La primera novela del mas celebrado escritor japones viviente narra las proezas de quince chicos adolescentes de un reformatorio, evacuados en tiempo de guerra a un remoto pueblo de montana, cuyo alcalde cree que hay que suprimir a los revoltosos desde la semilla. El narrador, que es el cabecilla de la banda, su hermano pequeno y sus colegas son todos delincuentes marginados, temidos y detestados por los campesinos del lugar. Cuando se declara una epidemia, los habitantes del pueblo los abandonan y huyen, encerrandolos dentro del pueblo vacio; el breve intento de los chicos de construirse una vida autonoma de dignidad, amor y valor tribal, como reaccion a la muerte y a la adulta pesadilla de la guerra, esta condenado inevitablemente al fracaso. / The first novel of the most celebrated Japanese writer alive today narrates the feats of fifteen adolescent boys in a young offenders institute, evacuated during the war to a remote mountain town, whose mayor believes that the rebellious must be eliminated. The narrator, head of the gang, his little brother and his colleagues are all marginalised delinquents, feared and despised by the residents of the village. This novel contains echoes of The Lord of the Flies as well as from Mailer and Camus, encapsulating all of the qualities which distinguish the writing of Oé: his radical ire, his evocation of myth and archetype and his extraordinary poetic style.
"Excelente"