Product Description

A truly remarkable tour de force, both as a novel and as a translation by Sheila Fischman The story is told by a child who has been brought up in a cabin by a deranged father in the Canadian wilds. The child has simply never met anyone from outside the little family, and speaks an extraordinary language based on the father's limited conversation and a motley selection of books in the cabin. The story opens on the day the two siblings discover that their father has hanged himself. Now they will be forced into contact with the villagers beyond their little universe. They will discover the startling truth about the world outside -- and the world outside will discover the even more startling truth about them and their history. Hypnotic, powerful, playful, utterly suspenseful, this is an amazing novel that has been a major bestseller in Canada.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #569499 in Books
• Published on: 2002-05-20
• Original language: French
• Binding: Paperback
• 144 pages

About the Author
Soucy has written three novels, all to rave reviews in Canada and abroad. He teaches philosophy and lives in Montreal.

Customer Reviews

Well-crafted
The reality Soucy has created seems to progress on a swift timeline from fascinating, and strangely compelling, to downright disturbing in the last third of the book. In this, the author has definitely mastered suspense. However, because of the swift progression the novel can appear, at times, to move too fast, but that's a minor criticism.

I don't think it's necessarily fair to say that the children 'discover the truth' of the outside world when they're forced to come into contact with it, and this is perhaps the key adventure to the novel - truths and immutable facts that we as readers know have to be suspended. The children are completely unable to reconcile what they encounter to any form of 'truth' that we know, and the reader is forced into viewing the world through their eyes, and sharing their experiences by way of a first person narrative.

The writing itself is masterful and is often lyrical, even when describing horrors. There are no excess words, or fillers, or unnecessary descriptions. So, while not an easy read, it is a pleasure to read partly because of the writer's skill.

I'd recommend this to anyone who wants to take a look at the world through very different eyes, and who can stomach the unpleasant moments.

Interesting, but no classic
This is more of an extended short story than a novel, I would say - but that is no criticism. You are drawn slowly into an intricate and confusing world that is in turns disturbing, fascinating, haunting and occasionally deeply beautiful. But be warned, this is no story for the easily offended or upset. A growing sense of horror is finally and explicitly confirmed as the story draws to a close. Perhaps the best comparison that I can make would be with Ian McEwan's "The Cement Garden" - but whereas that book could not grasp my attention enough to read it all, this book did at least that.

Furthermore, anyone who has a reasonable knowledge of 20th Century philosophy - in particular of Wittgenstein - will find that there are some thought provoking titbits thrown in along the way.

So with all this, why only the three stars? Well, although there are many outstanding moments - and whilst the dark underlying secret of the story is well kept and cunningly revealed, exceeding even your worst suspicions, it is an effort to get through this book. The apparent constant effort of the author to shock you with details of the children's barbaric existence becomes a little tiresome. And it is entirely unnecessary, because the book is far better where it hints and suggests, than where it describes with gleefully explicit detail.

Overall, definitely worth a read. Whether it is worth buying I am not so sure. The trouble is that your local library is not likely to have it . . . mine did not.

Amazing !
3 nights in a row I had nightmares due to reading this book. I'd do it again ! Amazing !