***Book Review*** 

 

A Man Called Ove 

By. Fredrik Backman 

P. 337 

Format: print/audio 

Rating: **** 

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First - there is strong trigger warning for suicidal behavior in this book. It is a huge part of the book and I wish I had known before starting. 

 

I have mixed feelings about this book. I read it when I was having a heard week and if I would have realized that the topic was about an older gentleman trying to kill himself after the death of his wife I would have not read it when I did. However, older adult suicide is an important issue to have a conversation about. 

 

Ove is different. He displays obsessive compulsive behaviors, has difficulty with change, and his social skills are limited. This is suppose to make a delightful character that makes us want to ignore his blunt racist/homophobic way of speaking. After all his actions show that he really has a heart of gold and he isn’t actually racist/homophobic. As a person on the autism spectrum I have a hard time with that message. 

 

That being said, the writing is very well done and the characters are very well developed (even if I think Ove is problematic). I think if the book tried to give answers to any of the issues that it brought up then I would have a problem with the book. It does not. It presents a man with his good points and his not good points. It presents a neighborhood with its good points and its not good points. As a reader you are left interpreting this as you see fit.