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A review by nicolem_young
Anxious People by Fredrik Backman
5.0
Book/Story: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Book Cover: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Trigger Warning(s): Hostage Situation
Suicide
Mental Health
Alcoholism (mentioned)
Death Of Loved Ones
Infidelity
Cancer (mentioned)
Domestic Abuse (mentioned)
POV: Omniscient Third Person
Series/Standalone: Standalone
First In Series: N/A
Trope(s): None
Spice: None
Genre: Fiction
Burn: Fast
Safe or Dark: Safe
Release Date: September 8, 2020 ️️
This book has been sitting on my shelves for quite a while now. For some reason it was calling to me, so I decided to finally pick it up and give it a try. Maybe it was meant to be, or it was just some strange coincidence, but I’m at a point in my life where I definitely needed this story and its beautiful message.
As someone who suffers from generalized anxiety disorder and chronic depression, I saw the title of the book and instantly thought, “You know what? Hell yeah.”
Even before reading the synopsis. I was under the impression that it would be a story about people like myself, chronic overthinkers, who go through life as a jumble of nerves; however, it was so much more. It had dark and sarcastic humor, sadness, life lessons, and twists that you more normally find in a mystery or thriller.
My brain is in shambles after reading this book, so instead of attempting to write a review that will most likely end up being a jumble of words that make no sense, I’m going to work with bullet points.
- This is a story about all sides of humanity, the good, the bad, and the ugly.
- It’s about what happens to good people when they are unsuccessful at saving others from a tragic event as well as when they are.
- It really gets you thinking and at times might have you doing some self-reflection. It talks a lot about learning to forgive yourself and others.
- It makes you realize that sometimes we carry around burdens that we don’t have to and that sometimes we hold on to a sense of guilt for things that were out of our control and frankly weren’t even our fault to begin with.
- It makes you understand that sometimes even the best of people find themselves in bad situations and that at times they make bad choices themselves.
- It makes you stop and think about the fact that no matter how much we want to, we simply can’t save everyone, and that’s alright.
- It tells about true love and that we aren’t alone at our lowest times, even though we might feel like we are.
- It lets us know that at times we might not be happy with our lives, and that’s fine because we just try to do the best with what we’re given.
- It makes you realize that making mistakes is a part of living and that you can always turn things around before they become something self-destructive.
- It shows you that when life can be bad, it can be really bad, but when it’s good, it can be really good. Sometimes we’re at the right place at the wrong time, and sometimes we’re at the right place at the right time.
- It helps put into perspective the very true fact that our parents’ are going through life for the time despite us thinking that they know everything.
- Backman lets you know that no matter what your feelings are, they are valid.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that it really makes you think about life and how the experiences we go through, the people we meet, and the things we do shape who we are and who we become.
I must admit that I don’t laugh out loud often at books, but I laughed out loud more than once while reading this one. It has also been a long time since a book has made me cry, but, guys, this one made me cry genuine tears... more than once. I swear it felt like Backman stared straight into my soul while writing this story.
I loved how each character in the story was somehow connected to at least one of the others. I loved seeing that unfold. It was very well done and highly enjoyable. I had fun learning how all these people either knew each other or crossed paths at some point in their lives or how their stories weaved together. For such a lighthearted story, Backman sure did manage to pack a lot in it, and I enjoyed it all. I love when I have an “oh my goodness” moment while reading, and this book gave me a lot of those. I found myself always wanting to know what happened next. I needed to see how things played out.
Despite his popularity, this is my first book by Fredrik Backman. At first, I wasn’t sure if his writing style was for me, but that feeling quickly faded as the plot progressed. I eventually found his writing to be engaging without being heavy or bulky. His words get you invested in the story without being overly complex. It’s a beautiful balance, and the prose flows nicely. The flip-flopping of the timeline doesn’t get confusing in the least. You always know where in the timeline a scene is set. The way he fleshes out characters almost instantly is very impressive. You get the full picture of a particular character in just a few pages.
At the end of the day, was this story about people who suffer from chronic anxiety? No. Was it about people who were put in situations that can make you very anxious and high-strung? Yes. I still found the characters to be very relatable (especially Jack) because alas, all situations make me anxious and high-strung. That tends to be how I go through life, and in a weird way this book helped me learn how to carry it better.
The ending drop-kicked me deep in my soul. Oh, man, the ending got me good. In the best way possible.
I just couldn’t put this book down!
Despite my best effort to not make this review a jumbled mess, that’s still what I managed to do. So, if this made no sense, I apologize. As I stated above, I’m still trying to put my mind back together after finishing this.
“You probably have someone in your life whom you’d do something stupid for.”
TLDR: A LIGHTHEARTED READ WITH DARK HUMOR AND TONS OF EMOTIONS! VERY ENJOYABLE!
As always, please remember that reading is subjective, and that’s what makes it so great.
