“The truth is that this was a story about many different things, but most of all about idiots. Because we’re doing the best we can, we really are… We are looking for something to cling on to, something to fight for something to look forward to….We have all this in common, yet most of us remain strangers, we never know what we do to each other, how your life is affected by mine.”
Hi folks,
This was a good one. Fredrik Backman wrote one of my favorite books, A Man Called Ove. I pick up one of his books whenever I’m looking for a story that’s going to make me feel good once I’m finished. Anxious People hit the spot. It’s 341 pages and was translated from Swedish. I don’t think translators get enough credit. There are so many books we would have missed out on if it weren’t for translators. Backman has a knack for writing what I’d call quirky characters and this book was filled with several. It’s best to go into this one without too much information. There were some twists and turns that made me laugh out loud. You’ll get from the book jacket that a part of the story is about a bank robbery and subsequent hostage situation that does not go as planned. You know what they say. The best way to get to know someone is to be trapped with them for several hours. I think most readers will see themselves or someone they know among the cast of characters. They differ in many ways but as the story unfolds they find they have more in common than they think. Anxious People is a charming and engaging read. I gave it four out of five stars and plan to buy it for my collection once it comes out on paperback.
You can find my review of another Backman book that I enjoyed here.
Have a great week!
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