I’m recently into Fredirk backman’s novel world, and I’m now reading Anxious People and I finished two third of the book.
I have also read A man called Ove, Beartown trilogy (Beartown, Us against You, The Winners)
Even though I really enjoyed his novels, There’s something that distracted me.
I mean, I couldn’t get what all the fuss is about when I read the halfway through books.
They were too repetitive to read, there were so many foreshadowing but he didn’t tell what the exactly thing was. (Especially in The Winners. So many things were already described in previous two books).
And He wrote every detailed and intricate part of every character, which also gave me some burden to read at the beginning part.(Maybe it’s because I’m not fluent enough in English, because I’m Korean and I’m reading English translation version of the books.)
I wanted to know what the main flow was and what would happen soon but whenever I wanted it he described other things that I wasn’t concerned much.
It wasn’t until I finished the book that I realized it added up to the overall flow and had some meaning. But It was hard for me to get through the book by halfway.
Even though I enjoyed the story after I got through the half of the book, I guess it would be easier and funnier to read if he reduced some “foreshadowing” and wrote directly to the main story.)
What do you think about his writing style?
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by Key-Campaign7759
3 Comments
I found his writing style to be quite boring too, however there must be something compelling about it if you’ve read four of his books! I read A man called Ove but it didn’t leave me excited to read anything else he wrote
Backman’s books – especially Beartown and it’s sequels – are very character driven. Personally, I loved reading all the different POVs and then seeing it all slowly come together. I love reading about how all the different characters are being impacted by and reacting to the events of the story.
He’s not focusing on just the main story because the story isn’t the point, the characters are the point. You would probably enjoy more plot driven stories that focus less on the individual characters motivations, struggles, and growth.
He writes books a lot like a lot of swedish/nordic television from the 2000s imo. Unless it’s a crime show they tend to be very based on relatability, mundane everyday life and relationships (presumably because it’s cheaper to make). Which is what I enjoyed about them since it felt so nostalgic, tho that might have also been since the audiobook narrator was a known actor hehe.