities about the adult world from a
teen's perspective, capped by a knockout revelation in the climax about the
most important adult in her life.
