Euphoria
Published on 16. February 2017
978-1-78283-277-5 (ISBN)
Description
Somewhere in the Austrian Alps, a group of men in their thirties have gathered for a weekend away. When they come down from their cabin, the world has ended.
As the men wander through this destroyed human landscape, Euphoria's nameless narrator reveals only small, shocking details - a crashed helicopter, a boy sitting impassively beside his murdered parents, a provincial nightclub full of charred bodies. Seeking food and fuel for the fire, but finding only the pointless remnants of their suddenly vanished world, the men realise that all they have left is their lives. And are those really worth anything in a world where their future has crumbled away, their past remains only as an empty taunt and their present is reduced to the monotonous trudge of animal survival?
An austere, troubling tale of how quickly men become beasts, Euphoria explores the repressed savagery of human nature and the disturbing meaningless of a world run free from society's restraints.
As the men wander through this destroyed human landscape, Euphoria's nameless narrator reveals only small, shocking details - a crashed helicopter, a boy sitting impassively beside his murdered parents, a provincial nightclub full of charred bodies. Seeking food and fuel for the fire, but finding only the pointless remnants of their suddenly vanished world, the men realise that all they have left is their lives. And are those really worth anything in a world where their future has crumbled away, their past remains only as an empty taunt and their present is reduced to the monotonous trudge of animal survival?
An austere, troubling tale of how quickly men become beasts, Euphoria explores the repressed savagery of human nature and the disturbing meaningless of a world run free from society's restraints.
Reviews / Votes
Helle's impressionistic tale skips from incident to incident and past to present, bringing the emotional physical trials of the group to vivid life -- James Smart * Guardian * Profound and extremely unsettling with a powerful message for our increasingly hate-filled times -- John Harding * Daily Mail * Makes The Road seem like a Disney cartoon by comparison ... Helle is an astute predictor of human nature, and part of the reason this book is so haunting is because his characters all react to their constantly-deteriorating circumstances in entirely believable though by no means predictable ways. Euphoria may not take long to read, but it will certainly take a long time to forget. -- Roger Cox * Scotsman * Leaves you shivering. In a crystal clear, poetic language Helle ... speaks of beauty and indifference of nature, the survival instincts of man, our cruelty but also our capacity for friendship. * FOCUS * Post-apocalyptic fiction told in scientifically precise, rhythmic language that unfolds just by its sparseness into great poetry * NDR * Helle has mastered a rare tautness of expression ... it takes your breath away * Die Zeit *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Profile Books Ltd
Product notice
Reflowable
ISBN-13
978-1-78283-277-5 (9781782832775)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Persons
Heinz Helle was born in 1978. He studied philosophy in Munich and New York. He has worked as copywriter for advertising agencies, and is a graduate of the Swiss Literature Institute in Biel. Euphoria is his second novel; his first novel Superabundance was also published by Serpent's Tail.
