Book Review- A man called Ove by Fredrik Backman

 

With a hot coffee mug, I embarked on the life trip of a man called Ove. This was a perfect winter- read on the last day of the first month of this year.

This tale of a grumpy little Old man called Ove grew on my heart with each chapter and made me laugh and cry and sometimes both. This is the story of an old-fashioned man who believes in action rather than words …who is more "engaged" with self rather than others’ lives…who is a disciplinarian… who is honest at all costs and knows which fight to pick.

To me, this charming, heartwarming novel was an enjoyable read.

Ove’s history trickles out in alternating chapters—a bleak set of events that smacks an honorable, hardworking boy around time and again, proving that, even by early adulthood, he comes by his grumpy nature honestly. 

It’s a woman who turns his life around for the first time: sweet and lively Sonja, who becomes his wife and balances his pessimism with optimism and warmth. By 59, he's in a place of despair yet again after Sonja's death, and it’s another woman who twirls him around a second time: spirited, knowing Parvaneh, who moves with her husband and children into the terraced house next door and forces Ove to engage with the world.

The backstory chapters have a simple, fablelike quality, while the current-day chapters are episodic and, at times, hysterically funny. In both instances, the narration can turn toward the preachy or unduly pat, but wry descriptions, excellent pacing, and the juxtaposition of Ove’s belief with his deeds add a bunch of punch to balance out any pathos.

The book has great depth of character, empathy, and thoughtfulness and offers numerous profound passages, mostly coming from Ove's thoughts.

Few of those passages which I liked the most are-

"We always think there's enough time to do things with other people. Time to say things to them. And then something happens and then we stand there holding on to words like 'if'..."

"Men are what they are because of what they do. Not what they say."

"You only need one ray of light to chase all the shadows away."

"All roads lead to something you were predestined to do."

"They say the best men are born out of their faults and that they often improve later on, more than if they'd never done anything wrong."