BOOK REVIEW: A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
A tale that runs you through the emotional gauntlet in the best way possible.
I love, love, love this book! I read Anxious People by Backman about a year and a half ago and absolutely loved that one, so I don’t really know why I let this one sit on my shelf as long as I did, but knowing that the movie was coming out, I knew I had to read it. It was my first read of 2023, and if it is any indication of what lies ahead for my reading list this year, I’m so excited.
As in Anxious People, this is a character based book, and Ove is a brilliantly created and developed character. Ove (pronounced Ou-va according to the audiobook) is a grumpy, angry, rigid, curmudgeon of a man. He is a “it’s the principle of the fact” and “get off my lawn ya darn kids” kinda guy. It was so well developed and almost over the top that I couldn’t help laugh and feel sorry for him all at once. I know that some people who read this book are going find fault with Backman for how he allowed Ove to treat people, talk about people, and even his interactions with the cat, but it all comes down to Ove and who he is at the beginning of the book and who he is at the end of the book.
The book begins in a computer store, which is hilarious since he knows nothing about technology, and what I love is that near the end of the book Backman takes us back to the same computer store scene having come full circle. In-between, we learn who Ove is and what has led him to this point. Through a chronological progression beginning when his new boisterous and outgoing neighbors move in, mixed with flashbacks from his youth through just before he meets his new neighbors, we learn how and why Ove is who he is. This story of his life is one of pain, challenges, love, purpose, and some could say redemption.
It is also a story about grief and depression, because Ove suffers deeply. After the passing of his wife, he lost his purpose. When he is forced into early retirement, he lost his routine. He is lost, lonely, bitter and all it takes is one off-the-wall family who completely overlooks the rudeness and attempts to shut them out to give him purpose again.
Now you listen to me," says Ove calmly while he carefully closes the door. "You've given birth to two children and quite soon will be squeezing out a third. You've come here from a land far away and most likely you fled war and persecution and all sorts of other nonsense. You've learned a new language and got yourself an education and you're holding together a family of obvious incompetents. And I'll be damned if I've seen you afraid of a single bloody thing in this world before now....I'm not asking for brain surgery. I'm asking you to drive a car.
I was on a roller coaster of emotion throughout the entire book, and I couldn’t put it down. Like I mentioned there were scenes that were so ridiculous in how he acts and what he thinks that I couldn’t help but laugh and shake my head at him, but there were moments that I had tears in my eyes as I read about his experiences when he was a teenager, when he and his wife Sonja were in Spain, and as he visits and talks to Sonja at her grave.
There were a few interesting little literary elements that Backman used to perfection as well. The first being irony. Without trying to give any spoilers away, Ove is trying to do something, but he keeps getting interrupted. As much as it’s a pretty serious situation, how Ove reacts each time is priceless. How could he not do x, y or z that has interrupted him? Sonja would be furious with him! How he processes through the moments of his life, over what at the beginning seems to be just a handful of days, is who Ove is.
The second element is that of a motif. If you pay attention, you will notice that color is woven throughout the text. From the colors that Sonja wears when they go on their date and the focus on what color flowers he buys for her all the way down to how the characters are presented. Ove makes a point to say that Sonja was the color in his life. Because of how Ove moves through the world, it just is what it is - black and white, then he finds Sonja who is so different from Ove. She’s the splash of color that he never knew he needed in his life. When she died, he lost the color. Then in a moment with the new neighbors (who have a 3 year old and a 7 year old), he is given a picture that the youngest child drew. She drew everyone in her family in black and drew Ove in color. Such a powerful scene.
People said Ove saw the world in black and white. But she was color. All the color he had.
Ove, mixed with the secondary characters, has his found family. Parvaneh and her husband, Patrick, and their 2 (soon to be 3) children move in right at the moment Ove needed them the most. Then you have Jimmy, and the backstory there was the only thing that truly surprised me in the book. Add in Anita and Rune, the Cat, Mirsad, Amel, Adrian, and even Lena and all of a sudden Ove finds himself immersed in a very diverse and eclectic family. Purpose, meaning, and, even if he doesn’t admit it, love. Ove is a character who never admits things that go against his preset beliefs and principles; however, he does them, complains about them and in his own little way is grateful to have them. Actions speak louder than words.
The ending was, in a way, exactly what I figured might happen, and there were tears in my eyes as I read those last few pages. What he came to mean to people and what he did for people show that he really was a generous and loving man. He just had a really bad outward attitude about it and a social ineptitude that made you feel sorry for him.
But if anyone had asked, he would have told them that he never lived before he met her. And not after either.
Where does this land on my bookshelf?
Hands down, the top shelf. This was just such an amazing book. When a book can make you laugh and cry and have all the feels, you know you have found a winner. This being my second Backman book, I can guarantee you that I will be picking up Bear Town and reading through that series. He is a master of character development. His characters come to life on the pages and simply suck you in. I highly, highly recommend this book, and I can’t wait to see the movie. I think Tom Hanks will do a phenomenal job playing Ove, well I guess it’s Otto in the movie. Happy reading!
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