Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.37 AVERAGE
4.37 AVERAGE
Honestly, I think that everyone that ever coaches high schoolers should have to read this book. It is so much more than just about a hockey team but everything else that amounts to being on a team. There is so much to learn and take away from this book I could not recommend it more.
The number of emotions that I felt reading this book is insane, so insane that I was crying in the gym (literally on the elliptical) while I read it. The idea of community and culture and the questions that it makes you ask yourself are ones that can inspire thoughtful discussions.
10/10.
The number of emotions that I felt reading this book is insane, so insane that I was crying in the gym (literally on the elliptical) while I read it. The idea of community and culture and the questions that it makes you ask yourself are ones that can inspire thoughtful discussions.
10/10.
took me a bit to get into because of how many characters there are, but i enjoyed by the end
challenging
dark
emotional
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
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
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
Beautiful. What an amazing and engrossing story. I’ve never read a Fredrik Backman book before, but it certainly won’t be my last. There were so many quotes in here that left me speechless! The amount of times I quietly whispered “…damn
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Being from Canada and being in a huge hockey city, this book hit so close to home. This was a tragic, heartbreaking story with glimpses of hope mixed in, but the reality of everything between the two covers is so real, and so accurate, especially now, in 2025. What a magnificent read
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism, Rape
Beartown - Fredrik Bachman
* “One of the plainest truths about both towns and individuals is that they usually don’t turn into what we tell them to be, but what they are told they are.”
* “All adults have days when we feel completely drained. When we no longer know quite what we spend so much time fighting for, when reality and everyday worries overwhelm us and we wonder how much longer we’re going to be able to carry on. The wonderful thing is that we can all live through far more days like that without breaking than we think. The terrible thing is that we never know exactly how many.”
* “Never trust people who don't have something in their lives that they love beyond all reason.”
* “Everyone has a thousand wishes before a tragedy, but just one afterward.”
* “Another morning comes. It always does. Time always moves at the same rate, only feelings have different speeds. Every day can mark a whole lifetime or a single heartbeat, depending on who you spend it with.”
* “Bitterness can be corrosive. It can rewrite your memories as if it were scrubbing a crime scene clean, until in the end you only remember what suits you of its causes.”
* “There are few words that are harder to explain than "loyalty." It's always regarded as a positive characteristic, because a lot of people would say that many of the best things people do for each other occur precisely because of loyalty. The only problem is that many of the very worst things we do to each other occur because of the same thing.”
* “The only thing the sport gives us are moments. But what the hell is life, Peter, apart from moments?”
* “Difficult questions, simple answers. What is a community? It is the sum total of our choices.”
* “Anxiety can act as internal gravity, shrinking the soul.”
* “It’s just as easy to be exclusive as it is to be inclusive, just as easy to create an Us as a Them. Benji has never been worried about being beaten up or hated if anyone finds out the truth about him; he’s been hated by every opposing team since he was a child. The only thing he’s scared of is that one day there will be jokes that his teammates and coach won’t tell when he’s in the room. The exclusivity of laughter.”
* “Ignore everything else, just concentrate on the things you can change.”
* “A simple truth, repeated as often as it is ignored, is that if you tell a child it can do absolutely anything, or that it can’t do anything at all, you will in all likelihood be proven right.”
* “You can love something without loving everything about it. You don't have to feel embarrassed about not being proud. That applies to hockey, but it also applies to friends.”
* “Being a parent makes you feel like a blanket that’s always too small. No matter how hard you try to cover everyone, there’s always someone who’s freezing.”
* Louder-louder playlist in car for kids who want music louder and louder…
* repeats phrases throughout book from different perspectives
* takes a seemingly mundane small town and manages to depict such a realistic window into the character’s lives in a way that can apply to everyones lives.
* SO Scandinavian (silent shame, pride)
* Isn’t wordy, but says incredibly smart things/observations in a simple way…something refreshing about that. He doesn’t have to use flashy language to get a complicated series of emotions within a complex web of social situations. Not all the characters do what I expect them to, which I like. It’s more realistic.
* Sometimes people are much more complicated than the exterior they choose to share with the world
* People can be extraordinarily kind (Benji destroying the bathroom so no one will know that Maya hit the mirror and see how hurt she is).
* Why is Maya’s voice not enough to convince the town of her rape? It takes Amat to convince the town over Kevin’s word. The town siding with the attacker over the victim, someone who’s grown up in the town. Who are your neighbors? A walking culmination of their past experiences trying to move forward.
* “One of the plainest truths about both towns and individuals is that they usually don’t turn into what we tell them to be, but what they are told they are.”
* “All adults have days when we feel completely drained. When we no longer know quite what we spend so much time fighting for, when reality and everyday worries overwhelm us and we wonder how much longer we’re going to be able to carry on. The wonderful thing is that we can all live through far more days like that without breaking than we think. The terrible thing is that we never know exactly how many.”
* “Never trust people who don't have something in their lives that they love beyond all reason.”
* “Everyone has a thousand wishes before a tragedy, but just one afterward.”
* “Another morning comes. It always does. Time always moves at the same rate, only feelings have different speeds. Every day can mark a whole lifetime or a single heartbeat, depending on who you spend it with.”
* “Bitterness can be corrosive. It can rewrite your memories as if it were scrubbing a crime scene clean, until in the end you only remember what suits you of its causes.”
* “There are few words that are harder to explain than "loyalty." It's always regarded as a positive characteristic, because a lot of people would say that many of the best things people do for each other occur precisely because of loyalty. The only problem is that many of the very worst things we do to each other occur because of the same thing.”
* “The only thing the sport gives us are moments. But what the hell is life, Peter, apart from moments?”
* “Difficult questions, simple answers. What is a community? It is the sum total of our choices.”
* “Anxiety can act as internal gravity, shrinking the soul.”
* “It’s just as easy to be exclusive as it is to be inclusive, just as easy to create an Us as a Them. Benji has never been worried about being beaten up or hated if anyone finds out the truth about him; he’s been hated by every opposing team since he was a child. The only thing he’s scared of is that one day there will be jokes that his teammates and coach won’t tell when he’s in the room. The exclusivity of laughter.”
* “Ignore everything else, just concentrate on the things you can change.”
* “A simple truth, repeated as often as it is ignored, is that if you tell a child it can do absolutely anything, or that it can’t do anything at all, you will in all likelihood be proven right.”
* “You can love something without loving everything about it. You don't have to feel embarrassed about not being proud. That applies to hockey, but it also applies to friends.”
* “Being a parent makes you feel like a blanket that’s always too small. No matter how hard you try to cover everyone, there’s always someone who’s freezing.”
* Louder-louder playlist in car for kids who want music louder and louder…
* repeats phrases throughout book from different perspectives
* takes a seemingly mundane small town and manages to depict such a realistic window into the character’s lives in a way that can apply to everyones lives.
* SO Scandinavian (silent shame, pride)
* Isn’t wordy, but says incredibly smart things/observations in a simple way…something refreshing about that. He doesn’t have to use flashy language to get a complicated series of emotions within a complex web of social situations. Not all the characters do what I expect them to, which I like. It’s more realistic.
* Sometimes people are much more complicated than the exterior they choose to share with the world
* People can be extraordinarily kind (Benji destroying the bathroom so no one will know that Maya hit the mirror and see how hurt she is).
* Why is Maya’s voice not enough to convince the town of her rape? It takes Amat to convince the town over Kevin’s word. The town siding with the attacker over the victim, someone who’s grown up in the town. Who are your neighbors? A walking culmination of their past experiences trying to move forward.
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
lighthearted
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes