White Raven - Andrzej Stasiuk.
My own cultural preferences make me a sucker for anything by East Euro writers. This one has become a bit of a cult novel in post-1989 Poland apparently. About a group of 30-something chaps who head out for a completely mental hike in the mountains in the dead of winter. Needless to say, it all goes pear-shaped through the vodka and the cold. Some of the imagery is so powerful it becomes hard to read - this is a perfect winter book, read it before February's out, it won't work in Spring.
My own cultural preferences make me a sucker for anything by East Euro writers. This one has become a bit of a cult novel in post-1989 Poland apparently. About a group of 30-something chaps who head out for a completely mental hike in the mountains in the dead of winter. Needless to say, it all goes pear-shaped through the vodka and the cold. Some of the imagery is so powerful it becomes hard to read - this is a perfect winter book, read it before February's out, it won't work in Spring.