Reviews - Us Against You | The StoryGraph

10k reviews for:

Us Against You

Fredrik Backman

4.42 AVERAGE

amanda_orlowskyj's review against another edition

5.0

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

jeanpatterson2's review against another edition

5.0

Fredrick Backman never disappoints and I am continuously astounded by his keen insights into the human condition. On the surface, this book, which is set in the Swedish forest, appears to be about a hockey rivalry between two small towns. But it is about much, much more. I read it as an allegory for the divisions we are currently experiencing in the US. How politicians can manipulate and deceive to suit their own purposes, how easy it is to divide and take sides, how easy it is to foment hatred and division. The book is also about the complexity and contradictory nature of humans who can be "bad" and "good" at the same time. It is also about love, family, friendship, and what ultimately binds us together - our common humanity. I highly recommend anything Backman has written.

mo_isu_'s review against another edition

5.0

I cried in public over the politics of a fictional small town in the middle of the forest

giumar's review against another edition

5.0

This book broke me and made me sob for like 20 minutes. I loved it. I love these characters with my all heart.
I'm in full-on book hangover right now, I might return later for a better review. Or not.

jadesm8's review against another edition

4.25

challenging emotional inspiring sad 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: N/A

It’s so sad but so beautiful😭

britishbelle's review against another edition

4.5

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Content Warnings

arielzeit's review against another edition

4.0

I'll pretty much read everything that Backman writes because he touches on such universal themes in a fluent, unpretentious way. The problem isn't that it's about a small town in Sweden that's obsessed with high school hockey. Because as one reviewer said about this book in the Washington Post, "Backman writes about hockey the way Balzac writes about, say, the French military, meaning that his point lies far from his subject. Backman’s novels have wide appeal, and for good reason. 'Us Against You' takes a lyrical look at how a community heals, how families recover and how individuals grow." And the first one was ostensibly about hockey too. But this book was not as good as the first one because the plot gets too melodramatic. Also, too many of the characters are defined as having happy endings. When you're telling a story with so very many intensely conflicted, emotionally driven characters, it's better to leave the reader with some happy endings, some bad ones and some unresolved ones. Too many happy endings cheapens the story and makes it feel a little like an afterschool special. Still, I can't help hoping for a third Beartown book.