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Publication
London : Self Made Hero, 2018
User reviews
LibraryThing member Lunarreader
A dense, hard story about a boy running away from home, from atrocities, from his personal demon, from stupidity and obedience, from .... his life in fact.
Without spoiling too much: it's not pleasant to read, it's about abuse, violence, poverty, disease, no freedom, no future. So be prepared.
In an
Internationally acclaimed as being a gem, and yes it is kind of a pageturner, but too unlikely in the end, as if the author wanted to compensate for all the misfortune in the kid's life.
Without spoiling too much: it's not pleasant to read, it's about abuse, violence, poverty, disease, no freedom, no future. So be prepared.
In an
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unspecified timeframe but not recent, in an unspecified country but probably the Extremadura region in Spain, as the author has his roots there, little or no names but a very detailed very local setting which contributes again to this density, as do the hard and detailed description of interaction between the very few main characters in the novel. All these elements together must provide a universal background so that the reader can imagine this happening closeby.Internationally acclaimed as being a gem, and yes it is kind of a pageturner, but too unlikely in the end, as if the author wanted to compensate for all the misfortune in the kid's life.
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LibraryThing member banjo123
I read this in my quest to prepare for my trip to Spain by reading more Spanish authors. It was at the library, apparently quite a popular book in Spain. Hopefully this book will NOT be useful in my travels, as it's mostly about suffering. It takes place in a post-apocalyptic landscape, a dreadful
The story seems allegorical, on the one hand, but on the other hand, the descriptions are very specific. For example, when Carrasco tells you about the boy's attempts to milk goats, you can really visualize the scene. This is a good translation I think, and I found the book compelling.
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drought that has left the landscape very harsh, and for the most part the people match the landscape. The main character is a young boy. We never learn his name, he is just the boy; I think as a reminder of how dehumanizing the whole situation is. The boy is on the run from abuse and betrayal in his village. He meets an elderly goatherd. The goatherd doesn't talk much, but turns out to be the one kind person around, and he takes the boy under his wing. This takes courage, because the boy is being chased by evil characters from his village.The story seems allegorical, on the one hand, but on the other hand, the descriptions are very specific. For example, when Carrasco tells you about the boy's attempts to milk goats, you can really visualize the scene. This is a good translation I think, and I found the book compelling.
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LibraryThing member Stbalbach
Out in the Open is a Spanish novel from 2013. It reminds me of The Road but better. To appreciate, one has to know of Spain's environmental problems with water. There are dry regions that once had villages and farms that have been abandoned to desert. This is due to water mismanagement by coastal
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resort cities and global warming, rivers dry up, vegetation dies. None of this is discussed in the novel, but anyone from Spain will understand the context and visuals described, not unlike an Old West movie. The setting is vaguely in the future, after the rule of law has collapsed, but with a foot in the Middle Ages. If the age had a historical parallel it might be Late Antiquity when pagan culture was dying off and the Dark Ages beginning. The writing is spare and action oriented with a sinister sense of being hunted - at some point I became so attached to the main characters it left me afraid to keep reading. Carrasco has that power, it is immersive and believable. Highly recommend. Show Less
LibraryThing member streamsong
In a dystopian world that is almost, but not quite, our world, a nameless boy is fleeing a horrifically abusive situation. He must cross a waterless expanse with little cover. His abuser, an evil man known as the bailiff and the bailiff’s gang which include the boy’s teacher and even the
Unexpectedly the boy comes across an old man, a goat herder. He is one of the few people known to live and travel this empty plain. But is he friend or foe?
The boy slowly learns to trust and rely on his new acquaintance. Even more slowly the boy learns confidence in himself.
The old herder adheres to a moral code of right and wrong, even in this evil world. Some reviewers point out the allegorical images of the goatherder/(shepherd) and his moral teachings. If so, to me it’s an Old Testament sort of morality at times meeting violence with violence, but at the same time stopping short of revenge.
It can be a tough read, but it is a page turner and is one of my favorite books of the year.
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boy’s own father, cannot let him escape. The boy is well aware that most probably his journey will lead to his death, and yet he cannot stay.Unexpectedly the boy comes across an old man, a goat herder. He is one of the few people known to live and travel this empty plain. But is he friend or foe?
The boy slowly learns to trust and rely on his new acquaintance. Even more slowly the boy learns confidence in himself.
The old herder adheres to a moral code of right and wrong, even in this evil world. Some reviewers point out the allegorical images of the goatherder/(shepherd) and his moral teachings. If so, to me it’s an Old Testament sort of morality at times meeting violence with violence, but at the same time stopping short of revenge.
It can be a tough read, but it is a page turner and is one of my favorite books of the year.
