Reviews with content warning for Cancer - A Man Called Ove

Such a great book! Ove is such a sweet man and I’ve wanted to read this book for so long. Funny and heartwarming, moving but sad too. Beautifully written.
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Narrator - Joan Walker

Content Warnings

palis's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective 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

4.75

"Love" is maybe a weird way to identify this book since it is not a love story, but it contains the most incredible sentences depicting love that I have ever read. Love in a couple, and Love in a community. A book that is about finding meaning in your life when you don't fit in it. And the meaning is found in helping others. It has all the things people who quite can't fit in society or aren't able to communicate with the world will hope to someday find.
Favorite quotes

But if anyone had asked, he would have told them that he never lived before he met her. And not after either.

And so the days went by. Ove would go to work, come home and have potatoes and sausages for dinner. He was never lonely. And he never had company.

Content Warnings

chamomiledaydreams's review against another edition

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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

4.0

Watching "A Man Called Otto" over a year ago was my first exposure to Frederik Backman, although I had seen his novels in the library before. I was taken with the story instantly, and I managed to snag a copy of the original novel a few months ago.

It's interesting to see what was changed for American audiences in the recent film. I find it a little strange that Ove's name was changed to Otto, as though American audiences can't handle a Swedish name such as Ove. Even if the movie is set in Pittsburgh, there's no reason why someone living there wouldn't be named Ove, like in the book.

It's also strange that Parvenah's character is renamed Marisol and is no longer Iranian. Perhaps the decision was made so the story would be more "relevant" to American audiences, but even if more Americans are Mexican than Iranian, there are still plenty of Iranian immigrants who deserve to be represented in films such as this one.

The change that I understand the most is how Mirsad's character went from being gay in the book to trans in the movie. Given the current political climate, it's more important than ever to educate people and to teach them to be kind and generous towards trans people, especially trans youth, and while I would need to rewatch the movie to catch all of the changes that they made (Is he still named Mirsad in the film? I can't remember...), I appreciate the new take on an old storyline.

My familiarity with the movie did not diminish my enjoyment of the original novel. It was a delight to read, and the book expands upon some topics that I didn't fully understand in the movie--or rather, it made details from the movie stand out so that they moved me more deeply. A good example of this is how Frederik Backman expands upon the rivalry between Ove and Rune, repeating the list of the cars they drove over the years while gradually expanding upon the reasons why they chose certain models. The way that it all ties back to their families and the futures they planned but did not achieve breaks my heart and makes the characters even more sympathetic.

All in all, I would say this is my second favorite Frederik Backman novel. Number one is still "Anxious People," and number three is "Britt-Marie Was Here," with "My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry" coming in at number four. They're all lovely books, so even the one in last place is well worth the read. I hope to dive into his sports trilogy soon (and when an author gets me to read sports trilogies, that's when you know that they're good at weaving yarns)!

Content Warnings

shaleen64's review

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challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective 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

4.0

A book about all the different forms love can take, romantic, familial, platonic and more. The book is heartwarming and heartbreaking in equal measure with a good few laughs thrown in. The characters are lovable, diverse and well written.

If you want an easy read, that’s still emotional in all the right ways then Ove’s story is a must read.

Content Warnings

mmsbrooks24's review against another edition

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emotional funny inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Content Warnings

geminisoul's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad slow-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

5.0

Oh my goodness. For starters, if you are a crier like me this may not be a book you want to read/listen to in public. (I made that mistake and was subsequently crying at my desk at work.) This book just packed all the feelings of humanity into the life of this man called Ove- who ironically struggles showing most feelings.

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chelle22's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring sad

5.0

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allydee's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful sad tense slow-paced

4.0

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