Puertas afuera

by Molly Gloss, Mónica Echevarría (Illustrator)

Esta obra se caracteriza por narrar hechos fantásticos. Se puede calificar como auténtica epopeya mí el protagonista es un héroe que, en un escenario inventado, realiza su hazaña con sufrimientos y dificultades.
Los personajes están dotados de extraños poderes. Vren ¿el protagonista- puede hablar con los animales, Rusche controla con su poder los fenómenos meteorológicos, Sep adivina el futuro y Trim es un lobo de pelo rojo.
Han sido expulsados de su poblado y transformados en sombras dentro de un bosque tenebroso, oscuro y misterioso, donde tendrán que luchar contra el mal de la oscuridad para salvar su vida.
El desafío de ser diferente y la fuerza del cariño llenan de encanto esta extraordinaria narración.

Genres: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Fiction, Young Adult, Science Fiction Fantasy, Speculative Fiction, Dystopia

124 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1986

About the author

Molly Gloss is a fourth-generation Oregonian who lives in Portland.

Her novel The Jump-Off Creek was a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award for American Fiction, and a winner of both the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Award and the Oregon Book Award. In 1996 Molly was a recipient of a Whiting Writers Award.

The Dazzle of Day was named a New York Times Notable Book and was awarded the PEN Center West Fiction Prize.

Wild Life won the James Tiptree Jr. Award and was chosen as the 2002 selection for "If All Seattle Read the Same Book."

Reviews

[Spencer Orey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a short book, sparsely beautiful in the best of ways. The young main character can't hide his magical ability and gets exiled outside the city to survive in the wilderness.

It's so short that I'm going to be a little vague here, to get at the heart of things instead of spoiling the whole story. The interactions with other exiles who help him or worsen things are profound and careful. The scenes of the main character's magical interactions with different animals were breathtaking. And there are some understated but deep points about how we relate to people in power and work together toward something bigger than just survival.

Update: I just got to meet Molly Gloss at a book signing! She's incredible. And she said that at the time, in the 1980s, she wrote this book for her then 10-year old to inspire them to read. Even though it's been 30 years, this is first time that this book has been released in soft cover. I'm glad it's back and that we can all experience the journey beyond the gates.

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was recommended to me by my boss.

A strangely morose tale of a young boy who is kicked out of his village which is protected from the rest of the world by large foreboding gate. The boy has a shadow, to talk to animals. In this world anyone who has a special talent is exiled into the wild. There are many people who live outside of the gates and one of them befriends the boy and teaches his to live off the earth. Eventually you find that not all shadowed people are kind, and not all use their gifts for good. Can Vren save himself and everyone with a shadow from those who would use them for ill? Harrowing and short this book took me about two hours to read, but it was worth it.

The writing style of this book is worth mentioning. The main character is referred to as 'the boy' except in time when he has to do something that is uniquely human. The time and place are not well described but that adds to the mystery and makes it more realistic. He is not described, nor is his age given, the story is hazy but that just adds to it. Age and concept of self would be lost if you were kicked out of your home at an early age, and how much of your home would you want to remember if they gave you up so easily.

[Joel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Slim, spare, relatively simple but perfectly wrought, with economical, plain-spoken yet beautiful prose. Read it.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Huh. Though the cover looks fairly trite, consider Gloss's other (adult) works.
---
Yeah, this is not trite at all. Subtle, quiet, metaphorical, at least as much for adults who like fables as for children who like fantasy adventure. Think The Animal Family, though not in plot or 'what it's about' but in themes and vibe. Or maybe, though I've not yet read it, The Mouse and His Child.

If you're trying to sell it to kids, they might be interested if you compare it to The City of Ember (but gosh that's almost two decades old already) or Journey Outside (even older). (Do you know of any books that any of the titles that I've noted remind you of? Especially newer ones?

I particularly love that the boy is a vegetarian, because his Shadow (power) is befriending & communicating with animals. And by example he influences others. (Not sure if he's vegan or not.)

I wanted the book to be a little longer, with more dialogue... but that would have spoiled what Gloss was going after, so that's fine.

It really does need a less misleading cover, though. The adult is not a wizard, and the scene shown is part of the first few pages of set up. I'd rather see a 12 yo boy, hand on wolf's shoulder, along a river, context of forest in background, implied journey....

