Genre Fiction
![Fredrik Backman - [object Object] author](https://res.cloudinary.com/readsomnia/image/upload/authors/a_B00KV5TN4I.jpg)
A Man Called Ove: A Novel
MORE THAN TWO MILLION COPIES SOLD
"You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll feel new sympathy for the curmudgeons in your life." -People
Meet Ove. He's a curmudgeon-the kind of man who points at people he dislikes as if they were burglars caught outside his bedroom window. He has staunch principles, strict routines, and a short fuse. People call him "the bitter neighbor from hell."
But must Ove be bitter just because he doesn't walk around with a smile plastered to his face all the time? Behind the cranky exterior there is a story and a sadness. So when one November morning a chatty young couple with two chatty young daughters move in next door and accidentally flatten Ove's mailbox, it is the lead-in to a comical and heartwarming tale of unkempt cats, unexpected friendship, and the ancient art of backing up a U-Haul. All of which will change one cranky old man and a local residents' association to their very foundations.
Fredrik Backman's novel about the angry old man next door is a thoughtful exploration of the profound impact one life has on countless others. "If there was an award for ‘Most Charming Book of the Year,' this first novel by a Swedish blogger-turned-overnight-sensation would win hands down" (Booklist, starred review).
"You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll feel new sympathy for the curmudgeons in your life." -People
Meet Ove. He's a curmudgeon-the kind of man who points at people he dislikes as if they were burglars caught outside his bedroom window. He has staunch principles, strict routines, and a short fuse. People call him "the bitter neighbor from hell."
But must Ove be bitter just because he doesn't walk around with a smile plastered to his face all the time? Behind the cranky exterior there is a story and a sadness. So when one November morning a chatty young couple with two chatty young daughters move in next door and accidentally flatten Ove's mailbox, it is the lead-in to a comical and heartwarming tale of unkempt cats, unexpected friendship, and the ancient art of backing up a U-Haul. All of which will change one cranky old man and a local residents' association to their very foundations.
Fredrik Backman's novel about the angry old man next door is a thoughtful exploration of the profound impact one life has on countless others. "If there was an award for ‘Most Charming Book of the Year,' this first novel by a Swedish blogger-turned-overnight-sensation would win hands down" (Booklist, starred review).
Editorial Reviews
"A charming debut…You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll feel new sympathy for the curmudgeons in your life. You'll also want to move to Scandinavia, where everything's cuter." ― People
"In turns moving and funny. . . I wager that you'll soon fall in love with Ove and be deeply moved by his situation, and after spending time with him, may perhaps gaze at the world around you with a little more empathy than when you turned the first page." -- Eric Larson
"Even the most serious reader of fiction needs light relief, and for that afternoon when all you want is charm, this is the perfect book." ― San Francisco Chronicle
"A magnificent homage to humanity and to the possibility of friendship and faith in long-lost love. It covers a lot of ground: marriage, love, race, class, division, gentrification. It's one of those good stories that connects." -- James McBride
"You will laugh, you will cry, as his heartbreaking story unfolds through the diverse cast of characters that enter his life, all uninvited. You will never look at the grumpy people who come into your life in quite the same way. A very memorable read."
― San Diego Union Tribune, Best Books of 2015
"An inspiring affirmation of love for life and acceptance of people for their essence and individual quirks...a perfect selection for book clubs...bittersweet, tender, often wickedly humorous and almost certain to elicit tears." ― BookBrowse.com
"A light hearted, deeply moving novel about a grumpy but loveable curmudgeon who finds his solitary world turned on its head when a boisterous young family moves in next door. This quirky debut is a thoughtful and charming exploration of the impact one life has on countless others-and an absolute delight." ― CBS Local
"Readers seeking feel-good tales with a message will rave about the rantings of this solitary old man with a singular outlook. If there was an award for 'Most Charming Book of the Year,' this first novel by a Swedish blogger-turned-overnight-sensation would win hands down." ― Booklist, Starred Review
"A funny crowd-pleaser that serves up laughs to accompany a thoughtful reflection on loss and love… The author writes with winning ch...
