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Escaping Firgo
When a bank worker takes a wrong turn in life and on the road, he finds himself trapped in a remote village hiding from the police. Before he can find his freedom, he has to find himself, and it’s not just about escaping, it’s about settling up. Because everybody settles up in the end.
52 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 12, 2018
2 people want to read
About the author
Jason Whittle
21 books4 followersJason has had one novel and a handful of short stories published; mostly in horror fiction, but he writes in a variety of genres. Alongside his fiction work he is also a sports writer, and has a regular column in the Chester FC matchday programme, while a one-off piece appeared in the official Southampton FC supporters' yearbook 2014-15.
He is currently finishing an MA at the University of Winchester, for which this project will be the dissertation, and he intends to follow it up with a PhD. His novella Escaping Firgo will be published by Kristell Ink later in 2017 or early in 2018, and several self-published titles are currently available.
He is currently finishing an MA at the University of Winchester, for which this project will be the dissertation, and he intends to follow it up with a PhD. His novella Escaping Firgo will be published by Kristell Ink later in 2017 or early in 2018, and several self-published titles are currently available.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
October 12, 2020
This short novel, or extended essay is a morality story, a comparison of materialism and spirituality, a critique of the way modern society is too embedded in materialism, and of how actions have consequences. Through the device of planning a bank robbery the protagonist encounters various situations where these two concepts are put into juxtaposition and compared. It culminates in him deciding that the moral, spiritual path is better to follow than the materialistic one.
Written in the first person singular, the author describes the town of Firgo as
purgatory,
a time slip,
an elaborate yet momentary hallucination.
Firgo is the place where he goes to make his comparison. Firgo is a critique of modern society. None of the roads in Firgo lead to somewhere else; they always lead back to Firgo. Everything here goes around in predictable routine in circles; nothing ever changes, nothing is questioned or improved, nothing evolves. There is a feeling of apathy.
We live life here at a different pace here. You'll soon get used to it.
We don't worry about that sort of thing most of the time.
What else is there?
Firgo is inhabited by characters who are defined by their narrow civic roles and how they go no further than that role to see a wider perspective.
it might do them good to see the world outside , and speak to somebody whose first name isn't The.
The Inn Keeper, The Shopkeeper, The Journalist,The School Teacher,The Postman, The Housewife,The Traffic Warden, The Newsagent (same person as The Shopkeeper?), The Victim, The Little Girl Lost, The Worried Mother, The Absent Father All these can only think within the parameters of their role and job; they cannot think independently as individuals to make their own decisions, jobsworths. I have seen this literary device of defining unnamed characters by their societal roles in the book “Milkman” by Anna Burns which won the Man Booker Prize in 2018.
Over it all hangs the question of consequence, retribution and karma.
I wouldn't worry about it Sir. Everybody settles up in the end.
You're welcome to stay as long as you like, and I trust you to take care of the bill at whatever time is convenient to you, Sir
Everybody settles up in the end
There are smaller subplots to symbolise the debates that are going on inside the protagonist's mind. A crying lost child, a man being mugged, the Inn Keeper's wife trying to seduce him. In each case he makes a decision based on spiritual morals and not materialistic gain.
The novel ends with protagonist making what he considers the right decision and moving forward into reality again.
I liked this short novel. The brevity meant it never became a burden and was easy to analyse. There were some uses of English I disagreed with: as an editor I would have questioned them with the author, but that's okay, that's his style. The publisher Kristell Ink, is a subsection of Grimbold Books which deals with science fiction and fantasy. The printer was Amazon.
Written in the first person singular, the author describes the town of Firgo as
purgatory,
a time slip,
an elaborate yet momentary hallucination.
Firgo is the place where he goes to make his comparison. Firgo is a critique of modern society. None of the roads in Firgo lead to somewhere else; they always lead back to Firgo. Everything here goes around in predictable routine in circles; nothing ever changes, nothing is questioned or improved, nothing evolves. There is a feeling of apathy.
We live life here at a different pace here. You'll soon get used to it.
We don't worry about that sort of thing most of the time.
What else is there?
Firgo is inhabited by characters who are defined by their narrow civic roles and how they go no further than that role to see a wider perspective.
it might do them good to see the world outside , and speak to somebody whose first name isn't The.
