I must admit that I’m one of those thrawn (pig-headed) people who don’t like to follow the crowd and read something just because everyone else has their nose in it – that GREY book would never darken my home. So when I noticed that the front of A Man Called Ove has written at the top of it – THE MILLION-COPY BEST SELLER – it put me off reading it. Peggy Ann had loved it which is why I requested it from the library so I thanked Sandra in the library and gathered it up wondering if I had wasted her time in getting it for me. The ‘WARM, FUNNY… UNBEARABLY MOVING’ from The Daily Mail!!! was a right off put-er too.
But heigh-ho Peggy was right, I loved this one too and I read it in two sittings, so as it has 294 pages I think it’s safe to say that I found it to be a real page turner.
Ove has recently been made redundant at the age of 59. He has lived in the same house for almost four decades and he’s one of those men who is a stickler for the rules. If a sign says no parking then he is determined that nobody will park in that area. He takes it upon himself to police the area he lives in, checking everywhere for signs of burglary. He had been head of the residents association until he was ousted in what he calls a coup d’etat. So he’s definitely a paid up member of the awkward squad and more than a wee bit odd, but at the bottom of everything he’s a man of principle with a very strong moral compass, and he thinks that if everyone was like him then things would be fine. He also has a heart of gold in that ageing body of his.
Close to the beginning of the book Ove decides that he now has no reason to keep on living, fortunately he isn’t very successful at trying to do away with himself which is just as well as he ends up being the mainstay of his community.
Despite being really tragic in parts this is also a fun read. Ove is a very grumpy and rude older man. (I have to be careful here as he’s actually younger than Jack!) and like many older people Ove thinks that modern life is rubbish and the younger generation know nothing, and it’s fair to say that the younger people have a similar attitude to the oldies. This was a great reading kick-off to 2016 and I gave it five stars on Goodreads, quite rare for me.
So glad you loved it! I’d have to say it is one of my favorites and Ove favorite character of all. You’ll have to read his other one now. My Grand mother told me to tell you she’s sorry. Wonderful too. I might have got that title a little wrong.
Peggy Ann,
Thanks for the tip. I see that I can get it from Glenwood library tomorrow. So much for reading more of my own books!
I am SO glad you enjoyed this book! I keep a list of books that I reread time and again and this book title was added to it before I even finished the book!
Thank you for a year of blog reading enjoyment. Looking forward to more good reviews by you in the coming year. Happy 2016!
Reta Kenter,
I hope you and yours have a great 2016. I always feel that my reviews are a bit sketchy, but I’m never keen to say too much about a book, in case it spoils it for any other readers.
I’ve just borrowed his next book from the library so I hope that I find it as enjoyable as A Man Called Ove. I don’t often reread books but I can imagine myself going back to Ove just to be in his company again and with his lovely neighbours too.