[Capn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vegans will love this story. :)

"The best first novel I've seen in years." Ursula Le Guin

"The boy Vren thought his heart would stop as the gates closed behind him. But he was too afraid to cry. As one of the shadowed, those with ESP powers, he was not wanted in the village that had been his home.
Afraid of the monsters and giants he had been told lived outside the village walls, the boy moved fearfully into the forest beyond. And there, to his surprise, he found friends, both gentle, solitary shadowed folk and the animals his gift for kinship with them brought. Though he could not forget his disgrace at being shadowed, his new life with the man Rusche, who could control the weather around him, was a good one. It seemed there was no danger in the forest.
This, however, proved wrong. Not all the shadowed were good. When Rusche disappeared and Vren went in search of him, it soon became apparent that it was someone with an evil shadow who had taken Rusche. Vren was determined to rescue his friend, but could he do so without risking his own freedom, his own shadow? He had to try.
The challenge of being different and the power of love are both a part of this extraordinary story."
"Molly Gloss lives in Portland, Oregon, with her husband and two children. She is a native of Portland and graduated from Portland State College with a degree in education. She taught a short time and them worked as a "corresponder" for a freight company - "a sort of beggar's way to practice my writing," she says.
She did not begin working at writing seriously until about five years ago when her son began school. Outside the Gates is her first book, though she has seen several of her short stories in print."
- Jacket painting copyright (c)1986 by Michael Mariano
- Jacket design copyright (c)1986 by Annie Alleman
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(For the record, I don't especially like the official summary. I don't think it captures the tone, it certainly oversimplifies, and it is horribly reductionist. Don't put much stock into it!).

What a fantastic, quick read! It took me a while to get into it, as right from the beginning it was, urgh, high fantasy, which is NOT my genre, unless Tolkien wrote it. ;) I like my fantasy low, juvenile and magical (Meta Mayne Reid, Penelope Lively, and Susan Cooper, who I suppose crosses into high fantasy with books like Seaward... but I digress!), so there was a uncomfortable adjustment period where I had to adapt to and slip into surroundings containing tree and plant species I don't know, unfamiliar landscapes, and references to a curious culture. But once I did...!

I'm not sure the cover image is well representative of this story. I know they had to start somewhere, but this looks a little like a friendly and well-heeled Merlin-like wizard happily assisting a lost and injured boy.

This is not how the story is.

Imagine a society where the slightest deviation from the norm is feared, reviled and punished with immediate and complete banishment into the wild. In this, this story had echoes of The Chrysalids and the X-Men franchise, only there's no Professor Xavier to gather the outcasts together and rebuild their shattered sense of self here.

Instead, there's... desolation. Isolation. Self-hatred. Surviving exiles largely (usually completely) shun one another and survive alone in the elements from what they can scrape from the land (and it appears many of the "Shadowed" simply lay down and die at the gate, judging by the masses of bleached bones, each beside a gifted 'troublesack' - a Spartan survivalist's kit, 'mercifully' donated by the society that threw the child/man/woman to the literal wolves in the first place).

Vren, our protagonist, is just a small boy when his Shadow is discovered: Vren can commune with all animals, from the tiniest ant to the apex predator. So they throw him out of civilization, freak that he is, small and defenceless notwithstanding.

Very luckily for Vren, he eventually chances upon Rusche (guy with the pointed hat), who, although completely ashamed of himself (as all the Shadowed are) to the point of being reclusive and asocial, takes pity on the small and starving boy and brings him into his hut. Clothing is made of woven bark and stray animal hair. Huts are typically lean-tos. Food is whatever you can find (roots, berries, river snails... though Vren eats no meat, of course, of any kind).

Slowly, slowly, the seasons and years roll along, with Rusche and Vren in cohabitation but still very much solitary and alone in their ashamednesss of being Shadowed. When one day, returning from a lengthy stint with the bears, Vren finds Rusche's hut ransacked and empty...

Here the story picks up, and though brief (only 120 pages!), so much of interest happens. I don't want to tell any of it to prevent spoiling it for you, but possibly my favourite character is Trim (the wolf), though there's another I admire as much.

There's subtext here on identity, friendship, self-acceptance, abuse and abusers, the perils of low (or absent) self-esteem, power, pride, and the ever present shame. Community and isolation are contrasted so interestingly throughout. There's no big moral at the end, or tidy wrap-up. It's glorious, and I am very happy to give this book 5 stars.

I am going to look into more of Molly Gloss's works. :)

[Kristi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Molly Gloss' first published novel is written for a younger audience than the majority of her books, but already exhibits her spare, glimmering prose. Cast out by his community for exhibiting a "Shadow" -- in this case, the ability to deeply empathize and commune with animals -- young Vren ventures into the woods and meets another "Shadowed," a gentle man called Rusche who can bend the weather. Together they make a life, sometimes traveling by foot to explore and experience the larger world, and to occasionally visit with other "Shadowed." But after a visit with a family of wolves, Vren returns to their home to find Rusche gone. Knowing that something has gone wrong, Vren goes in search of his friend.

