Reviews

Anxious People by Fredrik Backman

marycts's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted reflective medium-paced

5.0

holly_153's review

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dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.0

s4peace's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted medium-paced

2.5

I found the pacing of the book to be very random. It slows down and drags a lot. And there are too many characters and storylines and you don't really relate to anyone in particular. It also has a very predictable plot and I found some of the jokes a little unfunny. It was an okay book.

sierraeven's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective 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

4.5

raisavibes's review against another edition

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4.0

I had no idea what I was in for when I dived into this story but this book kept me engaged till the very end. As you know, this is a comedy about a crime that never took place which ended up in a hostage situation which was really not a hostage situation. Honestly, I kept reading and reading and had no idea where it was all going but somewhere along the way I started really connecting with each and every one of the characters.

Jack and Jim, police officers (father and son) loves each other but can’t stand each other. They are investigating the failed bank robbery/hostage situation together. The bank robber is not actually a bank robber because he couldn’t rob the bank because it was a cashless bank. Yup. So the unsuccessful bank robber tries to escape and ends up in an apartment viewing with 8 people. These 8 people viewing the apartment became the worst bank robber’s worst ever hostages. They were crazy, uncooperative and everything that you won’t want your hostages to be!

Very interesting conversation between one of the hostages and her therapist - Zara. A very unique character.

“You can’t achieve anything if you don’t win, sweetie. No one ends up at the head of a boardroom table by accident.”

“And... winners earn a lot of money, which is also important, I assume? What do you do with yours?”

“I buy distance from other people.”

“How do you mean?”

“Expensive restaurants have bigger gaps between the tables. First class on airplanes has no middle seats. Exclusive hotels have separate entrances for guests staying in suites. The most expensive you can buy in the most densely populated places on the planet is distance.”

This novel uses a very light tone to outline a lot of serious issues like divorce, father/son relationships, betrayal and psychological problems. It was quirky, bizarre, hilarious but also heart melting.

“The whole thing is a complicated, unlikely story. Perhaps that’s because what we think stories are about often isn’t what they’re about at all. This for instance, might not actually be the story of a bank robbery, or an apartment viewing, or a hostage drama. Perhaps, it isn’t even a story of idiots. Perhaps this story is about a bridge.” Why don’t you find out yourself? I give it 4+

andy_tell's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective

5.0

sagewaldorf's review against another edition

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challenging emotional lighthearted slow-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? Yes

brel102's review against another edition

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emotional 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

jacquieq's review against another edition

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3.0

I had a hard time getting into it, but it ended pretty well.

queenknight34's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective fast-paced

5.0