A review by cinnamonmarti
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
You've got to be kidding me. There's no way you're all hailing this book as a contemporary masterpiece when it's some of the most uninspired, bland writing I've seen lately.
Granted, the idea and themes at its core are very good, but the execution doesn't match them at hall imho. The pace felt clunky and difficult to get through for a good 60% of the book. Also, not sure if it's a case of "lost in translation" or what, but I didn't find it nearly as funny as I'm sure the intention was.
This played into my fear of becoming old and alone, but it was done in such a sterile and generic way I couldn't even empathise with the main character! Overall it was just a repetitive an exhausting experience to be in Ove's head, maybe because I don't really dig in the 'grumpy, emotionally unavailable man is actually the best person you'll ever meet' trope outside of fantasy.
Granted, the idea and themes at its core are very good, but the execution doesn't match them at hall imho. The pace felt clunky and difficult to get through for a good 60% of the book. Also, not sure if it's a case of "lost in translation" or what, but I didn't find it nearly as funny as I'm sure the intention was.
This played into my fear of becoming old and alone, but it was done in such a sterile and generic way I couldn't even empathise with the main character! Overall it was just a repetitive an exhausting experience to be in Ove's head, maybe because I don't really dig in the 'grumpy, emotionally unavailable man is actually the best person you'll ever meet' trope outside of fantasy.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts