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Moderate: Child death, Death, Homophobia, Suicide attempt, Death of parent
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Suicide attempt
Moderate: Cancer, Child death, Cursing, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Medical content, Dementia, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail
Graphic: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt
Minor: Child death
Moderate: Suicide, Dementia, Suicide attempt
Minor: Child death, Miscarriage, Car accident, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Cancer, Child death, Death, Fatphobia, Grief, Car accident, Pregnancy
Graphic: Grief, Suicide attempt
Moderate: Child death, Death, Car accident, Death of parent, Pregnancy
Graphic: Suicide attempt
Moderate: Child death, Death, Fatphobia, Infertility, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Death of parent
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt
Moderate: Fatphobia, Homophobia
Minor: Cancer, Child death, Car accident
Ove is an elderly curmudgeon of a man and also a recent widower. After his wife's death, life has lost all meaning and he is walling himself off from the world around him in preparation for his own death. Things don't progress as smoothly as he'd hoped because his interfering, nosy, well-intentioned neighbors keep showing up with minor emergencies for him to resolve.
The plot concept is simple and not entirely unique. (It certainly reminds me of the movie Up by Pixar which was produced a couple years prior to this book.) That said, Backman leans into that simplicity and just tells a really good, moving story. He doesn't try to make is surprising or twisty. Instead, he builds a relationship between the reader and Ove and the cast of characters that surround him.
I was also pleasantly surprised to see this book touch on topics like ableism, ageism, xenophobia, racism, social services and homophobia. I did not expect this book to take a stance on these topics, but each one is addressed by little plot points throughout the story.
The characterization was one of my favorite parts of the book. Each character from Ove himself to the minorest of supporting characters is vibrant, alive, and realistic. Not only could I imagine the interactions that occur, but I've actually witnessed similar interactions by similar people in my own life.
If you enjoy found family tropes, grumpy old men, and an easy to enjoy style of writing, this is the book for you! Don't be put off by the hype. This one is worth it.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail
Graphic: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt
Minor: Child death