A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman

"And time is a curious thing. Most of us only live for the time that lies right ahead of us. A few days, weeks, years. One of the most painful moments in a person's life probably comes with the insight that an age has been reached when there is more to look back on than ahead. And when time no longer lies ahead of one, other things have to be lived for. Memories, perhaps. Afternoons in the sun with someone's hand clutched in one's own. The fragrance of flowerbeds in fresh bloom. Sundays in a café. Grandchildren, perhaps. One finds a way of living for the sake of someone else's future. And it wasn't as if Ove died when Sonja left him. He just stopped living."
              -Ove's musings from the novel

A couple of friends suggested this book for a Page Turners selection. I am SO glad! What a unique and delightful read it was! Swedish author Backman's style is very simplistic with use of many sentence fragments, as illustrated by my beginning quote. At times it is rather poetic and profound, also reflected in the quote. I actually had to choose between many quotable passages. Short chapters and frequent foreshadowing make the novel a real page-turner. The author's dry wit had me often smiling and even giggling. I will rate it a 5 since I enjoyed it very much. A Man Called Ove reminded me of How the Grinch Stole Christmas (the reason will be obvious) and The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery (not so obvious unless you have read both books).

In the beginning, title character Ove is a curmudgeon, to be sure. He argues, complains, criticizes and generally doesn't find much in the world to like. He has a tendency not to even name people except by describing them, for example the Lanky One, Pregnant One, the Blond Weed and so on. Through flashbacks the reader soon learns more about Ove's past---traumas and tragedies that have made him angry, cynical, intolerant and sad. Before too long you will find yourself feeling sympathetic. The secondary characters, new neighbors and a cat in particular, are charming, tolerant, patient and forgiving to a fault!

The adage "Don't judge a book by its cover" surely comes to mind.  I would say unconditional love would be one theme of this novel and it makes for a poignant, sweet story.

More after our meeting...
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Most of our Page Turners loved A Man Called Ove---ten 5's out of 16 ratings! Only one person disliked the book but she REALLY disliked it, giving it a 2. It probably made for an even better discussion, however. The group average was 4.5.

One member shared the correct pronunciation of the protagonist's name---oo vay and also brought pictures of Saab automobiles, very prominent in the story. A retired social worker in our group took exception to the very negative portrayal of the social worker in the novel. When discussing Parveneh's personality, we agreed that she was just the right neighbor to bring the lost color back to Ove's life. When someone said he thought his life was ovah (over), we cracked up! You probably won't  get the humor without reading the book.