Out Stealing Horses

By: Per Petterson

Narrated by: Richard Poe

Multiple award-winning author Per Petterson delivers an eloquent, meditative novel.

67-year-old Trond Sander lives secluded in a far corner of Norway. Casting his mind back to 1948, he recalls a horse-stealing prank with his best friend that turned tragic and changed his life forever.

©2003 Per Petterson (P)2008 Recorded Books, LLC

Critic reviews

"... on a par with ... Steinbeck, Berry, and Hemingway, and its emotional force and flavor are equivalent to what those authors can deliver, too." - Booklist

Not Disappointing - Amazing!

Would you listen to Out Stealing Horses again? Why?

To say that the ending is disappointing is to miss the point of the book. This book is a first person, stream of consciousness narrative about the impact a person's life adventures have had on him. Characters like

What about Richard Poe’s performance did you like?

Richard Poe WAS Trond, and he made me care about Trond from Minute One. His narration was understated and perfect for the book.

Pretty Good

This was somewhat interesting. I'm not sure I can recommend it. And here are some

Lush and mournful

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Reads like the memoir of a man who straddled two worlds: living in the post war forests of Norway as a teen and then making a successful life in bustling Oslo. He returns to the forest as a retired widower to connect the two pieces and finds a sweetness that I can only hope I find someday.

What did you like best about this story?

I loved the sharpness of the narrator's memories, his wonder and love of the forest.

What does Richard Poe bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

He sounds like the narrator would sound=as if he is not trying, just telling the story.

Quietly powerful

A moving story of a man approaching the end of his life making peace with tumultuous incidents in his past, which he'd left unexamined until a coincidental meeting thrusts them back into his awareness. Limpid, spare writing, and moving narration. A book that deepens the reader's understanding of how our evolving perspective on events can change what they mean to us and how they tangibly affect our life.

someone else's life.

Scandinavian writers seem to like to flash backwards and forwards throughout a story, regardless of what type of story that may happen to be telling!
In this memoir, I was not surprised to find that same structure at play.

"Out Stealing Horses" is the story of an old man looking back on his life, while also looking at his life in the current time. The story weaves back and forth, from past to present, and brings threads from the past story into his current life.

It is the "rememberings" of an old man, reflecting on his visions while he was a young boy, and the events that changed his life. We are able to see how some of the boys visions were naive and innocent, and with the wisdom of age, he (and we the reader) are able to shed new light, and give a depth and clarity, that was not there before.


The writing was skillful, but it did not really touch me on a personal level- I think because it always felt like it was someone else's life.

An Entertaining Diary of Sorts

It's a good story... not fantastic, but entertaining. A little bit odd in that it doesn't really seem to begin or end; it just is... almost like we're missing the first and last chapter. I did enjoy it, though, and the narrator sounds astonishingly like Charlton Heston, which I found somewhat amusing, because the Norwegian word for "horses" is "hesten".

Enjoyable

It was well written and a good book. a couple times I had to go back because I was a little confused as to what was going on since it does go back and forth through time quite a bit.
It was enjoyable but it missed something for me. I need a book to make me feel something, anything, anger, joy, excitement, love, empathy... something
This book didn't.

Disappointing!!

I loved the characters in this book, but when I got to the end, I was left hanging. What happened to them? I felt like it just ended, with no conclusion. There needs to be a second book to follow this to conclude it and tie up all the loose ends. I was really disappointed!!

I loved this story and the narrator!

I heard the book first, but then became aware that there were many phrases and well-stated portions of the story, and I wanted a way to hang on to them in my mind. I got the paperback version and read all the way through, taking down favorite quotes as I went. Then I relaxed and used the audio version to read aloud as I followed along with the paperback copy. NOW I feel happy.
I own it in my mind.

A book that lingers long after!

Which character – as performed by Richard Poe – was your favorite?

I had begun this book on my kindle a few months ago and had trouble getting into it. I'm so happy I decided to give it a go on Audible; Richard Poe absolutely brought this story and every single character within to life! His inflection and rhythm couldn't have been better and it is in his narration that I will forever hear this book in my head.

Any additional comments?

This is a book that absolutely lingers with you. The character development and relationships are extraordinary. Upon conclusion, when reflecting on the story you will find that the biggest questions are found subtly along the way in the dialog.