Out of the Woods by Colin Smith


Out of the Woods
Title : Out of the Woods
Author :
Rating :
ISBN : 1908910135
ISBN-10 : 9781908910134
Language : English
Format Type : ebook
Number of Pages : -
Publication : First published May 27, 2012

Jamie has a long history of contact with mental health services; he almost certainly has a personality disorder. Once again, he has hit rock bottom and aims to end his suffering in his local woods at first light. He has a plan, but what he couldn’t have imagined is a dawn encounter that would prove to be a trigger for unusual changes in his life.One by one, a small group of people enter Jamie’s usually solitary world, and he is drawn, sometimes dragged, into a society he has never really belonged to. And strangest of all, he is enjoying it. This is what frightens him the most. For Jamie, hope is a delicate state of mind that is hard to maintain.Maybe this time…

Out of the Woods Reviews

  • Helen

    Bought 16-8-12

    This year I'm determined to read a load of old books, kindle and paperback from pre-2018 at least.

    This is excellent and has been sitting gathering e-dust for seven years! It's no longer available on Amazon and according to goodreads only five people have read it. Why?

    It revolves around Jamie who has suffered with mental health problems all of his life, culminating in a big event a year ago. We don't find out anymore than that. In the opening chapter, he's off to the woods to hang himself but is interrupted by a pretentious meeting.

    This event changes his life. It's a short book and feels really positive and upbeat. I can only surmise that the words 'suicide' and 'mental health' have put people off. It shouldn't.

    Guys, go and demand a reprint and read it. Now. Go on!

  • Nancy

    This is an interesting novel that, at times, made me sit back and reflect on how life can be for other people. Jamie’s story is a positive one, and I was so glad of that. Living a life that’s virtually alone seems destructive for vulnerable people whose self- confidence has been dented to some degree, or even worse. The social aspects in the novel were sensitively written. I enjoyed the way the medical practitioners were portrayed showing an empathy balanced by, what seemed to me to be, a practical pragmatism. The cat theme is interwoven in a very intriguing way. Colin Smith has shown that sometimes all it takes is a tiny reaching out- a helping hand- for improvement to happen. The rewarding twist in this novel is by whom!

  • K.B. Walker

    I really enjoyed this book and read it in one sitting. The opening suicide attempt takes us straight into the dead emptiness in the head of the main character. From the startling turn of events, deep in the woods, we're taken on a journey with Jamie that is both fascinating and informative and ultimately very hopeful.