Fredrik Backman
A Man Called Ove

A Man Called Ove

I couldn't get into this as a hardcover but then a friend with great taste suggested I give the audio a try. I started again from the beginning, and this time this grumpy old man story hooked me. Don't you love when that happens? A great narrator can truly make or break the reading experience. George Newbern's accents—especially for Ove—are fantastic. I laughed and cried and couldn't stop listening. But do yourself a favor: don't even think about finishing this novel in a public place, and consider removing your mascara first.

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My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry: A Novel

My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry: A Novel

I began this immediately after finishing the wonderful audio version of the author's previous work. Backman's second novel follows the adventures of a 7-year-old named Elsa, whose grandmother dies and leaves behind a series of letters, sending the young girl on a scavenger hunt with weighty implications. Whimsical and engaging.

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And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer

And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer

$10.99$5.99Audiobook: 5.95 (NOT a Whispersync deal)
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From the publisher: "From the New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove, My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry, and Britt-Marie Was Here comes an exquisitely moving portrait of an elderly man’s struggle to hold on to his most precious memories, and his family’s efforts to care for him even as they must find a way to let go."

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Beartown

Beartown

This was a hard read because of the content but so, so good. Backman's latest novel is set in a backwater Swedish town whose glory days are gone—except when it comes to hockey. In Beartown, hockey is everything, and the players on the boys' A-team have god-like status. But this isn't just a hockey story. One night after a huge win, the teens throw a raucous party to celebrate—and what happens there splinters the community. Part coming-of-age story, part community-in-crisis, completely fabulous. (And I don't care a bit about hockey, so that's saying something.) Heads up, readers: triggers abound. If you've read and enjoyed Backman in the past, you'll recognize his skillful prose, but not the tone: this novel bears none of the whimsy of his previous work.

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The Deal of a Lifetime: A Novella

The Deal of a Lifetime: A Novella

From the publisher: "The #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove and Beartown delivers an insightful and poignant holiday novella about a man who sacrificed his family in the single-minded pursuit of success and the courageous little girl fighting for her life who crosses his path. It all begins with a father telling a story to his son on Christmas Eve. But this isn't your typical Christmas story. The father admits to his son that he's taken a life but he won’t say whose—not yet. Written with Fredrik Backman's signature humor, compassion, and 'knack for weaving tales that are believable and fanciful' (St. Louis Post-Dispatch), The Deal of a Lifetime reminds us that life is a fleeting gift, and our only legacy is how we share that gift with those we love."

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Us Against You

Us Against You

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The follow-up to the bestseller <a href=https://modernmrsdarcy.com/books/beartown/><em>Beartown</em></a>. From the publisher: "Can a broken town survive a second tragedy? A small, broken town sits on the edge of a frozen lake surrounded by a forest, its wounds still raw from a tragedy that tore its fragile community in two. Beartown has lost its way. What was once a friendly rivalry with the neighbouring town is beginning to turn sinister and Beartown braces itself for another tragic blow. How far will the people of Beartown go to preserve their reputations for a second, deadly time?"

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The Winners

The Winners

The long awaited return of Backman’s beloved Beartown series is over! How does a town recover from tragedy or deal with corruption? When do they “protect their own” and what are the consequences of those actions? Two years have passed and everyone has tried to move on in their own way but nothing has worked out the way they hoped. And more change is ahead. Backman writes with great empathy and understanding of the human condition. You won't be able to turn the pages fast enough, even as this puts you through the wringer. Content warnings apply. 688 pages.

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