A review by plantbasedbride
Beartown by Fredrik Backman

5.0

I’m not a hockey fan. Not really. Even though I’m Canadian, and it’s basically a given, I only really care about hockey during the olympics. But this book, about a small hockey town, made me care about hockey. It also made me laugh, cry, and walk away from it in disgust and anger. What a beautiful told story (with incredible narration).

This novel explores the perspectives of the teenagers and parents, players and coaches of this small town. It explores grief, loss, and pain as well as growth, discovery, and joy. Backman masterfully creates a world full of real people, with real, incredibly complicated, relationships. Nothing is black and white. But as Ramona says, the people in this town may not know right from wrong, but they know good from evil.

This story explores the darkest corners of modern society, and exposes toxic masculinity within hockey culture.

Trigger warning for rape.

Despite the intensity of this read, the concepts explored were exposed with care and a stark honesty that is refreshing and horrifying in equal measure.

I feel moved by this story, and recommend it wholeheartedly.

I look forward to reading more of Backman’s work.