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4.51 AVERAGE
4.51 AVERAGE
challenging
emotional
hopeful
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
I wrote of Beartown #2 that it was “relentlessly dark and violent”. So what did I expect for #3? Well, in #3, Backman adds a good dose of political corruption (mostly so complex I couldn't follow it) to the heap of hatred, loss and violence. With all the foreshadowing of doom, at one point all I could think of was, “Who is going to die next?” In this overly-long 600+ page book, you’ll read to page 350 or so before any good shows through the people in these two small towns and that’s a brief respite. Worse, Backman sugarcoats all his hating, violent characters in a mantle of loyalty and friendship. I can only assume Backman was deep into irony when he titled the book, "The Winners".
emotional
reflective
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
Backman is an incredible author. Throughout this entire series, he has masterfully told the story of a town. Not a person but a town. He is also a genius with foreshadowing. There were many a times that I would get emotional from a single statement that insinuated something was coming but it would actually occur chapters and chapters later. But you knew. And you were mad.
It’s also interesting how my favorite characters changed throughout the series as their character developed. Bobo was my favorite this book. Hands down.
Backman has powerfully taken the same stories told in Beartown with a different characters, in different circumstances and showed a completely different outcome. Brilliant.
It’s also interesting how my favorite characters changed throughout the series as their character developed. Bobo was my favorite this book. Hands down.
Backman has powerfully taken the same stories told in Beartown with a different characters, in different circumstances and showed a completely different outcome. Brilliant.
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I was prepared to dislike this final book in the Beartown series - in part because I loved Book #2, in part because I thought the author was crazy to introduce new characters, and in part because it seemed soooo long. I I got distracted by a lot of other books after starting it, but once I dove back in it became my favorite. Backman expertly develops the characters, and he nails the complicated relationships that come from living in a small town. My heart would burst, and then it would break. I wanted to underline a hundred places where his words felt profound described emotions I've felt but didn't have words for. And then I found myself sobbing through the last 50 pages. All of the Beartown books, but this one in particular, will stick with me for a very, very long time.
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book ruined my weekend
This book eloquently describes the experience of being a parent, a child, a friend, of being in thick of it, of being on sidelines, of being hurt, of being included and so many more roles that encompass the human experience. Backman has the magical gift of finding perfectly poetic words that capture these experiences. My heart is forever in Beartown.
This was a satisfying end to the trilogy. I tend to love everything that Backman writes, so maybe I loved it before I even read a page.
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
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:
Complicated
Longer than the two before in the trilogy, but a fitting end. The way Fredrik Backman writes! :')