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A review by beate251
My Friends by Fredrik Backman
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
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? Yes
3.75
The frame of this story is 39 year old Ted and 18 year old Louisa on kind of a road trip, mostly on an endless train, to try and sell the very expensive famous painting by artist C. Jat, who was Ted's friend and just died after an illness. Louisa is an escaped foster kid who still grieves her friend Fish who died of an overdose. While travelling, Ted tells Louisa about the summer when his group of friends that also comprises Joar and Ali, were 14 and when this first picture, that would make the artist world-famous, was conceived.
None of the four friends had great parents. Especially Joar's old man who was a violent drunk. There is a lot of drug and alcohol abuse, bullying and violence in their youth, and I felt it was too much. The artist, who didn't get a name until the end, was probably on the spectrum, and his parents didn't understand how special he was. The author is trying to uphold the tension of something awful to come, but it takes most of the book to get there and I didn't find it awful at all, but I felt manipulated by the way the scene was described, making us think something happened that hadn't.
I find it very difficult to review this. I can objectively see that it's well-written, and I usually love Fredrik Backman's books but this didn't capture me. It is too literary and felt like a cross between a misery memoir and a dissertation about art. We get so many observations about what art is, it's this, it's that... The art stuff didn't interest me, and all of the protagonists had had a difficult childhood, as if you needed that to appreciate art. The author introduced random side stories, like what was Christian doing in there?
The short chapters make it very readable but the middle seems drawn-out. I liked Ted and Louisa but didn't care all that much about the others. If you like stories about art, friendships and found family, this might be for you, just don't expect this to be funny and light-hearted like A Man Called Ove.
None of the four friends had great parents. Especially Joar's old man who was a violent drunk. There is a lot of drug and alcohol abuse, bullying and violence in their youth, and I felt it was too much. The artist, who didn't get a name until the end, was probably on the spectrum, and his parents didn't understand how special he was. The author is trying to uphold the tension of something awful to come, but it takes most of the book to get there and I didn't find it awful at all, but I felt manipulated by the way the scene was described, making us think something happened that hadn't.
I find it very difficult to review this. I can objectively see that it's well-written, and I usually love Fredrik Backman's books but this didn't capture me. It is too literary and felt like a cross between a misery memoir and a dissertation about art. We get so many observations about what art is, it's this, it's that... The art stuff didn't interest me, and all of the protagonists had had a difficult childhood, as if you needed that to appreciate art. The author introduced random side stories, like what was Christian doing in there?
The short chapters make it very readable but the middle seems drawn-out. I liked Ted and Louisa but didn't care all that much about the others. If you like stories about art, friendships and found family, this might be for you, just don't expect this to be funny and light-hearted like A Man Called Ove.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Violence
Moderate: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Rape