jkononova's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Man, I don't have much to say about this book, other than I just really loved it.
Rare is a book that makes me both laugh and cry, and A Man Called Ove succeeded at both (often and semi-frequently, respectively). I started reading it because I wanted to occupy myself with something light and heartwarming as a break from my heavy courseload this quarter in university, and all the sci-fi and nonfiction and such that were already in progress were not cutting it. I'll say that the plot definitely isn't a "live, laugh, love" brand of wholesome; Backman doesn't shy away from getting into some of the darker parts of life that damage us, be it the misfortunes that bring surface-level cracks or the trauma that shatters us in our entirety. He doesn't lean into the overly saccharine, so every bit of the characters' growth throughout the course of the story and eventual happiness in the closing chapters feels real and earned. (I will say that the epilogue started feeling a little too good to be true at some points, in my opinion. but I was so overwhelmed with emotion at that point to care about "gritty realism" or whatever.)
(As an aside, I'm really curious as to how this book reads in its original Swedish. The language in translated books always feels a bit simple and canned to me, which works great with the lighthearted tone in this case, but I can't help but wonder what the original contains without all the workarounds in regard to slang, politics, etc that they had to include for English speakers. Though I guess I won't know unless I learn to read Swedish fluently, aka never, lol.)
All in all, I'd really recommend to anyone who feels drawn in by the premise!
Rare is a book that makes me both laugh and cry, and A Man Called Ove succeeded at both (often and semi-frequently, respectively). I started reading it because I wanted to occupy myself with something light and heartwarming as a break from my heavy courseload this quarter in university, and all the sci-fi and nonfiction and such that were already in progress were not cutting it. I'll say that the plot definitely isn't a "live, laugh, love" brand of wholesome; Backman doesn't shy away from getting into some of the darker parts of life that damage us, be it the misfortunes that bring surface-level cracks or the trauma that shatters us in our entirety. He doesn't lean into the overly saccharine, so every bit of the characters' growth throughout the course of the story and eventual happiness in the closing chapters feels real and earned. (I will say that the epilogue started feeling a little too good to be true at some points, in my opinion. but I was so overwhelmed with emotion at that point to care about "gritty realism" or whatever.)
(As an aside, I'm really curious as to how this book reads in its original Swedish. The language in translated books always feels a bit simple and canned to me, which works great with the lighthearted tone in this case, but I can't help but wonder what the original contains without all the workarounds in regard to slang, politics, etc that they had to include for English speakers. Though I guess I won't know unless I learn to read Swedish fluently, aka never, lol.)
All in all, I'd really recommend to anyone who feels drawn in by the premise!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Suicide attempt
Minor: Car accident, Pregnancy, Homophobia, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, and Violence
reuben_books's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I feel emotionally wrecked after finishing this. I'm pretty sure I was crying solidly for the last 50 or so pages.
This is my first time reading Fredrik Backman, and I definitely understand the hype. It was such a real and heartfelt book which I think could bring just about anyone both comfort and emotional turmoil.
There are two reasons I haven't given this book 5 stars. If it weren't for these things, it would definitely be a 5. These are:
- Some pretty blatant fat-shaming/fatphobia. I would understand if this was just in Ove's point of view, as it is in his nature to be offensive about pretty much everything. However, this shaming was also in the main narrative voice. Jimmy - the only plus sized character in the book - was pretty much constantly eating, and described as greasy and no end of other fatphobic stereotypes. No other characters were stereotyped as much as him, and it did make me uncomfortable each time he was described.
- The words 'bent' and 'bender' to describe a gay character were used FAR too often, especially by a (as far as I can tell) straight male author. Again, this was in both Ove's voice and the narrative voice. It served a purpose when Ove was using these words in the beginning, but even after Ove was corrected and told not to use them, he still carried on, with seemingly no other repercussions. And the narrative voice just didn't have to use those words AT ALL. I do concede that these words and their true meaning could have been a little lost during the translation of the book, but I still do not like that they were used like this.
I hope that both of these issues are due to this book being written in 2012, and don't prove a problem in Backman's later works.
This is my first time reading Fredrik Backman, and I definitely understand the hype. It was such a real and heartfelt book which I think could bring just about anyone both comfort and emotional turmoil.
There are two reasons I haven't given this book 5 stars. If it weren't for these things, it would definitely be a 5. These are:
- Some pretty blatant fat-shaming/fatphobia. I would understand if this was just in Ove's point of view, as it is in his nature to be offensive about pretty much everything. However, this shaming was also in the main narrative voice. Jimmy - the only plus sized character in the book - was pretty much constantly eating, and described as greasy and no end of other fatphobic stereotypes. No other characters were stereotyped as much as him, and it did make me uncomfortable each time he was described.
- The words 'bent' and 'bender' to describe a gay character were used FAR too often, especially by a (as far as I can tell) straight male author. Again, this was in both Ove's voice and the narrative voice. It served a purpose when Ove was using these words in the beginning, but even after Ove was corrected and told not to use them, he still carried on, with seemingly no other repercussions. And the narrative voice just didn't have to use those words AT ALL. I do concede that these words and their true meaning could have been a little lost during the translation of the book, but I still do not like that they were used like this.
I hope that both of these issues are due to this book being written in 2012, and don't prove a problem in Backman's later works.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, and Homophobia
laney_babe's review
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide attempt
Minor: Fatphobia, Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Homophobia, and Suicide attempt
sloanhepler_'s review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
While I found this book mostly overrated and redundant, I have to admit that I enjoyed the last hour or two of the audiobook and final paragraphs made me smile.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt
Moderate: Car accident, Cancer, Fatphobia, Homophobia, and Death
Minor: Animal cruelty, Pregnancy, and Miscarriage
em_readz's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Suicide
Moderate: Fatphobia
booknerdsinmn's review
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt and Fatphobia
Moderate: Death, Racism, Misogyny, Car accident, Xenophobia, Grief, Child death, Animal cruelty, and Body shaming
gretchotter's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide
Moderate: Fatphobia
Minor: Homophobia
stucci's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Homophobia and Fatphobia
bridgetkay's review against another edition
Did not finish. Could not finish. I got more enjoyment reading the 1-star reviews for this book.
The character is problematic as all hell and I really have no interest in a story centred on a white man who’s surrounded by people who aren’t white men as supporting characters to some kind of redemption arc. Any time I attempted to read this, it put me in a bad mood. So for self care purposes, I will not be finishing this.
The character is problematic as all hell and I really have no interest in a story centred on a white man who’s surrounded by people who aren’t white men as supporting characters to some kind of redemption arc. Any time I attempted to read this, it put me in a bad mood. So for self care purposes, I will not be finishing this.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Body shaming, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Grief, Religious bigotry, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Racism, and Suicidal thoughts