I’ll start with the strong points. A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman is the best piece of fiction I’ve read in at least the last five years. I didn’t even know about this author until my wife recommended the book to me, saying, “Read it, it’s about you.”
Fredrik Backman is a Swedish writer who started out as a truck driver, then began writing articles for a newspaper, eventually opened his own blog… and later wrote the novel A Man Called Ove about a character who first appeared in his blog. And his life changed. The novel became popular, was adapted into a film in Sweden, and was later nominated for an Oscar. After that, Fredrik Backman continued writing, and his subsequent novels are also said to be very good.
The book tells the story of a simple man, Ove, and begins on the day he retires. No, Ove isn’t exactly a simple man. He’s a person with very straightforward views on life (compared to many others), yet he has a strong backbone and firm beliefs. Beliefs so firm that they can lead him to fight for justice through official channels for years, or refuse to speak to a neighbor for twenty years because of them.
In Ove’s everyday life, everything is precise, and he doesn’t tolerate anything new (if something works well, why change it?). There must be order in everything. And heaven forbid someone disagrees with him on this. In short, he’s a curmudgeon that nobody can stand, and arguing with him is a waste of time.
However, there was one person who once saw something more in Ove. His future wife won him over once and for all. She saw, beneath the exterior of a very pedantic and simple man, a kind soul.
Now it’s up to others to see that warmth. However, Ove himself has absolutely no interest in that. He couldn’t care less about the people around him. As long as they follow the rules, everything else is none of their business. And now there’s an insistent new neighbor, as if there weren’t enough others already.
In short, this is the kind of man the book is about. At first, Ove seems like a very unpleasant old man, but over the course of the story, he’s revealed from different angles, and by the end, you realize that behind this prickly shell lies a very vulnerable, simple, and ultimately kind person.
While reading, I caught myself thinking that in many ways I really am like Ove. Not exactly the same, but my kids should be ready for me to become just as unbearable and grumpy when I’m sixty. I’m already like that sometimes. But deep down, I hope I’m a good person too.
The book reads in one breath, jumping from Ove’s youth and early adulthood back to his current problems. And after turning the last page, you’re left with a sense of satisfaction from the reading, and a slight sadness. I even felt like re-reading it right away, which is rare for me.
I highly recommend it. It’s a kind, smart, and very honest book. Let’s hope many of us can be like Ove.
My rating: 5/5
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