Out Stealing Horses in Around the World in 80 Books

Jan 11, 2017 Sera rated it really liked it

Shelves: literary-fiction, own

I enjoyed reading this quiet, little book. The story is about a 67 year old man who looks back upon certain events in his childhood and what they meant to him. The writing and the descriptions of the natural surroundings were all beautiful. I could hear the rush of the river and the chopping down of trees. I could see the dog on its back, rubbing itself in the snow. Everything read so lovely even though it is a translation.

I also enjoyed reading about Trond's view on how he wanted to live the r ...more

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Mar 17, 2015 Sunflower rated it really liked it

Shelves: e-books, fiction-read-2015

This is a reflective tale, told from the perspective of an ageing man who has retreated to the wilds of Norway to be alone. He comes to realise that he knows his nearest neighbour from years ago, and this reminds him of a time when he was a boy living with his father, when one of the turning points of his life occurred. While he is surviving alone with his dog in the winter the flashbacks to that earlier time are woven into the narrative, revealing the stories behind the story: his relationship ...more

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Oct 18, 2008 John rated it it was ok

Shelves: nearly-thrown-in-disgust

Had to quit this one a little over halfway through. I found "Out Stealing Horses" to be annoyingly sentimental - which is interesting considering I've just read two excellent books dealing with grief ("Goldengrove" and "The Year of Magical Thinking"). Maybe I am just heartless, but did any other readers cringe upon reading the sentence about how the narrator missed his absent father "constantly"? Petterson has a talent for beautiful descriptions, so it's a shame that several plot points seem cli Had to quit this one a little over halfway through. I found "Out Stealing Horses" to be annoyingly sentimental - which is interesting considering I've just read two excellent books dealing with grief ("Goldengrove" and "The Year of Magical Thinking"). Maybe I am just heartless, but did any other readers cringe upon reading the sentence about how the narrator missed his absent father "constantly"? Petterson has a talent for beautiful descriptions, so it's a shame that several plot points seem cliched and unnecessary. There is enough going on here for a month of Oprah shows (not that I watch Oprah, I'm just saying...):
- A teenager (the narrator's friend) leaves a shotgun unattended for a few moments and of course, one of his younger brothers picks it up and shoots his twin dead (interesting, by the way, how upon hearing the gunshot, the teenager assumes the worst and hides rather than run to the scene immediately)
- The narrator's father was having an affair with the mother of the kids mentioned in bullet one while participating in an underground resistance to the Nazi occupation.
- His father also tragically dies (didn't stay on board long enough to find out how but I'm guessing it involves extramarital-affair chickens coming home to roost)
- In the present, the narrator is in his sixties and has moved to the Norwegian wilderness where the events described above took place.
- We learn that three years ago he lost his wife in a car accident.
- His only neighbor out in the woods turns out to be none other than Lars, the one who shot his twin brother.

And I didn't even get to the final 100 pages... In the spirit of being completely merciless, I'll also mention that Petterson's metaphors and imagery can come across as heavy-handed. Does the reader really need to be reminded several times about how a river originating in Sweden bends into Norway before returning to Sweden (significant because of the cross-border anti-Nazi ops)? Critics seemed to love this book, but in my view, a sparer, simpler version of this story could have been much better. ...more

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Apr 15, 2009 Jessica rated it really liked it

Shelves: borrowed-from-mom, scandinavian, modern-lit

Sometimes, you're grateful that an author doesn't care so much about what happens in his story but instead focuses on making you feel - plot-driven is everywhere, but the successful novel of mood and characterization is a tough trick to land. Thankfully, Petterson handles the challenge with aplomb - Trond's modest reflections prompt the same contemplation in the reader in a very pleasing way. ...more

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Jan 04, 2017 Julie Griffin rated it it was amazing

I really loved this book. It is a quiet, thoughtful book that allows us to walk quietly with the protagonist in the Norweigan woods, watching the memories fall softly and collect on us like the snowfall. Wise and written with a soft touch. I will be looking for other books by this author.

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