Reviews with content warning for Death - Und jeden Tag wird der Weg nach Hause länger und länger

A beautiful little story, the only reason it’s not ranked higher is that its short length means it likely won’t stick with me for as long as I’d like. Bachman is a wonderful writer though, and I’m impressed by the quality of the language here even when the book wasn’t originally in English.

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andra_mihaela_s's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.5

4.5 stars

I really like the way in which Fredrik Backman manipulated my emotions with this novella.
I cried from beginning to end. :))))

OK...first thing first, this is my first experience with the writing style of this Swedish author and I will say that he has, for sure, lots of talent to choose and pick with such accuracy every sentence.
This is a great study not only on the book's subject, but also on the ability to write in such a purposeful way. I think a lot of authors should analyse his works...>..>

As this is a novella, I cannot go in-depth about it's plot and all the rest.(not that it has much of it...it's more of a reflection on a subject that everyone will face sooner or later)
I will say it's amazing in portraying exactly what the author wanted...a reflection on memory loss in a familial context.

We have 4 characters, 2 of which are the main ones (the Grampa and Noah/the nephew). We have several setting for the discussions beautifully blended with the smooth transition of the dialogue.
The atmosphere is nicely done...and had me crying for dragons and coliander, shortcuts and quitars...

We get to see how people change priorities, regret and fear their past and the concequences it has on the present and future. And we also focus on father-son relationships.(but I believe it can be understood as parent- child relationships due to the fact that most families make these mistakes Backman underlines in his novella)

From my perspective, the most emotional side of this has to do with the regret of not having enough time (here I refer to Grampa's dialogue with another character besides the Ted/Noah's father and Noah). I loved the ending and how Noah choose to honor his promises, and how Ted shows his affection for his father despite their past.

I highly recommend everyone to give this novella a go, but make sure you're in the right head space for it if you're very emotional like me.:)

Enjoy

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sammies_shelf's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful sad medium-paced

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

5.0

"Are we here to learn how to say goodbye, Grandpa?"

Fredrik Backman's writing is just so tender and full of heart. This novella was heartbreaking and gorgeous. This is an imaginative story of grief and letting go that goes straight to the heart. The relationship between Noah and Grandpa is unforgettable.

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dalmavatai's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective sad fast-paced

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

2.0

Ah it seems that Fredrik Backman is a very hit-or-miss author for me. Anxious People is one of my favorites of 2021, while Beartown is one of my least favorites. This one is sadly closer to Beartown for me.

The premise of this book sounds amazing, but the execution is nothing but. The characters and their relationships are so incredibly cliché - for example, Noah and his grandpa 'speak the language of numbers' while Ted, Noah's dad, is more into 'letters' and music. This is pretty much the extent of their character development and their relationships with one another. Noah says things that are intended to sound super deep and sweet but are instead annoying because they reek of the author's desperate and cheap attempts at eliciting emotion from the reader. I felt like it started to get a bit better at the end because there was finally enough in the way of character development for me to feel invested, but that came way too late to sway my opinion. Very poor character development and lacking relationships, with cliché lines thrown in every once in a while to sound deep. Not my cup of tea. I don't know if I'll pick up more from Fredrik Backman, maybe if I really like the premise I will, but his writing style reeeeally traverses that fine line between profound and unbelievably annoying.

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