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eliya's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Sobbed through the first half. Made me think of my dad.
I don’t find his meanness charming, I don’t excuse him for the way he talks about his neighbors. I empathize with him. The book was sweet, I cried like a hole in a waterpipe, but I did not like ove and I felt bad for the people around him.
There’s this weird phenomena of this generation or men, idk what it is, where;
1. what’s happened to you is the worst thing to happen to anyone ever and you can’t move past yourself to acknowledge the suffering that is living, and,
2. to almost expect your community or the people who you care about to see through your nastiness and show that you’re good. There’s this brand of people who believe that if you do good actions that’ll show you’re good, and you don’t have to show basic human kindness to anyone! Pithy excuse for emotional immaturity that I’m exhausted by and made me angry to read.
Graphic: Fatphobia, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Death, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, and Pregnancy
geminisoul'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: Animal cruelty, Cancer, Child death, Death, Infertility, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Blood, Dementia, Grief, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
shellsbookclub'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? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Child death, Death, Miscarriage, Dementia, Grief, Car accident, and Death of parent
chelle22's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Bullying, Cancer, Child death, Cursing, Death, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Racial slurs, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Dementia, Grief, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
jackielane'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, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Cancer, Homophobia, and Dementia
craftysnailtail's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I'm also fairly convinced that Backman has never met a cat before in their entire lives. A cat that licks steering wheels passive aggressively, happily wears socks, and calmly sits on bar stools in cafes they've never been in before was so out of left field. The rest of the book is very realistic, so the cartoon cat threw me in every scene they were in.
The use of similes to describe every single disgruntled expression this man has ever had in his life drove me mad as well, but that's clearly a personal writing style preference, so to each their own.
The overall message of the book is... nice. And I think it gives the reader a nuanced perspective of what it's like to be a senior that society seems to have given up on. But the road to get there was gritty and uncomfortable. I mean I was rooting for Ove getting what he wanted for the vast majority of the book because it felt like his right to make that decision. At least I appreciated the ending, though. I don't think it's a book I would recommend to friends, but it was different from other books I've read recently, so that made it worth it for me in the end.
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Cancer, Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Infertility, Miscarriage, Racism, Terminal illness, Xenophobia, Dementia, Car accident, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury
kaligray's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Death, Homophobia, Dementia, Grief, and Car accident
brittany25's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.5
Moderate: Dementia
Minor: Death, Homophobia, Miscarriage, and Car accident
britbreeze's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Suicide attempt
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
Minor: Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Dementia, and Car accident
alex_bousquet's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Moderate: Pregnancy
Minor: Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Cancer, Miscarriage, Terminal illness, Dementia, Car accident, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent