7.15k reviews for:

My Friends

Fredrik Backman

4.54 AVERAGE

radleberg1's review

4.0

adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

tinatryggestad's review

2.5

sad slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

triciawil's review

5.0

emotional hopeful sad tense 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

mands277's review

5.0

adventurous 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

rebeccas_bookshelf's review against another edition

5.0

emotional funny hopeful reflective sad 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

jfmatson's review

5.0

adventurous emotional funny inspiring reflective fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

j_dailey's review

5.0

emotional medium-paced

mollie_johns's review

4.0

emotional funny hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

therapybard2021's review

5.0

emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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

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Backman has a way of writing his characters in the exact way most humans feel to me: incomprehensible yet endearing. I don't understand how he keeps doing this. I was sitting there sobbing not even 1/5 of the way into the book and knew this would be 5 stars unless something awful happened and Backman  did something so reprehensible that I'd have to dock it points. He didn't. Are there things I'd want to change if I was the editor? Yes, but that's true of every single good story. Nothing can be this ambitious, this heartfelt without that. Only boring stories leave me with no notes.
Even so: Characters? A+. Plot? A+ Writing? A+. The structure of the story threw me off sometimes but I get Backman's vision. He wanted the story to feel like the ramblings of a mourning 40 year old telling his life story for the first time. I think me being confused and thrown off was the point.
Anyway, this book broke me in the best way and now I want to go make some art. Not like drawing but writing.
I wonder if A Man Called Ove is Backman's The One Of The Sea. I wonder if this is his skulls spraypainted on the back of an old church.

christinamonroe's review

4.0

challenging emotional funny reflective slow-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