Book Cover: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Trigger Warning(s): Hostage Situation
Suicide
Mental Health
Alcoholism (mentioned)
Death Of Loved Ones
Infidelity
Cancer (mentioned)
Domestic Abuse (mentioned)
POV: Omniscient Third Person
Series/Standalone: Standalone
First In Series: N/A
Trope(s): None
Spice: None
Genre: Fiction
Burn: Fast
Safe or Dark: Safe
Release Date: September 8, 2020 ️️
“Some people accept that they will never be free of their anxiety, they just learn to carry it. She tried to be one of them.”
This book has been sitting on my shelves for quite a while now. For some reason it was calling to me, so I decided to finally pick it up and give it a try. Maybe it was meant to be, or it was just some strange coincidence, but I’m at a point in my life where I definitely needed this story and its beautiful message.
As someone who suffers from generalized anxiety disorder and chronic depression, I saw the title of the book and instantly thought, “You know what? Hell yeah.”
Even before reading the synopsis. I was under the impression that it would be a story about people like myself, chronic overthinkers, who go through life as a jumble of nerves; however, it was so much more. It had dark and sarcastic humor, sadness, life lessons, and twists that you more normally find in a mystery or thriller.
My brain is in shambles after reading this book, so instead of attempting to write a review that will most likely end up being a jumble of words that make no sense, I’m going to work with bullet points.
“We don't have a plan, we just do our best to get through the day, because there'll be another one coming along tomorrow.”
- This is a story about all sides of humanity, the good, the bad, and the ugly.
- It’s about what happens to good people when they are unsuccessful at saving others from a tragic event as well as when they are.
- It really gets you thinking and at times might have you doing some self-reflection. It talks a lot about learning to forgive yourself and others.
- It makes you realize that sometimes we carry around burdens that we don’t have to and that sometimes we hold on to a sense of guilt for things that were out of our control and frankly weren’t even our fault to begin with.
- It makes you understand that sometimes even the best of people find themselves in bad situations and that at times they make bad choices themselves.
- It makes you stop and think about the fact that no matter how much we want to, we simply can’t save everyone, and that’s alright.
- It tells about true love and that we aren’t alone at our lowest times, even though we might feel like we are.
“We give those we love nicknames, because love requires a word that belongs to us alone.”
- It lets us know that at times we might not be happy with our lives, and that’s fine because we just try to do the best with what we’re given.
- It makes you realize that making mistakes is a part of living and that you can always turn things around before they become something self-destructive.
- It shows you that when life can be bad, it can be really bad, but when it’s good, it can be really good. Sometimes we’re at the right place at the wrong time, and sometimes we’re at the right place at the right time.
- It helps put into perspective the very true fact that our parents’ are going through life for the time despite us thinking that they know everything.
- Backman lets you know that no matter what your feelings are, they are valid.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that it really makes you think about life and how the experiences we go through, the people we meet, and the things we do shape who we are and who we become.
I must admit that I don’t laugh out loud often at books, but I laughed out loud more than once while reading this one. It has also been a long time since a book has made me cry, but, guys, this one made me cry genuine tears... more than once. I swear it felt like Backman stared straight into my soul while writing this story.
“Sometimes it’s easier to live with your own anxieties if you know that no one else is happy either.”
I loved how each character in the story was somehow connected to at least one of the others. I loved seeing that unfold. It was very well done and highly enjoyable. I had fun learning how all these people either knew each other or crossed paths at some point in their lives or how their stories weaved together. For such a lighthearted story, Backman sure did manage to pack a lot in it, and I enjoyed it all. I love when I have an “oh my goodness” moment while reading, and this book gave me a lot of those. I found myself always wanting to know what happened next. I needed to see how things played out.
Despite his popularity, this is my first book by Fredrik Backman. At first, I wasn’t sure if his writing style was for me, but that feeling quickly faded as the plot progressed. I eventually found his writing to be engaging without being heavy or bulky. His words get you invested in the story without being overly complex. It’s a beautiful balance, and the prose flows nicely. The flip-flopping of the timeline doesn’t get confusing in the least. You always know where in the timeline a scene is set. The way he fleshes out characters almost instantly is very impressive. You get the full picture of a particular character in just a few pages.
At the end of the day, was this story about people who suffer from chronic anxiety? No. Was it about people who were put in situations that can make you very anxious and high-strung? Yes. I still found the characters to be very relatable (especially Jack) because alas, all situations make me anxious and high-strung. That tends to be how I go through life, and in a weird way this book helped me learn how to carry it better.
The ending drop-kicked me deep in my soul. Oh, man, the ending got me good. In the best way possible.
I just couldn’t put this book down!
Despite my best effort to not make this review a jumbled mess, that’s still what I managed to do. So, if this made no sense, I apologize. As I stated above, I’m still trying to put my mind back together after finishing this.
TLDR: A LIGHTHEARTED READ WITH DARK HUMOR AND TONS OF EMOTIONS! VERY ENJOYABLE!
As always, please remember that reading is subjective, and that’s what makes it so great.