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jkononova's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Rare is a book that makes me both laugh and cry, and A Man Called Ove succeeded at both (often and semi-frequently, respectively). I started reading it because I wanted to occupy myself with something light and heartwarming as a break from my heavy courseload this quarter in university, and all the sci-fi and nonfiction and such that were already in progress were not cutting it. I'll say that the plot definitely isn't a "live, laugh, love" brand of wholesome; Backman doesn't shy away from getting into some of the darker parts of life that damage us, be it the misfortunes that bring surface-level cracks or the trauma that shatters us in our entirety. He doesn't lean into the overly saccharine, so every bit of the characters' growth throughout the course of the story and eventual happiness in the closing chapters feels real and earned. (I will say that the epilogue started feeling a little too good to be true at some points, in my opinion. but I was so overwhelmed with emotion at that point to care about "gritty realism" or whatever.)
(As an aside, I'm really curious as to how this book reads in its original Swedish. The language in translated books always feels a bit simple and canned to me, which works great with the lighthearted tone in this case, but I can't help but wonder what the original contains without all the workarounds in regard to slang, politics, etc that they had to include for English speakers. Though I guess I won't know unless I learn to read Swedish fluently, aka never, lol.)
All in all, I'd really recommend to anyone who feels drawn in by the premise!
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Suicide attempt
Minor: Car accident, Pregnancy, Homophobia, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, and Violence
greyys_libraryy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Grief, Ableism, Pregnancy, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Death, and Medical content
Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Child death, Cancer, and Car accident
Minor: Violence and Terminal illness
stephbernoth's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.75
Graphic: Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Mental illness, Cancer, and Death
Moderate: Terminal illness, Homophobia, Religious bigotry, Racism, Cancer, Violence, Medical content, Infertility, Dementia, and Body shaming
purplepenning's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Ableism, Toxic friendship, Sexism, Medical content, Dementia, Death, Alcohol, Chronic illness, Terminal illness, Miscarriage, Medical trauma, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Body shaming, Pregnancy, Death of parent, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Homophobia, Fatphobia, Emotional abuse, and Car accident
Minor: Blood, Domestic abuse, Violence, Cursing, and Animal cruelty
brandie_abbie19's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Terminal illness, Violence, Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Forced institutionalization, Homophobia, Animal cruelty, Car accident, Blood, Body shaming, Cancer, Death of parent, Medical trauma, Medical content, Suicide attempt, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Dementia, Pregnancy, Cursing, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Ableism, Fatphobia, and Grief
aroy011's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Suicide attempt
Minor: Xenophobia, Violence, and Fatphobia
jourdynne27's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Miscarriage and Grief
Minor: Homophobia, Dementia, and Violence
lilikamasha's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Fatphobia, Animal cruelty, Pregnancy, Forced institutionalization, Car accident, Grief, Homophobia, Violence, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Dementia
arthur_ant18's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Death, Suicide attempt, Grief, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Cancer, Car accident, Homophobia, and Miscarriage
Minor: Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Medical content, and Violence
kjm_x's review against another edition
- 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
Moderate: Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Violence, Ableism, Child death, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Homophobia, Pregnancy, Suicide attempt, Body shaming, Cancer, Dementia, and Animal cruelty