"In turns moving and funny. . . I wager that you'll soon fall in love with Ove and be deeply moved by his situation, and after spending time with him, may perhaps gaze at the world around you with a little more empathy than when you turned the first page." -- Eric Larson
"Even the most serious reader of fiction needs light relief, and for that afternoon when all you want is charm, this is the perfect book." ― San Francisco Chronicle
"A magnificent homage to humanity and to the possibility of friendship and faith in long-lost love. It covers a lot of ground: marriage, love, race, class, division, gentrification. It's one of those good stories that connects." -- James McBride
"You will laugh, you will cry, as his heartbreaking story unfolds through the diverse cast of characters that enter his life, all uninvited. You will never look at the grumpy people who come into your life in quite the same way. A very memorable read."
― San Diego Union Tribune, Best Books of 2015
"An inspiring affirmation of love for life and acceptance of people for their essence and individual quirks...a perfect selection for book clubs...bittersweet, tender, often wickedly humorous and almost certain to elicit tears." ― BookBrowse.com
"A light hearted, deeply moving novel about a grumpy but loveable curmudgeon who finds his solitary world turned on its head when a boisterous young family moves in next door. This quirky debut is a thoughtful and charming exploration of the impact one life has on countless others-and an absolute delight." ― CBS Local
"Readers seeking feel-good tales with a message will rave about the rantings of this solitary old man with a singular outlook. If there was an award for 'Most Charming Book of the Year,' this first novel by a Swedish blogger-turned-overnight-sensation would win hands down." ― Booklist, Starred Review
"A funny crowd-pleaser that serves up laughs to accompany a thoughtful reflection on loss and love… The author writes with winning ch...
Readers Top Reviews
Peter - The Reading
Mix grumpy old man, OCD, and a desire to join his dead wife in the afterlife – what you get is “a man called Ove”. Ove has a plan to commit suicide and with such clarity of thought and reasoning he has it planned to a tee. Unfortunately for his plans, he is joined by a new family next door and a stray cat, and belligerently finds himself periodically postponing his suicide as he does just one more favour for them. There are many times throughout the book I laughed out loud, especially at Ove’s conviction of how things should be and his tetchiness with those who don’t see things his way. It is also a very sad and heart-warming story as Ove deals with the loss of his wife, loneliness and just how communities can be socially uplifting and rewarding.
S. EvansKaren P Book
Uneasy as I am about giving a one star review to a book abandoned after only 40 pages, I do so anyway to alert readers like myself who will be bitterly disappointed by this book. I bought it on bad advice from several friends who knew how much I had enjoyed both episodes of "The hundred years old man who climbed ……" also from Sweden. Talk of chalk and cheese! So far as I got before sheer boredom said "Enough!", this book appears to be the about the shambolic activities and state of mind of a man whose wife has just died and who is (presumably, because he wants to fit a hook to a ceiling) contemplating joining her. We have heard a lot about misunderstandings because of his racial bigotry (he hates anybody not Swedish, especially his nice new Indian neighbours), and have read much of his fastidious and repetitive habits, his ability to reverse a trailer and to indulge in some convoluted parking activities in his Saab to upset a Mercedes driver. Takes one to know one. Sorry guys. I am sure some great epiphany is on the way in which Ove will redeem himself, but I will not be accompanying him on this odyssey. Mainly because if he turns out to be the slightest bit interesting, this will directly contradict what I have endured of him so far. I cannot be bothered to read on, and A Man Called Ove is already in the bin. As readers of my reviews know, I a generous critic, but this one is, for me anyway, a turkey. (PS - I will be 79 next month, and look forward to birthday greetings on FB. Last year I got 75!)
Rashida
A Man Called Ove, takes you to the Swedish town and makes you laugh and cry and sometimes both. The book is about an old man and his journey from his simple childhood to a struggling life. The man who lost his wife, Sonja to cancer, and wants nothing more than to kill himself in peace. First, he keeps getting interrupted by his neighbors and later, he fixes everything right. The trouble is all these people need his help. Ove can’t turn his back and annoy his wife. As he helps the neighbors, he reflects his memories of his time living with Sonja. In the opening scenes, he is yelling at an iPad sales clerk, like an irate elder man who can’t get with times. But when you learn everything that led to it, you’ll find so many connections. Ove has so many levels to him you will lose count trying to guess what he might do in any given situation. His reactions will annoy you, irritate you beyond belief. But gradually you’ll see the stones turning. OVE is a man of order of life. A man of very few relationships, but the very few he loved, he can build an empire for them. He liked to understand, learn and create things by himself. Like what he thought, he could do. The anecdotes and flashbacks spread throughout the story tell us how he came to be the man he is; wonderful yet complex. It’s not what the story is about, but what it leaves with you that makes you love the book.
