A review by bookish_slagathor
Itt járt Britt-Marie by Fredrik Backman

emotional funny inspiring reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This book gave me some serious emotional whiplash. 

One chapter I was smiling, next I was bawling my eyes out, confusing the hell out of my fiancée and my cats.

This was my first venture into Backman’s books and I can already feel that I will have a wonderfully toxic relationship with his books where he makes me smile, laugh, promising a wonderful but somewhat bittersweet time and then unexpectedly stabs me in the heart repeatedly. 

And I will keep coming back, wanting more.

Backman’s prose is truly something else. I can’t say if this is true of him in general, so anyone who has read several of his works feel free to add your two Swedish kronas, but he takes mundane people and pretty depressing concepts and uses utterly absurd humor to make it seem less… well, depressing as hell.

The only reason why I didn’t give it five stars is the somewhat open ending, which in general I am not a fan of.

Still, definitely a book I would wholeheartedly recommend to anyone okay with being hurt by words.
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