The Inn Keeper, The Shopkeeper, The Journalist,The School Teacher,The Postman, The Housewife,The Traffic Warden, The Newsagent (same person as The Shopkeeper?), The Victim, The Little Girl Lost, The Worried Mother, The Absent Father All these can only think within the parameters of their role and job; they cannot think independently as individuals to make their own decisions, jobsworths. I have seen this literary device of defining unnamed characters by their societal roles in the book “Milkman” by Anna Burns which won the Man Booker Prize in 2018.
Over it all hangs the question of consequence, retribution and karma.
I wouldn't worry about it Sir. Everybody settles up in the end.
You're welcome to stay as long as you like, and I trust you to take care of the bill at whatever time is convenient to you, Sir
Everybody settles up in the end
There are smaller subplots to symbolise the debates that are going on inside the protagonist's mind. A crying lost child, a man being mugged, the Inn Keeper's wife trying to seduce him. In each case he makes a decision based on spiritual morals and not materialistic gain.
The novel ends with protagonist making what he considers the right decision and moving forward into reality again.
I liked this short novel. The brevity meant it never became a burden and was easy to analyse. There were some uses of English I disagreed with: as an editor I would have questioned them with the author, but that's okay, that's his style. The publisher Kristell Ink, is a subsection of Grimbold Books which deals with science fiction and fantasy. The printer was Amazon.
March 14, 2018
This intriguing story could be characterised as Psycho (the opening sequence, anyway - this isn't horror) meets Groundhog Day. The protagonist, tired of trudging through life where he constantly sees others more dishonest and less deserving achieve their aims, decides to rob the bank where he has worked his way up to Assistant Manager over a number of years. On the way to the airport, however, his car breaks down and he finds himself rushing to the nearest village to try and find someone who can help him so he can catch his flight.
Things don’t quite work out that way… While he finds a village handily close, trying to find someone who can fix the car so he can be on his way again, proves to be unexpectedly difficult. And then the car disappears… I really enjoyed this story. It’s quirky, otherworldly feel is perfectly realised. Whittle does a good job of balancing the characterisation, pacing and narrative tension so that this novella works really well. I often find novellas unsatisfactory because just as I am getting into the swing of the story, they abruptly come to an end.
This isn’t the case with Escaping Firgo, as I was well aware of the approaching climax and found the ending appropriate and satisfying. Since I have finished reading it, I find myself thinking about it, and wondering what I’d do if I found myself in the same situation.
This little gem is recommended for anyone who enjoys reading, well told, quirky stories.
8/10
Things don’t quite work out that way… While he finds a village handily close, trying to find someone who can fix the car so he can be on his way again, proves to be unexpectedly difficult. And then the car disappears… I really enjoyed this story. It’s quirky, otherworldly feel is perfectly realised. Whittle does a good job of balancing the characterisation, pacing and narrative tension so that this novella works really well. I often find novellas unsatisfactory because just as I am getting into the swing of the story, they abruptly come to an end.
This isn’t the case with Escaping Firgo, as I was well aware of the approaching climax and found the ending appropriate and satisfying. Since I have finished reading it, I find myself thinking about it, and wondering what I’d do if I found myself in the same situation.
This little gem is recommended for anyone who enjoys reading, well told, quirky stories.
8/10
January 21, 2023
This is an enjoyable fable on the price of greed set firmly in a Hot Fuzz country idyll. The story contains many engaging and satisfying moments, and is told in a meticulous and entertaining voice. In this morality tale, the occasional pop culture reference rang odd to me, and certain details I found somewhat jarring, although, there turned out to be a reason for much of this (no spoilers!). In the end, I would not hesitate to recommend it - 3.5 stars, really - and to seek out the author's other work.
February 26, 2018
A slightly queasy but gentle morality tale
Tales of the unexpected meets the prisoner meets once in a lifetime by talking heads
Well done Jason - I really enjoyed this one
Kudos for not sticking to a formula
Each one of your titles is markedly different to each other, braver than the majority of authors out there...
Tales of the unexpected meets the prisoner meets once in a lifetime by talking heads
Well done Jason - I really enjoyed this one
Kudos for not sticking to a formula
Each one of your titles is markedly different to each other, braver than the majority of authors out there...
November 10, 2018
Such utter absurdity. If you could imagine Spike Milligan writing an episode of "The Prisoner", Jason Whittle has done a superb job of capturing the humour of Milligan and the feel of Portmeirion from the seminal TV show.
All I can add is that you really should read this, and hope that Firgo doesn't disappear: it would make a great locale for a series.
All I can add is that you really should read this, and hope that Firgo doesn't disappear: it would make a great locale for a series.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews