MixedThe Portland Press HeraldWhile we never really find out what compelled Knight to walk into the woods in 1986, we do learn about what life was like for him and how he made it work for all those years. That is a fascinating and, at times, disturbing tale. This story, for the most part, comes completely from Knight himself. Finkel exchanged handwritten letters with Knight while he was jailed and had nine jail visits with him ... The author believes that Knight is 'practically incapable of lying,' but he doesn’t provide enough evidence to support that ... Finkel is a skilled storyteller, and those skills are clearly present in this book as he weaves psychoanalysis and medicine, the mechanics of outdoor survival and centuries of hermit history with Knight’s life story to create a tightly written, compelling narrative ... It may be that [Finkel's] efforts to prove himself a trustworthy journalist led him to insert himself into Knight’s story, or he may have been making a stylistic choice. If so, it was a poor one. Knight’s story is compelling enough to stand on its own.
