Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail
The best-known and most accessible entry point to Strayed's work.
Author guide
Cheryl Strayed Books in Order
Cheryl Strayed is an American writer known for the novel Torch, the memoir Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail, and the collection Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar. Her writing combines memoir, personal essay, literary fiction, travel writing, and candid advice.
literary fictionmemoirpersonal essaystravel writingadvice writing
Catalog record updated .
Not sure where to begin?
Start with one of these
Torch
The starting point for her literary fiction.
Outside the series
Bibliography by category
Novels (1)
- Torch
novel · 2006
"Work hard. Do good. Be incredible!" is the advice Teresa Rae Wood shares with the listeners of her local radio show, Modern Pioneers, and the advice she strives to live by every day. She has fled a bad marriage and rebuilt a life with…
Nonfiction (1)
- Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail
memoir · 2012
At twenty-two, Cheryl Strayed thought she had lost everything. In the wake of her mother’s death, her family scattered and her own marriage was soon destroyed. Four years later, with nothing more to lose, she made the most impulsive…
Essays and speeches (1)
- Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar
essay-collection · 2012
The internationally acclaimed author of Wild collects the best of The Rumpus's Dear Sugar advice columns plus never-before-published pieces. Rich with humor and insight—and absolute honesty—this "wise and compassionate" (New York Times…
Frequently asked questions about Cheryl Strayed
Who is Cheryl Strayed, and what is she best known for?
Cheryl Strayed is a writer whose work spans memoir, fiction, personal essays, and advice writing. She is best known for Wild and her Dear Sugar advice column.
Sources: cherylstrayed.com (opens in a new tab)penguinrandomhouse.com (opens in a new tab)
What experiences most influenced Cheryl Strayed’s writing?
The death of Strayed’s mother from cancer when Strayed was young became central to her writing; she has called it her “genesis story.” Her grief and attempt to rebuild her life through a Pacific Crest Trail hike shaped Wild and much of her nonfiction.
Sources: newyorker.com (opens in a new tab)time.com (opens in a new tab)
Who was Dear Sugar, and when did Cheryl Strayed reveal her identity?
Dear Sugar was Strayed’s pseudonym for an anonymous advice column she took over at The Rumpus in 2010. She formally revealed herself at a San Francisco coming-out event on February 14, 2012.
Where did Cheryl Strayed study, and what degrees did she earn?
Strayed earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota and an MFA in fiction writing from Syracuse University in 2002.
Sources: encyclopedia.com (opens in a new tab)artsandsciences.syracuse.edu (opens in a new tab)
What major award did Cheryl Strayed’s Wild win?
Wild won the 2013 Oregon Book Award, as recorded in Literary Arts’ official winners archive.