Nancy
This is one of the best books I have ever read! I loved every word, every character, the story, the amazing cat...it was (to me) literary perfection. I laughed out loud hundreds of times...the kind of laugh that I couldn't stop, that brought tears to my eyes. And speaking of tears, I cried so hard while reading the epilogue, which I read so slowly because I didn't want the book to end. I want to write to Fredrick Backman and insist he write more books about Ove's life. I loved his morning inspections. His day to day encounters with the neighbors who became family. His love of Saabs (my first car was the 900 Turbo). His literally oversized heart. I'm so gushy right now with love for this book!!! I'm never this gushy. Maybe I should have given myself 24 hours before reviewing this. I recommend this book to everyone. 1,000,000 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️!!! I've read Beartown and loved it too and just ordered (and pre-ordered) all of Backman's books. Wow! Just an amazing reading experience. I don't know what to read next because I fear whatever the book, it will pale in comparison.
G. D. Haugandrew ara
This was a book recommended by a member in my book clue. I struggled to get through a quarter of the book. Another friend told me that "you have to PLOW through it to get the nuggets." Someone can give the page number with the nuggets. No one should have to PLOW through a book to get some good things. Many people like this book. I am not one of them.
Short Excerpt Teaser
Chapter 1: A Man Called Ove Buys a Computer That Is Not a Computer 1 
A MAN CALLED OVE BUYS A COMPUTER THAT IS NOT A COMPUTER
Ove is fifty-nine.
He drives a Saab. He's the kind of man who points at people he doesn't like the look of, as if they were burglars and his forefinger a policeman's flashlight. He stands at the counter of a shop where owners of Japanese cars come to purchase white cables. Ove eyes the sales assistant for a long time before shaking a medium-sized white box at him.
"So this is one of those O-Pads, is it?" he demands.
The assistant, a young man with a single-digit body mass index, looks ill at ease. He visibly struggles to control his urge to snatch the box out of Ove's hands.
"Yes, exactly. An iPad. Do you think you could stop shaking it like that…?"
Ove gives the box a skeptical glance, as if it's a highly dubious sort of box, a box that rides a scooter and wears tracksuit pants and just called Ove "my friend" before offering to sell him a watch.
"I see. So it's a computer, yes?"
The sales assistant nods. Then hesitates and quickly shakes his head.
"Yes… or, what I mean is, it's an iPad. Some people call it a ‘tablet' and others call it a ‘surfing device.' There are different ways of looking at it.…"
Ove looks at the sales assistant as if he has just spoken backwards, before shaking the box again.
"But is it good, this thing?"
The assistant nods confusedly. "Yes. Or… How do you mean?"
Ove sighs and starts talking slowly, articulating his words as if the only problem here is his adversary's impaired hearing.
"Is. It. Goooood? Is it a good computer?"
The assistant scratches his chin.
"I mean… yeah… it's really good… but it depends what sort of computer you want."
Ove glares at him.
"I want a computer! A normal bloody computer!"
Silence descends over the two men for a short while. The assistant clears his throat.
"Well… it isn't really a normal computer. Maybe you'd rather have a…"
The assistant stops and seems to be looking for a word that falls within the bounds of comprehension of the man facing him. Then he clears his throat again and says:
"… a laptop?"
Ove shakes his head wildly and leans menacingly over the counter.
"No, I don't want a ‘laptop.' I want a computer."
The assistant nods pedagogically.
"A laptop is a computer."
Ove, insulted, glares at him and stabs his forefinger at the counter.
"You think I don't know that!"
Another silence, as if two gunmen have suddenly realized they have forgotten to bring their pistols. Ove looks at the box for a long time, as though he's waiting for it to make a confession.
"Where does the keyboard pull out?" he mutters eventually.
The sales assistant rubs his palms against the edge of the counter and shifts his weight nervously from foot to foot, as young men employed in retail outlets often do when they begin to understand that something is going to take considerably more time than they had initially hoped.
"Well, this one doesn't actually have a keyboard."
Ove does something with his eyebrows. "Ah, of course," he splutters. "Because you have to buy it as an ‘extra,' don't you?"
"No, what I mean is that the computer doesn't have a separate keyboard. You control everything from the screen."
Ove shakes his head in disbelief, as if he's just witnessed the sales assistant walking around the counter and licking the glass-fronted display cabinet.
"But I have to have a keyboard. You do understand that?"
The young man sighs deeply, as if patiently counting to ten.