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LibraryThing member bigfootmurf
My girlfriend wouldn’t have got past page one, the hanging dog. I mention this because if you’re the sort of person that wouldn’t get past page one you’ll regret buying the book and I don’t want to mislead anyone. If you’re not fazed by that and worse then it’s a good read about
This graphic novel adaptation of ‘Out In The Open’ opens, like ‘East Of Eden’, with a description of the landscape in which the story takes place. ‘The town was built on the bed of a broad gully down which water had flowed at some point. Now it was just a long hollow in the middle of an endless plain.’ The original novel doesn’t open like this (I checked), so clearly, writer Jesús Carrasco isn’t following it exactly, though he does begin the actual story with the same scene, the boy hiding in a hole and listening to his pursuers.
They include his father and the sheriff. His father beat him regularly but no doubt pretended to the town that he was terribly missed. The sheriff…well, you’ll see. The boy has no food or water and the only escape route is across a baking hot plain. Fortunately, he finds a wise and kindly old goatherd who is going that way and helps him. Unfortunately, his pursuers don’t give up. Meanwhile, in his dreams, he remembers the terrible past.
Javi Rey’s art is rendered in an attractive linear style decorated with faded pastel colours and seems perfectly suited to the material. His storytelling is clear and vivid. The boy’s nightmares are painted with a more limited palette, mostly one colour, to distinguish them from the rest of the book. The story is terrific but there are brutal scenes. Mind you, each is limited to a panel. This is not a gore-fest but a short, sharp shock. It’s nowhere near as violent as the average Judge Dredd story but that’s cartoon violence and doesn’t feel real. The true-to-life nature of this story makes it harder to take. For all that, I must emphasise that there are humanity and hope as well.
The story takes place in an unnamed country and unspecified time. Although it features a motorised vehicle there are no SF trappings and the general look is primitive. The townsfolk go to mass and the landscape is barren and dry so for me it was Mexico.
I hope someone films it. Thanks to Javi Rey’s striking art, I can easily visualise’ Out In The Open’ as a spaghetti western from Sergio Leone with music by Ennio Morricone. I see Jack Elam as the boy’s brutish father, Lee Van Cleef as the evil Sheriff and Spencer Tracy as the wise, grizzled old man. Unfortunately, I think all these people have moved on to that great cinema in the sky and I don’t know enough about modern film to cast it otherwise.
Recommended as long as you’re not of a too sensitive disposition, though if four or five panels don’t make you feel a bit ill then you’re of a too brutish disposition and possibly a psychopath.
Eamonn Murphy
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finding some humanity in a violent world.This graphic novel adaptation of ‘Out In The Open’ opens, like ‘East Of Eden’, with a description of the landscape in which the story takes place. ‘The town was built on the bed of a broad gully down which water had flowed at some point. Now it was just a long hollow in the middle of an endless plain.’ The original novel doesn’t open like this (I checked), so clearly, writer Jesús Carrasco isn’t following it exactly, though he does begin the actual story with the same scene, the boy hiding in a hole and listening to his pursuers.
They include his father and the sheriff. His father beat him regularly but no doubt pretended to the town that he was terribly missed. The sheriff…well, you’ll see. The boy has no food or water and the only escape route is across a baking hot plain. Fortunately, he finds a wise and kindly old goatherd who is going that way and helps him. Unfortunately, his pursuers don’t give up. Meanwhile, in his dreams, he remembers the terrible past.
Javi Rey’s art is rendered in an attractive linear style decorated with faded pastel colours and seems perfectly suited to the material. His storytelling is clear and vivid. The boy’s nightmares are painted with a more limited palette, mostly one colour, to distinguish them from the rest of the book. The story is terrific but there are brutal scenes. Mind you, each is limited to a panel. This is not a gore-fest but a short, sharp shock. It’s nowhere near as violent as the average Judge Dredd story but that’s cartoon violence and doesn’t feel real. The true-to-life nature of this story makes it harder to take. For all that, I must emphasise that there are humanity and hope as well.
The story takes place in an unnamed country and unspecified time. Although it features a motorised vehicle there are no SF trappings and the general look is primitive. The townsfolk go to mass and the landscape is barren and dry so for me it was Mexico.
I hope someone films it. Thanks to Javi Rey’s striking art, I can easily visualise’ Out In The Open’ as a spaghetti western from Sergio Leone with music by Ennio Morricone. I see Jack Elam as the boy’s brutish father, Lee Van Cleef as the evil Sheriff and Spencer Tracy as the wise, grizzled old man. Unfortunately, I think all these people have moved on to that great cinema in the sky and I don’t know enough about modern film to cast it otherwise.
Recommended as long as you’re not of a too sensitive disposition, though if four or five panels don’t make you feel a bit ill then you’re of a too brutish disposition and possibly a psychopath.
Eamonn Murphy
Show Less
Awards
Dublin Literary Award (Longlist — 2017)
PEN Translation Prize (Shortlist — 2018)
Europese Literatuurprijs (Longlist — 2014)
NPR: Books We Love (2017)
The A.V. Club best books (2017)
Language
Original language
Portuguese
Original publication date
2013
2017 (English)
ISBN
9781910593479