Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Anxious People by Fredrik Backman

180 reviews

mmccombs's review against another edition

emotional funny lighthearted reflective fast-paced

4.0

This is my first non-Beartown Backman and now I know to always expect sweet, often corny, detailed, and moving accounts of how we belong to and owe each other, even if we are complete strangers. Though I feel like the title of this book makes no sense given the content so I didn’t anticipate what this would be about, I found this to be equally propulsive (ooh a mystery!) and cozy (ooh people hanging out and talking about their stories!). I love Backman’s style of talking about “us” while also talking specifically about a character, stretching the POV into the past, present, and future all at once, I think he is an expert at making a unique experience (and a very strange one at that in this case!) into something that captures universal truths. Everyone we meet has a life full of problems and joys and history, and when we brush up against each other we may be lucky enough to find the little connections that make our lives just a bit fuller, too. Just a pleasure to read!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Grief, and Suicide attempt

nicolaparty's review against another edition

hopeful lighthearted reflective 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death of parent, Grief, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Gun violence

Moderate: Alcohol

caroline_norrish's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful 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

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Suicide, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Panic attacks/disorders, Misogyny, Gun violence, Grief, Drug abuse, Alcohol, and Addiction

drpeeper's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Grief, Suicide attempt, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, and Mental illness

Minor: Blood, Addiction, Cancer, Death of parent, Death, Infidelity, and Alcohol

ridesthesun's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny hopeful 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Alcohol, Infidelity, Death of parent, and Addiction

001's review against another edition

emotional hopeful lighthearted 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief and Suicide

Minor: Domestic abuse and Alcoholism

kromany's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective tense 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide

Moderate: Grief and Confinement

Minor: Gun violence and Pregnancy

sring42's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful reflective 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide

Minor: Blood, Death of parent, Terminal illness, Alcoholism, Grief, Death, Addiction, Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt

_fallinglight_'s review against another edition

challenging emotional lighthearted reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

I don't care for books where the author keeps telling me how to perceive things and his way is the way. All these people are unbearable and I don't give a frick about their struggles. What you gonna do about that, Backman?

Giving it 2.5 bc for 65% of the book, I wasn't too aggravated by the writing style and it was even compulsively readable with all the hostage situation and who is the bank robber mystery going on–even if I was finding the characters grating and not relatable at all, which isn't usually a complaint I have towards characters but relatability, empathy seemed to be a pertinent factor for this book. But then, it kept beating the point over and over and over and over the head I got so incensed! I finished the book out of spite bc I'd already spent so many days on it, might as well see how this man wrapped this story up. It's so bad though. Fourth rate Dickens stuff. Oh, and the humor is intolerably bad, too.

Sincerely, an anxious person.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Suicide

Moderate: Grief, Death of parent, and Mental illness

Minor: Homophobia

bearybooky's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful inspiring sad fast-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

Book should be tagged lgbtqia

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Suicide

Minor: Drug use, Death, Cursing, Alcohol, Pregnancy, Cancer, Grief, and Infidelity