Reviews with content warning for Classism - Beartown

Reviews tagging 'Classism'

Beartown by Fredrik Backman

97 reviews

mylazybones's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful sad tense slow-paced

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? Yes

4.5

Content Warnings

annakh16's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional reflective tense

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

A masterpiece in character studies. A lot darker than I expected (please do note the trigger warnings) but handled with great empathy.

Backman brings each character to life beautifully - and there are a lot of them -, showing the many depths of their motivations and creating an ever more complex web of relationships. The writing is straightforward but stunning - philosophical at times, when discussing concepts such as loyalty, love, friendship, family, community and more, but also full of vivid descriptions and images that really help bring the stories to life. The book makes clever use of flashbacks and flashforwards, which are revealing enough for the reader to make their own guesses about what will happen, but obscure enough to allow the story to unfold at its own pace. In fact, the book is full of small plot twists along the way, which are really aided by these small hints, that are often subverted at the last minute.

The only thing I‘d say is that it‘s a little bit slow to get into, as it starts with a lot of character description before the plot gets moving. But (as Backman always manages), soon both characters and places are laced with depth, so that you can’t help but root for them (or despise them, alternatively). As the plot picks up, so does the pace and by the end of the book, tension is running thick.

This is no doubt my favourite of Backman’s books so far. I loved this and would really recommend (even if you‘re not even slightly interested in hockey).

I especially appreciated Backman‘s almost sociological study of the dynamics and events surrounding Maya‘s rape. Backman explains, without justifying, the many factors which encouraged complicity and silence surrounding the event. His descriptions of the impact of the events on Maya‘s life and that of her family are devastating and moving.

Content Warnings

te_ss_i's review

Go to review page

challenging 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? It's complicated

5.0

Content Warnings

katharina90's review

Go to review page

dark emotional funny hopeful reflective tense medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

I adore the Beartown series.

This story captures so beautifully what it means to be human and all that we're capable of... the best, the worst, and everything in between. It is emotional and captivating, at times heartbreaking, funny, tense and hopeful.

Backman's characters are wonderfully complex, imperfect like the rest of us, and utterly lovable (or at least most of them...).

The writing style is simple, succinct and fairly blunt, and there's a lot of foreshadowing.

I was hooked immediately and will definitely be rereading this in the years to come.

Quotes:

"Words are not small things."

"Difficult questions, simple answers. What is a community? It is the sum total of our choices."

[I listened to the audiobook this time. It is well narrated and I enjoyed it a lot, but definitely prefer reading this story myself so I can reread sentences and paragraphs to my heart's content.]

Content Warnings

brainrot_197's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Content Warnings

daniellekat's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No

4.75

Backman is so talented at writing characters with depth, emotion, and believable motivations. Just when you think you understand a character, Backman makes you reconsider. It's the reason why I love his books, but I struggled with Beartown. The plot was so heartbreaking and tense that it took a lot out of me. After reading a few chapters, I always felt like I had to both lie down and go running. Backman covered so many interesting topics relating to sports culture that wove together seamlessly. This was not a 'fun read' and I HIGHLY recommend checking out the content warnings before reading, but Fredrik Backman writes about intersecting lives and community like no one else. My only criticism was that the ending was a little flat for me. I'm super interested to see where the series goes from here, especially since I think his writing is best suited for stand-alones.

Content Warnings