A quiet story of surviving rejection, bearing shame and enduring outside of community, Outside the Gates is a quick but deep read that you won't want to put down.

[Joshua Arthur · Rating 3 out of 5]

Spellbinder is a chump

[Janice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my goodness, I loved this little book.

Folks on the plain that have special powers aren't welcome. They're put outside the gates, with the monsters and the shadow men.

Vren makes friends with animals. The way he does it isn't allowed. He gets put outside the gates, and expects to die. Instead, he's found by Rusche, who looks rough and terrifying. But looks aren't everything. And Rushe and Vren take care of each other.

In a world where it seems like any encounter between a young man and an older man so often seems to fall into abuse and exploitation, it's refreshing to see a relationship that isn't like that. Sometimes a friendship is just a friendship, and loyalty and caring don't have to be declared out loud all the time.

This is another story that's really mostly hopeful. I really need those right now.

I read it in one session in the middle of the night.

[Dylan McMahon · Rating 2 out of 5]

This fantasy tale of a child's exile and subsequent monomythic quest to find himself seems to languish in obscurity. Less than 300 ratings for a book this old means it will most likely be entirely forgotten soon, unless some kids tearfully pose with it on TikTok.

Its obscurity is justified: this book is quite the unremarkable fantasy novella.

The prose is sub-par and unrefined, making a barely 90 page book surprisingly baggy. The cluttered sentences and almost conversational tone befuddle and irritate. They often start with conjunctions, mix past and present tenses like oil and water, and frequently employ the descriptor "very much" to make for an aggravating reading experience. There's little in the way of descriptive power or imaginative metaphor, sapping any of the potential fantastical elements out of this "fantasy" novel.

I can enjoy a book with sub-par writing in SFF if its plotting or world make up for it, but alas, this is not the case. There is just so little here: no compelling characters, no unique magic, and a cliched story you've seen elsewhere done much better. Animal companions are predictably employed as a cheap means of stirring emotion, and even THAT doesn't work to gain your sympathy.

Yes, I'm aware this is apparently a children's fantasy book, but Ursula K. Le Guin proved with her exceptional Earthsea series that books written for children can be gripping, and full of imagination. This book reads like a first draft the author meant to expand upon further, but left in a drawer somewhere and decided to publish on a whim. If you see this book for sale, do what the fantasy genre at large has already done: ignore it.

[Laura Hoffman Brauman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This dystopian novella focuses on Vren, a young boy who is locked outside the gates of his city to survive on his own or die. So much of the dystopian fiction I have read is fast paced and intense. This is a quieter novel, but the way Gloss built tension slowly and deliberately was really, really effective. I'm going to seek out more of her works.

[Dearbhla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this - http://www.susanhatedliterature.net/2...

[sillypunk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful little novella: https://blogendorff.com/2019/02/05/bo...

[Robert Kosara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice little book. Perhaps more of a fable than I’d usually read, but well constructed and paced, and the language flows very nicely.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a lyrical, hopeful jewel of a novella. No wonder Ursula K. Le Guin liked it!!

[The Reading Raccoon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quiet story about a boy with meta-human abilities pushed outside the gates of a settlement and forced to survive.

[Dirk · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Saga Press edition contains an excerpt from Gloss's short story collection Unforeseen. The excerpt was more engaging to me, because both the physical and emotional landscapes were explore with more depth and nuance than in Outside the Gates.

[Jan Priddy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a reread of my old copy. The new edition is coming soon and I hope to gift it to my granddaughter. In this reading I focused on the structure of the short novel and on the suitability of the story for a 7-year-old. I am uncertain of the last. Too often I find that a story is automatically classified as a children's story or, recently, as YA if the protagonist is a child rather than because the story itself is intended for children.

It was a highly suitable story for me, troubling in the way Le Guin's The Farthest Shore is troubling. That is not to say it is like Le Guin's novel, but that it carries the reader into challenging philosophical territory. The rules and story here are unique and strange but revealed masterfully. This is clearly fantasy: We cannot get there from here.

Further, this is the story of gifted people who are expelled from their community for their gifts. I am writing an essay along with my writing students about genius and the highly gifted. In the real world highly gifted children often recognize early on that their intelligence excludes them from ordinary social interaction. Highly gifted children learn early on to hide or ignore their gift. My essay suggests that we should do a better job of supporting them as both people and students.

I am giving it 4 stars rather than 5 only because I am not sure who to recommend it to. But I would gratefully read more of this, so likely I am being unfair.

[Erin Crane · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my second time reading this book, so I gave it 5 stars. If I bother to reread a book, it really should be 5 stars!

