A Man Called Ove

A Man Called Ove. Fredrik Backman. Atria Books. August 2012. 337 pages.  Source: Audio library book.

First sentence: Ove is fifty-nine. He drives a Saab.

Plot: A grumpy yet loveable man finds his solitary world turned on its head when a boisterous young family moves in next door.

Meet Ove. He's a curmudgeon, the kind of man who points at people he dislikes as if they were burglars caught outside his bedroom window. He has staunch principles, strict routines, and a short fuse. People call him the bitter neighbor from hell, but must Ove be bitter just because he doesn't walk around with a smile plastered to his face all the time?

Behind the cranky exterior there is a story and a sadness. So when one November morning a chatty young couple with two chatty young daughters move in next door and accidentally flatten Ove's mailbox, it is the lead-in to a comical and heartwarming tale of unkempt cats, unexpected friendship, and the ancient art of backing up a U-Haul. All of which will change one cranky old man and a local residents' association to their very foundations. (Goodreads)

My thoughts: When I first started this book I wondered why in the world everyone would be all up in arms about this cranky old man!  The more I read the more I felt it had a similar feel to his book "My grandmother wanted me to tell you she's sorry".  It too had a sort of depressing feel about most of the book and then the end surprised you.

This story kept going from current day events to events in Ove's past.  Sometimes so quickly it took me off guard as to what was going on.  But I soon got the feel and flow of the story.  Ove is a very lonely man since his wife Sonya passed away.  So lonely in fact he had tried to commit suicide on countless occasions.  There was always someone there to interfere with his plans.  The ending left me feeling very warm and after all, happy to have read this one!