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orchidlilly's review against another edition
dark
emotional
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? No
4.5
A really good exploration of grief and learning to live after it. Ove is both lovable and annoying, which turns at a point to endearing in its own right. The rest of the characters feel very real and individualized, and have a lot of unspoken depth to them. The back and forth between Ove's memories and current life really build his story well and allow the reader to understand why he is the way he is.
Content Warnings
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
karkei's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
tense
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
4.5
Ove is as old-school as they come. Despite the great reviews I’ve heard about this book, I was quite skeptical. When the story started out, Ove was grumpy and complaining. I wondered if he was one of those characters you’re just not supposed to like.
While there are still things I disagree with him on, there were so many things that I grew to love about him too - mostly his love for Sonja. What an incredibly heartbreaking, yet equally heartwarming tale.
In spite of his tough exterior, Ove was a marshmallow inside. People back then were just not taught to express themselves quite emotionally. What a tough bunch of people the boomers were.
These were just an outstanding bunch of characters. Ove was such a simple man but yet so complex. His characterization was so intricately woven - I want to applaud Backman. Ove reminded me of other characters I like - partly that old man in Pixar’s “Up” and partly Richard Gilmore from Gilmore Girls. They must be cut from the same cloth. I also absolutely loved Sonja - she’s such a strong and loveable woman. Apart from that, the diversity that was written into this story certainly didn’t go unnoticed.
Sonja summed Ove up best when she said he was the oddest kind of superhero.
While there are still things I disagree with him on, there were so many things that I grew to love about him too - mostly his love for Sonja. What an incredibly heartbreaking, yet equally heartwarming tale.
In spite of his tough exterior, Ove was a marshmallow inside. People back then were just not taught to express themselves quite emotionally. What a tough bunch of people the boomers were.
These were just an outstanding bunch of characters. Ove was such a simple man but yet so complex. His characterization was so intricately woven - I want to applaud Backman. Ove reminded me of other characters I like - partly that old man in Pixar’s “Up” and partly Richard Gilmore from Gilmore Girls. They must be cut from the same cloth. I also absolutely loved Sonja - she’s such a strong and loveable woman. Apart from that, the diversity that was written into this story certainly didn’t go unnoticed.
Sonja summed Ove up best when she said he was the oddest kind of superhero.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Fatphobia, Miscarriage, and Car accident
Minor: Body shaming
mrs_engineer's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.5
I almost set this aside after the first hour of the audiobook but I'm so glad I kept listening. Such a heartbreakingly beautiful story about love, grief, and community. Backman has such a wonderful way with words and although he drove me crazy for the first bit, Ove is a character that will remain close to my heart.
"Death is a strange thing. People live their whole lives as if it does not exist and yet it’s often one of the great motivations for living. Some of us in time become so conscious of it that we live harder, more obstinately, with more fury. Some need its constant presence to be even aware of its antithesis. Others become so preoccupied with it that they go into the waiting room long before it has announced its arrival. We fear it, yet most of us fear more than anything that it may take someone other than ourselves. For the greatest fear of death is always that it will pass us by and leave us there alone."
"Death is a strange thing. People live their whole lives as if it does not exist and yet it’s often one of the great motivations for living. Some of us in time become so conscious of it that we live harder, more obstinately, with more fury. Some need its constant presence to be even aware of its antithesis. Others become so preoccupied with it that they go into the waiting room long before it has announced its arrival. We fear it, yet most of us fear more than anything that it may take someone other than ourselves. For the greatest fear of death is always that it will pass us by and leave us there alone."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Miscarriage, Car accident, and Suicide attempt
hkveit's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Cancer, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Miscarriage, and Car accident
katlinstirling_reads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
sad
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? N/A
4.0
Such a great book! Ove is such a sweet man and I’ve wanted to read this book for so long. Funny and heartwarming, moving but sad too. Beautifully written.
Pick at Bookclub
Narrator - Joan Walker
Pick at Bookclub
Narrator - Joan Walker
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Cancer, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Miscarriage, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Medical content, Grief, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
palis's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-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
"Love" is maybe a weird way to identify this book since it is not a love story, but it contains the most incredible sentences depicting love that I have ever read. Love in a couple, and Love in a community. A book that is about finding meaning in your life when you don't fit in it. And the meaning is found in helping others. It has all the things people who quite can't fit in society or aren't able to communicate with the world will hope to someday find.
Favorite quotes
Favorite quotes
But if anyone had asked, he would have told them that he never lived before he met her. And not after either.
And so the days went by. Ove would go to work, come home and have potatoes and sausages for dinner. He was never lonely. And he never had company.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Car accident, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Cancer and Miscarriage
reminiscences's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Chronic illness, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Car accident, and Suicide attempt
froggoz13's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
The writing style and the story just aren't for me. The story got better in the second half of the book, but the plot and jokes and characters are too repetitive and satirical.
Also why are Jimmy and Mirsad together????
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Death, Car accident, and Death of parent
Minor: Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Violence, and Xenophobia
j_nell's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
sad
fast-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
Backman does it again. Amazing. Had me chuckling and tearing up within minutes.
Content Warnings
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
emotional
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
4.0
Watching "A Man Called Otto" over a year ago was my first exposure to Frederik Backman, although I had seen his novels in the library before. I was taken with the story instantly, and I managed to snag a copy of the original novel a few months ago.
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)!
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)!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Dementia, Car accident, and Pregnancy
Minor: Infertility