Reviews with content warning for Death - A Man Called Ove

Reviews tagging 'Death'

A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman

433 reviews

eliya's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

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

Really sweet, heart warming book.

Sobbed through the first half. Made me think of my dad.

There’s something to be said about people from this age group who either never were able, or were never taught or demonstrated how to forgive, how to move on. What your sphere of influence is and others around you

This book is about a man who has good intentions and is sweet on the inside, a nutcracker kind of guy, who is mad for valid reasons and then he finds out life is worth living, okay, and then he’s nice to those around him because they see the soft on the inside of all that hardness.

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.

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geminisoul's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad slow-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? Yes

5.0

Oh my goodness. For starters, if you are a crier like me this may not be a book you want to read/listen to in public. (I made that mistake and was subsequently crying at my desk at work.) This book just packed all the feelings of humanity into the life of this man called Ove- who ironically struggles showing most feelings.

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confused_cat's review against another edition

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emotional funny reflective 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

4.75

Excellent book. Much better than the Hollywood movie adaptation.
I simply love everything about it - the writing, the pace, the dark humor, the characters.
Ove's character seem to be timeless. I imagine there will always be people who are traditionalists, strong, stubborn, loyal to the fault, and live by their principles. I don't always agree with them and their old school ways but I do admire them.

Answering reading group questions and some reflections:

I only drive Toyota - haha. Is there a bit of Ove in my character?
Ove was actually grieving for almost for the entirity of the book. Having human (and animal) to care is what got him through.
Honestly, the neighbourhood that Ove lives in is almost similar to the one I grew up in - where every one helps and bothers each other quite a lot. I sort of miss that.
Ove and Sonja have opposing communication style. This would make things difficult in real life but it seems that they have enough love hence patience with each other to go thru life challenges.
I wonder if there are actually more people like Ove in the world, doing heroic things and refusing to make a fuss.
Technology, relationships, and lifestyles kept on changing. It would be great if we can slow it down. I seriously can't imagine what life would be like say 40 years from here.

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shellsbookclub's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny hopeful 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

4.5

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chronologically_charlie's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful 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

Oh my god? Oh my god. You’re telling me this was a debut? It’s been days since I finished A Man Called Ove and I still haven’t recovered. I bought it after reading Anxious People over a year ago and it’s been sitting on my shelf. I simply couldn’t pick it up because I knew I wouldn’t like Ove.

In fact, I immediately disliked Ove — obviously. But, just as Backman intended, by the end I couldn’t imagine a different voice leading me through this journey. Ove and I share a lot. Too much. I see myself in Ove, or least…I saw myself grow from Ove. I disliked Ove — obviously — and I liked him as much as I like myself.

With simple prose and stark themes, this book is easy to consume yet each chapter presents an emotional blow.

From complex side characters to expansive backstories, the neighbourhood where Ove lives is alive with world-building.

I look forward to picking up my next Backman book very soon!

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