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4.39 AVERAGE
4.39 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
sad
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
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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
Wow. This book made me ugly cry. Love love loved it
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Review can be read at Katie's Books and Reviews
Me:
This book was unlike anything other I’ve ever read and it was wonderful.
Telling the story of a cranky old man, this novel switches between the past and the present day in the life of Ove.
When Ove’s wife dies, he decides he’s had enough of this life without and sets out to join her in the afterlife. But try as he might, life and his neighbours just keep getting in the way. With a delightful cast of characters, hilarious situations and punchy prose, A Man Called Over ticks all the boxes.
“Death is a strange thing. People live their whole lives as if it does not exist, and yet it’s often one of the great motivations for living.”
Ove himself, is such a well constructed and interesting character. In him, you can see every grumpy old man, stuck in his ways and “old school” opinions on life. But coming through the hard exterior is a lovely and caring man who just wants to get on with things, and not have a big fuss around him. This mixture makes him immediately relatable and also increasingly endearing. His prickly points become charming and his no nonsense attitude refreshing. Spending time with him was very enjoyable and easy.
“People said Ove saw the world in black and white. But she was colour. All the colour he had.”
The side characters that Ove interacts with are all very interesting and serve a purpose to the plot. As well as this they’re different, detailed and just delightful. Often when you have quite an army of side characters like this they can just fell a bit useless or too similar to each other. But I loved the whole crew here and was laughing both at and with them. They all had such unique and special relationships with Ove, each helping to reaffirm his purpose in life.
“Ove had never been asked how he lived before he met her. But if anyone had asked him, he would have answered that he didn’t.”
For the most part of this book the chapter alternated between the past, where we see Ove grow up to become increasingly the man he is, and the present in which all the ‘action’ is happening. I really enjoyed this pacing and it helped us to see many key events in Ove’s lifetime that contributed to his character, and then see how that character played out in the current situations. It also benefited the pacing I think, revealing causes for actions as you needed to know them. It kept you wanting to learn more about him, or wonder what or why something was happening in the present, only to have it fully explained by the past. It also gave a bit of a mix in styles and language, that was a light relief to some of the more cranky or sad bits from each time period, by following it with something humours, or from another characters point of view.
“You’ll just have to wait a bit longer for me up there. I don’t have time to die right now.”
I really loved this one, there’s really nothing I can fault. I laughed, I cried and I will recommend this one for a long time to come.
“Men are what they are because of what they do. Not what they say.”
Blog | Instagram
Me:
This book was unlike anything other I’ve ever read and it was wonderful.
Telling the story of a cranky old man, this novel switches between the past and the present day in the life of Ove.
When Ove’s wife dies, he decides he’s had enough of this life without and sets out to join her in the afterlife. But try as he might, life and his neighbours just keep getting in the way. With a delightful cast of characters, hilarious situations and punchy prose, A Man Called Over ticks all the boxes.
“Death is a strange thing. People live their whole lives as if it does not exist, and yet it’s often one of the great motivations for living.”
Ove himself, is such a well constructed and interesting character. In him, you can see every grumpy old man, stuck in his ways and “old school” opinions on life. But coming through the hard exterior is a lovely and caring man who just wants to get on with things, and not have a big fuss around him. This mixture makes him immediately relatable and also increasingly endearing. His prickly points become charming and his no nonsense attitude refreshing. Spending time with him was very enjoyable and easy.
“People said Ove saw the world in black and white. But she was colour. All the colour he had.”
The side characters that Ove interacts with are all very interesting and serve a purpose to the plot. As well as this they’re different, detailed and just delightful. Often when you have quite an army of side characters like this they can just fell a bit useless or too similar to each other. But I loved the whole crew here and was laughing both at and with them. They all had such unique and special relationships with Ove, each helping to reaffirm his purpose in life.
“Ove had never been asked how he lived before he met her. But if anyone had asked him, he would have answered that he didn’t.”
For the most part of this book the chapter alternated between the past, where we see Ove grow up to become increasingly the man he is, and the present in which all the ‘action’ is happening. I really enjoyed this pacing and it helped us to see many key events in Ove’s lifetime that contributed to his character, and then see how that character played out in the current situations. It also benefited the pacing I think, revealing causes for actions as you needed to know them. It kept you wanting to learn more about him, or wonder what or why something was happening in the present, only to have it fully explained by the past. It also gave a bit of a mix in styles and language, that was a light relief to some of the more cranky or sad bits from each time period, by following it with something humours, or from another characters point of view.
“You’ll just have to wait a bit longer for me up there. I don’t have time to die right now.”
I really loved this one, there’s really nothing I can fault. I laughed, I cried and I will recommend this one for a long time to come.
“Men are what they are because of what they do. Not what they say.”
Blog | Instagram
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:
Yes
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
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:
Yes
This was a truly beautiful look into the importance and power of community. We are first introduced to Ove as a surly, lonely man. But we quickly learn that there is much more going on under the surface. The flashbacks of Ove's childhood and young adult years as he grew up added so much to the current-day story, helping us both to see how Ove became the man he was in the modern day, and how his experiences shaped him.
It was a very beautiful and emotional character portrait, and even though Ove started off as somewhat unlikable, seeing him rediscover his community and find a light he thought he had lost, was so deeply touching and moving. Your community is already there; you just have to reach for it.
In general, the character work in this book was truly incredible. All the unique and quirky side characters really filled out the story and added so much color to the pages. Ove usually ended up being the straight man for most of the book, and it worked because all of the other characters were just so FUN!!! Backman's character work is something that I have heard praised over and over, and after finally getting to read one of his books, I couldn't agree more!
I always love stories about community and the community in this book was truly something special. It was so loving and diverse, and seeing how so many people from so many different walks of life could come together for a common cause was really special to see.
I'm kind of just talking in circles, but it was really really good! The character work in this book was SO STRONG and powerful and was truly the highlight of the book. I highly recommend reading it. Do heed the content warnings though, suicide is incredibly prevalent through the book.
It was a very beautiful and emotional character portrait, and even though Ove started off as somewhat unlikable, seeing him rediscover his community and find a light he thought he had lost, was so deeply touching and moving. Your community is already there; you just have to reach for it.
In general, the character work in this book was truly incredible. All the unique and quirky side characters really filled out the story and added so much color to the pages. Ove usually ended up being the straight man for most of the book, and it worked because all of the other characters were just so FUN!!! Backman's character work is something that I have heard praised over and over, and after finally getting to read one of his books, I couldn't agree more!
I always love stories about community and the community in this book was truly something special. It was so loving and diverse, and seeing how so many people from so many different walks of life could come together for a common cause was really special to see.
I'm kind of just talking in circles, but it was really really good! The character work in this book was SO STRONG and powerful and was truly the highlight of the book. I highly recommend reading it. Do heed the content warnings though, suicide is incredibly prevalent through the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt
Moderate: Cancer, Miscarriage, Car accident
Minor: Animal cruelty, Homophobia, Death of parent
emotional
funny
medium-paced
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is my first Backman book and having already seen the movie rendition, I kept picturing Tom Hanks in the scenes.
This is a beautiful story about grief and loss and how community can save you. How family is so important, and not just the one that binds you by blood.
The writing style is peculiar and sometimes I had a hard time with it, reason why I gave it a 4 and not a 5. I am looking forward to more of his books
This is a beautiful story about grief and loss and how community can save you. How family is so important, and not just the one that binds you by blood.
The writing style is peculiar and sometimes I had a hard time with it, reason why I gave it a 4 and not a 5. I am looking forward to more of his books