This is maybe technically a middle grade or YA book but without all the typical tropes. I feel like it’s too slow and quiet to actually be of interest to most kids in that age group.

What I love about this book:

1) Quiet, minimal plot. Small scale story with everyday people.
2) So much said without saying it - both between the characters in the book, and between the reader and the book. Moments can be so much more moving when they aren’t overwritten.
3) Characters who fail, who aren’t fearless, who don’t know what to do. The reader I am at the moment really connects with that more than obvious heroes and overpowered people.
4) The villain vs the real villain. There is a “bad guy” but there’s a state of mind that is the true villain. It’s not complicated but it’s effective.

Second time through, chapter 3 still made me cry. 😭

My only teeny complaint is that there is too much nature description for me. I appreciate more of it here than I normally do in books. It helps the atmosphere. But it does go further than I have interest in going sometimes.

[Sandra de Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a genre I rarely read, but it’s by Molly Gloss who wrote so many of my favorite books of literary fiction. I hadn’t heard of this one until I read that it’s being re-released. Vren is a young boy exiled into the dark forest outside the Gates because he is Shadowed, meaning he has a special power. In the Underreach he finds a new life with a friendly weather-worker, but their gentle existence is disrupted by a spellbinder misusing his power. In today’s world, I couldn’t help thinking of our current world leader who apparently has some people under his spell. Vren has to deal with this monster who looks like a man one on one. The book is beautiful, charming, frightening, and suspenseful by turns. A satisfying read.

[Dakota Sillyman · Rating 5 out of 5]

A short, vivid tale that is sure to be appreciated by even casual fantasy readers. Gloss’s writing is reminiscent of Ursula K. LeGuin’s early works and is certainly alongside the Earthsea series in my list of favorite fantasy books.

‘Outside the Gates’ is beautifully sparse in a way that has become a rare treat; with deep characters, plots and settings that are as interesting and new as they are simple and unpretentious. There is a quiet and often stoic thoughtfulness to the writing that engages me in a very relaxing way.

[Tasha Seegmiller · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a small book but don't let that trick you into thinking that it is an insignificant book. Exploring ideas of resilience and tugging the heart of the reader, Outside the Gates is a lovely exploration of survival.

[Wendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a really short read, a nice YA fantasy. I read it in one day.

[Toni · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was unaware of this book until it showed up on Libby. I thought I had all of Molly Gloss's books. It was a good read and I especially like the ending!

[Michele · Rating 5 out of 5]

With a recommendation by Ursula le Guin, I had high hopes for this and was not disappointed. Well written, spare, and beautiful.

[Maria Stjärnljus · Rating 5 out of 5]

A short, beautifully written novella that I got totally caught up in! Definitely want to read more by this author now.

[Derek · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful yet sad novella that resonates with profound ideas of real life. The world in which it is set resembles a fantasy novel setting, including the use of magic, but the psychology of the characters is grounded. A great deal of physical hardship is involved, but the book is a pleasure to read in spite of this because of the beauty of the language and the natural elements of the setting. It has been described as "dystopian" but I don't see it that way. I sought this book because I enjoyed "Wild Life" by the same author.

[Matt Sautman · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fast read, Outside the Gates seems better suited for a visual medium than a novel, mainly due to the lack of visual descriptions Gloss places into book. The world is enigmatic enough to invite the reader in, the protagonist’s motivation for searching for his father figure is strong enough to give structure to the story, but I question if the novel makes enough use of its pages to due justice to its themes and to take full advantage of its fantasy setting. What the novel does accomplish well though is the power of found-family.

[Alicia · Rating 4 out of 5]

https://wordnerdy.blogspot.com/2022/0...

I’ve never read anything by Gloss before, but I may have to investigate her other stuff, because this was pretty intriguing. It’s about a little boy who is cast out from his town bc he has a mysterious gift (HIS GIFT IS THE ABILITY TO BEFRIEND ANIMALS!!) and has to make his way out in the woods—but he’s not the first person to be cast out. (Not to sound ominous about it! Just the woods are full of scared people with cool gifts.) This has a hopeful sort of vibe, I just wanted there to be more of it! A-.

[Otis Hanby · Rating 1 out of 5]

Gibberish is how I would describe this. I suffered twenty pages before I closed the pages for good. The imagery lacked description - that's the best way to describe what I couldn't visualize or understand. I use to suffer through such stories to hopefully have the point revealed to me. But I have no more tolerance for it. Gibberish.

[Kyle Berry · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very exciting read for such a short book! The story draws you in immediately and never releases you until the end. Every time I put it down, it called me back. There's a deeper meaning to the climatic scene, which I have the shape of but it will take time to think through. This book was just laying out on the freebie table at work, and I'm so glad I picked it up :)