boysen_bean's review
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
cousinrachel's review against another edition
2.0
DNF
I got about a third of the way through this and decided I couldn't finish it. There was a nice beginning, with concise prose creating an atmosphere of isolation in the Norwegian countryside, the narrator Trond's recollection of his friend Jon, and Jon's intriguingly bizarre behavior while they are "out stealing horses," but it didn't take long to start rambling for pages and pages about farming with his dad, with not much else going on. There's little dialogue, probably because most of it is the narrator relating memories from decades ago. Still, just Trond talking all the time gets old.
I had thought this would be more like several anecdotes from when he was a teenager. I was curious about the spectacular conclusion that the reviews promised, but I'm unwilling to sit through more chapters of painful detail about how to make hay to get to it. 2 stars for decent description otherwise and atmosphere-building.
I got about a third of the way through this and decided I couldn't finish it. There was a nice beginning, with concise prose creating an atmosphere of isolation in the Norwegian countryside, the narrator Trond's recollection of his friend Jon, and Jon's intriguingly bizarre behavior while they are "out stealing horses," but it didn't take long to start rambling for pages and pages about farming with his dad, with not much else going on. There's little dialogue, probably because most of it is the narrator relating memories from decades ago. Still, just Trond talking all the time gets old.
I had thought this would be more like several anecdotes from when he was a teenager. I was curious about the spectacular conclusion that the reviews promised, but I'm unwilling to sit through more chapters of painful detail about how to make hay to get to it. 2 stars for decent description otherwise and atmosphere-building.
elisabeth1st's review against another edition
5.0
A long overdue reading of Pet Petterson's book. I waiver between a 4 & 5 star ratiing. (ever notice I am stingy with the 5 star?) I need to ruminate more, as I just finished the book, but I did love it.
nancidrum's review against another edition
3.0
I can understand how this book merits awards as the writing is the type we often find in award winning books. This does not mean, however, that it's a likable book. The MC struggles with knowing who he is and I found it exhausting as I was forced to struggle along with him throughout the entire book. It's a shorter book than normal, but that's no excuse not to fully develop the characters. It seemed as though there was a gray gauze over all the characters that never lifted. The reader was given just the bare minimum detail, which led to me not really taking much of an interest in their lives. This book continually switches from present day to past. Unlike most books that move back and forth in time, this one did not have smooth transitions, so there were times it when I would not realize it had switched time frames until after a few confusing paragraphs. I adore all the factors within this book: horses, rural life, Norway, coming of age stories, war heroes, conflicted love, and struggling characters, but somehow this book was very depressing and left me flat.
tommooney's review against another edition
2.0
I think I may have missed something with this book.
Petterson's story, if it can really be called that, is partly about the incidents that occurred one summer in the life of the narrator Trond. Staying in a forest cabin with his father, Trond interacts with locals, rides horses and helps his father with logging. This is all told as dream-like memories by the much older Trond as he takes stock of his life as it begins to wind to a close and assesses the way these forming years affected him.
About a third of the way through I was in love with the novel - the gorgeous setting of northern Norway, the spare and beautiful prose, the tender coming-of-age story. But it just stops flat. Petterson introduces several plotlines that lead nowhere, loads of characters find no resolution and it all becomes a bit dull.
Now, that may well all be true to real life but I'm not sure I want it from a novel. And I can live without five-page descriptions of an old man getting out of bed on a morning.
Petterson's story, if it can really be called that, is partly about the incidents that occurred one summer in the life of the narrator Trond. Staying in a forest cabin with his father, Trond interacts with locals, rides horses and helps his father with logging. This is all told as dream-like memories by the much older Trond as he takes stock of his life as it begins to wind to a close and assesses the way these forming years affected him.
About a third of the way through I was in love with the novel - the gorgeous setting of northern Norway, the spare and beautiful prose, the tender coming-of-age story. But it just stops flat. Petterson introduces several plotlines that lead nowhere, loads of characters find no resolution and it all becomes a bit dull.
Now, that may well all be true to real life but I'm not sure I want it from a novel. And I can live without five-page descriptions of an old man getting out of bed on a morning.
pam511nc's review against another edition
4.0
Youth, maturity, melancholy, relationships and acceptance. As one reviewer said, "Bloody Hell".
stinajohanns's review against another edition
2.0
I read this book on recommendations. Everyone loved it. So I borrowed a copy and started reading. Unfortunately the copy I borrowed was in the original language, Norwegian, which I can read but I'm not particularly strong in it. That may be why my experience wasn't the same as the other ones. I can easily read plot-driven books about crimes in Norwegian but this book is just so slo and so full of descriptions of things that don't seem to matter at all that I got lost in the words. And the sentences ran so long that I wanted to say to Petterson the same as I often say to my students, "The periods don't cost a thing. Use them". I feel like I missed something - like the whole book. There must be something there that everyone lost and maybe I should read it again one day in translation. Maybe then I'll get what everyone's raving about.
tikitami's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this book. I am so glad I happened upon it. A quick poetic read. I feel this is a book I will read many times thru out my life.
thelexingtonbookie's review against another edition
1.0
I've finally gotten my stack of books to be read down to three, with "Out Stealing Horses" included. I don't remember where I got the book, but I think it may have been a gift. No matter, since it had horses in it, I figured it wouldn't hurt taking up a space on my bookshelves.
But the problem is, I finally cracked the book open and read... and I really can't stand it.
Now, some people are really into the type of writing style that Petterson (as translated by Anne Born) uses, where the text is almost a stream of conscious thought (prose). I'm not one of those people. It's hard for me to follow along and in this case, there's flashbacks that take you from present to past and in doing so, causes confusion and disrupts the reader's understanding.
As I said, there are some out there that love that kind of writing style, and if you are one of them, check this book out and tell me what you think. But if you are like me, I would pass on this one. As is, I only got about 20 pages in. Maybe I quit too early, but in reading the book summary on the back cover, it sounds like there wasn't much more to the story than what I figured out in the first 20 pages.
For those that really want the summary: Trond Sander, an almost 70 year old man, helps his neighbor look for his lost dog in late one night. After moving out in the remote area, the sudden companionship of the neighbor throws Trond back into memories of his younger years with his mischievous friend Jon.
But the problem is, I finally cracked the book open and read... and I really can't stand it.
Now, some people are really into the type of writing style that Petterson (as translated by Anne Born) uses, where the text is almost a stream of conscious thought (prose). I'm not one of those people. It's hard for me to follow along and in this case, there's flashbacks that take you from present to past and in doing so, causes confusion and disrupts the reader's understanding.
As I said, there are some out there that love that kind of writing style, and if you are one of them, check this book out and tell me what you think. But if you are like me, I would pass on this one. As is, I only got about 20 pages in. Maybe I quit too early, but in reading the book summary on the back cover, it sounds like there wasn't much more to the story than what I figured out in the first 20 pages.
For those that really want the summary: Trond Sander, an almost 70 year old man, helps his neighbor look for his lost dog in late one night. After moving out in the remote area, the sudden companionship of the neighbor throws Trond back into memories of his younger years with his mischievous friend Jon.