that short fiction site.

The Boy Who Stole Attila's Horse by Iván Repila

‘It looks impossible to get out,’ he says. And also: ‘But we’ll get out.’

Two brothers, Big and Small, are trapped at the bottom of a well. They have no food and little chance of rescue. Only the tempting spectre of insanity offers a way out. As Small’s wits fail, Big formulates a desperate plan.

With the authority of the darkest fables, and the horrifying inevitability of all-too-real life, Repila’s unique allegory explores the depths of human desperation and, ultimately, our almost unending capacity for hope.

(Pushkin Press)

Title
The Boy Who Stole Attila's Horse
Author
Iván Repila
Translated by
Sophie Hughes
Original language
Spanish
Type
Novella
Pages
106
Publisher
Pushkin Press
Published
2015