I should know better than to read award winning novels, particularly ones written in a foreign country. I read books for entertainment or to learn about a topic, not really to explore the inner workings of my soul.So “Out Stealing Horses” by Per Peterson was a disappointment to me. At first, it seemed that there was a mystery in the past that was slowly unraveling. I was intrigued. “Horses” is very Norwegian and I liked the feeling of being transported somewhere far away with a different way of life and manner of speaking.

Eventually though, I just got bored. My interest in Trond’s past slowly waned. My interest in his future was piqued for about 10 pages until the plot veered off that path (and I never did understand why there was a vivid scene about his health and then it was just dropped). Mostly, the reader just drifts along with Trond through his past and present in a stream of consciousness journey.

If that sounds like fun to you, then you’ll love the book. If that sounds like torture, you’re closer to what I thought of it. It wasn’t poorly written, it just felt very flat.

For a more involved review, check out what someone much smarter than I said about it – the New York Times. I even thought their review was boring, so obviously I just don’t have a highly cultured taste for Norwegian fiction.

Fiction written in another part of the world doesn’t have to be tedious. I enjoyed “Snow Flower and the Secret Fan” (my review).