A Man Called Ove
2 journalers for this copy...
I got this softcover at a local Savers thrift shop, for another release copy.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book (as did the rest of the book group for which I first read it - though, interestingly enough, the very oldest member, who's 80-something, didn't find it quite as amusing as the rest of us did). The emotional ups and downs, the unfolding layers revealing the personalities and histories of the main characters, the delightfully wacky scenes - and the heart-warming ones, hard-won and well earned...
At first I found Ove's stick-to-the-rules grumpiness a bit off-putting, but it soon became clear that his nature was to try and fix things, to do things right, and he just wasn't very patient with others who didn't seem to see things that way. His prickly relationship with his neighbor Rune, the near-mystical appearance of the cat (I loved the cat, but knowing cats as I do I found it a bit too sociable; my take is that it was a kind of genius loci in cat-form), the many ways in which his attempts to end it all were interrupted... it was all wonderful to read. I liked the sometimes-choppy writing style, and I really enjoyed the increasing number of characters whose back-stories enhanced Ove's own. From slapstick scenes about Patrick's clumsiness to wrenching ones about Rune's failing mind to the lovely little sub-plots regarding Adrian, Mirsad and Jimmy, I liked it all - and there were plenty of sniffly bits as well as laugh-out-loud ones. Really enjoyable book!
[The book inspired a 2015 film, which I'd like to see. And there's a TV Tropes page with some entertaining tidbits on both book and film versions.]
I thoroughly enjoyed this book (as did the rest of the book group for which I first read it - though, interestingly enough, the very oldest member, who's 80-something, didn't find it quite as amusing as the rest of us did). The emotional ups and downs, the unfolding layers revealing the personalities and histories of the main characters, the delightfully wacky scenes - and the heart-warming ones, hard-won and well earned...
At first I found Ove's stick-to-the-rules grumpiness a bit off-putting, but it soon became clear that his nature was to try and fix things, to do things right, and he just wasn't very patient with others who didn't seem to see things that way. His prickly relationship with his neighbor Rune, the near-mystical appearance of the cat (I loved the cat, but knowing cats as I do I found it a bit too sociable; my take is that it was a kind of genius loci in cat-form), the many ways in which his attempts to end it all were interrupted... it was all wonderful to read. I liked the sometimes-choppy writing style, and I really enjoyed the increasing number of characters whose back-stories enhanced Ove's own. From slapstick scenes about Patrick's clumsiness to wrenching ones about Rune's failing mind to the lovely little sub-plots regarding Adrian, Mirsad and Jimmy, I liked it all - and there were plenty of sniffly bits as well as laugh-out-loud ones. Really enjoyable book!
[The book inspired a 2015 film, which I'd like to see. And there's a TV Tropes page with some entertaining tidbits on both book and film versions.]
I got this softcover at a local Savers thrift shop, for another release copy.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book (as did the rest of the book group for which I first read it - though, interestingly enough, the very oldest member, who's 80-something, didn't find it quite as amusing as the rest of us did). The emotional ups and downs, the unfolding layers revealing the personalities and histories of the main characters, the delightfully wacky scenes - and the heart-warming ones, hard-won and well earned...
At first I found Ove's stick-to-the-rules grumpiness a bit off-putting, but it soon became clear that his nature was to try and fix things, to do things right, and he just wasn't very patient with others who didn't seem to see things that way. His prickly relationship with his neighbor Rune, the near-mystical appearance of the cat (I loved the cat, but knowing cats as I do I found it a bit too sociable; my take is that it was a kind of genius loci in cat-form), the many ways in which his attempts to end it all were interrupted... it was all wonderful to read. I liked the sometimes-choppy writing style, and I really enjoyed the increasing number of characters whose back-stories enhanced Ove's own. From slapstick scenes about Patrick's clumsiness to wrenching ones about Rune's failing mind to the lovely little sub-plots regarding Adrian, Mirsad and Jimmy, I liked it all - and there were plenty of sniffly bits as well as laugh-out-loud ones. Really enjoyable book!
[The book inspired a 2015 film, which I'd like to see. And there's a TV Tropes page with some entertaining tidbits on both book and film versions.]
I thoroughly enjoyed this book (as did the rest of the book group for which I first read it - though, interestingly enough, the very oldest member, who's 80-something, didn't find it quite as amusing as the rest of us did). The emotional ups and downs, the unfolding layers revealing the personalities and histories of the main characters, the delightfully wacky scenes - and the heart-warming ones, hard-won and well earned...
At first I found Ove's stick-to-the-rules grumpiness a bit off-putting, but it soon became clear that his nature was to try and fix things, to do things right, and he just wasn't very patient with others who didn't seem to see things that way. His prickly relationship with his neighbor Rune, the near-mystical appearance of the cat (I loved the cat, but knowing cats as I do I found it a bit too sociable; my take is that it was a kind of genius loci in cat-form), the many ways in which his attempts to end it all were interrupted... it was all wonderful to read. I liked the sometimes-choppy writing style, and I really enjoyed the increasing number of characters whose back-stories enhanced Ove's own. From slapstick scenes about Patrick's clumsiness to wrenching ones about Rune's failing mind to the lovely little sub-plots regarding Adrian, Mirsad and Jimmy, I liked it all - and there were plenty of sniffly bits as well as laugh-out-loud ones. Really enjoyable book!
[The book inspired a 2015 film, which I'd like to see. And there's a TV Tropes page with some entertaining tidbits on both book and film versions.]
I'm sending this to BCer originalslicey in Missouri, as a RABCK - enjoy!
*** Released for the 2019 Clean Start for the New Year release challenge, for the embedded "All" in the title. ***
*** Released for the 2019 Clean Start for the New Year release challenge, for the embedded "All" in the title. ***
Thanks for the RABCK! Have been wanting to read this one and this trade paperback is in great condition.