"Okay. I understand. In that case I don't think you should go for this computer. I think you should buy something like a MacBook instead."
"A McBook?" Ove says, far from convinced. "Is that one of those blessed ‘eReaders' everyone's talking about?"
"No. A MacBook is a… it's a… laptop, with a keyboard."
"Okay!" Ove hisses. He looks around the shop for a moment. "So are they any good, then?"
The sales assistant looks down at the counter in a way that seems to reveal a fiercely yet barely controlled desire to begin clawing his own face. Then he suddenly brightens, flashing an energetic smile.
"You know what? Let me see if my colleague has finished with his customer, so he can come and give you a demonstration."
...
A MAN CALLED OVE BUYS A COMPUTER THAT IS NOT A COMPUTER Ove is fifty-nine.
He drives a Saab. He's the kind of man who points at people he doesn't like the look of, as if they were burglars and his forefinger a policeman's flashlight. He stands at the counter of a shop where owners of Japanese cars come to purchase white cables. Ove eyes the sales assistant for a long time before shaking a medium-sized white box at him.
"So this is one of those O-Pads, is it?" he demands.
The assistant, a young man with a single-digit body mass index, looks ill at ease. He visibly struggles to control his urge to snatch the box out of Ove's hands.
"Yes, exactly. An iPad. Do you think you could stop shaking it like that…?"
Ove gives the box a skeptical glance, as if it's a highly dubious sort of box, a box that rides a scooter and wears tracksuit pants and just called Ove "my friend" before offering to sell him a watch.
"I see. So it's a computer, yes?"
The sales assistant nods. Then hesitates and quickly shakes his head.
"Yes… or, what I mean is, it's an iPad. Some people call it a ‘tablet' and others call it a ‘surfing device.' There are different ways of looking at it.…"
Ove looks at the sales assistant as if he has just spoken backwards, before shaking the box again.
"But is it good, this thing?"
The assistant nods confusedly. "Yes. Or… How do you mean?"
Ove sighs and starts talking slowly, articulating his words as if the only problem here is his adversary's impaired hearing.
"Is. It. Goooood? Is it a good computer?"
The assistant scratches his chin.
"I mean… yeah… it's really good… but it depends what sort of computer you want."
Ove glares at him.
"I want a computer! A normal bloody computer!"
Silence descends over the two men for a short while. The assistant clears his throat.
"Well… it isn't really a normal computer. Maybe you'd rather have a…"
The assistant stops and seems to be looking for a word that falls within the bounds of comprehension of the man facing him. Then he clears his throat again and says:
"… a laptop?"
Ove shakes his head wildly and leans menacingly over the counter.
"No, I don't want a ‘laptop.' I want a computer."
The assistant nods pedagogically.
"A laptop is a computer."
Ove, insulted, glares at him and stabs his forefinger at the counter.
"You think I don't know that!"
Another silence, as if two gunmen have suddenly realized they have forgotten to bring their pistols. Ove looks at the box for a long time, as though he's waiting for it to make a confession.
"Where does the keyboard pull out?" he mutters eventually.
The sales assistant rubs his palms against the edge of the counter and shifts his weight nervously from foot to foot, as young men employed in retail outlets often do when they begin to understand that something is going to take considerably more time than they had initially hoped.
"Well, this one doesn't actually have a keyboard."
Ove does something with his eyebrows. "Ah, of course," he splutters. "Because you have to buy it as an ‘extra,' don't you?"
"No, what I mean is that the computer doesn't have a separate keyboard. You control everything from the screen."
Ove shakes his head in disbelief, as if he's just witnessed the sales assistant walking around the counter and licking the glass-fronted display cabinet.
"But I have to have a keyboard. You do understand that?"
The young man sighs deeply, as if patiently counting to ten.
"Okay. I understand. In that case I don't think you should go for this computer. I think you should buy something like a MacBook instead."
"A McBook?" Ove says, far from convinced. "Is that one of those blessed ‘eReaders' everyone's talking about?"
"No. A MacBook is a… it's a… laptop, with a keyboard."
"Okay!" Ove hisses. He looks around the shop for a moment. "So are they any good, then?"
The sales assistant looks down at the counter in a way that seems to reveal a fiercely yet barely controlled desire to begin clawing his own face. Then he suddenly brightens, flashing an energetic smile.
"You know what? Let me see if my colleague has finished with his customer, so he can come and give you a demonstration."
...
