Scan barcode
afrenette's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Body shaming, Cancer, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Car accident, Suicide attempt, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Dementia, and Death of parent
Minor: Pregnancy
svenrodian's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Cancer, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Dementia, Grief, Car accident, Suicide attempt, and Pregnancy
michellem92's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Death, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Cancer, Child death, Homophobia, Self harm, Terminal illness, Dementia, Car accident, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
Minor: Ableism, Animal death, Infertility, Physical abuse, and Alcohol
gpfot's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Cursing, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Death, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Terminal illness, Medical content, Medical trauma, Car accident, and Death of parent
Minor: Chronic illness, Homophobia, Dementia, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
mulhollen's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Minor: Animal cruelty, Dementia, and Suicide attempt
tabookish's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
irislovescats's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Chronic illness, Dementia, Car accident, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Homophobia and Miscarriage
orchidlilly's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Medical content, Grief, Car accident, Suicide attempt, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Ableism, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Dementia, and Death of parent
Minor: Infertility, Racism, Xenophobia, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
j_nell's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Death, Forced institutionalization, Dementia, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Medical trauma, and Car accident
chamomiledaydreams's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
It's interesting to see what was changed for American audiences in the recent film. I find it a little strange that Ove's name was changed to Otto, as though American audiences can't handle a Swedish name such as Ove. Even if the movie is set in Pittsburgh, there's no reason why someone living there wouldn't be named Ove, like in the book.
It's also strange that Parvenah's character is renamed Marisol and is no longer Iranian. Perhaps the decision was made so the story would be more "relevant" to American audiences, but even if more Americans are Mexican than Iranian, there are still plenty of Iranian immigrants who deserve to be represented in films such as this one.
The change that I understand the most is how Mirsad's character went from being gay in the book to trans in the movie. Given the current political climate, it's more important than ever to educate people and to teach them to be kind and generous towards trans people, especially trans youth, and while I would need to rewatch the movie to catch all of the changes that they made (Is he still named Mirsad in the film? I can't remember...), I appreciate the new take on an old storyline.
My familiarity with the movie did not diminish my enjoyment of the original novel. It was a delight to read, and the book expands upon some topics that I didn't fully understand in the movie--or rather, it made details from the movie stand out so that they moved me more deeply. A good example of this is how Frederik Backman expands upon the rivalry between Ove and Rune, repeating the list of the cars they drove over the years while gradually expanding upon the reasons why they chose certain models. The way that it all ties back to their families and the futures they planned but did not achieve breaks my heart and makes the characters even more sympathetic.
All in all, I would say this is my second favorite Frederik Backman novel. Number one is still "Anxious People," and number three is "Britt-Marie Was Here," with "My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry" coming in at number four. They're all lovely books, so even the one in last place is well worth the read. I hope to dive into his sports trilogy soon (and when an author gets me to read sports trilogies, that's when you know that they're good at weaving yarns)!
Graphic: Death, Grief, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Dementia, Car accident, and Pregnancy
Minor: Infertility