I just finished up listening to the audio book Beartown: A Novel by Fredrik Backman.  I had put the book on my wait list with the on line library and then waited.  While I was waiting I saw that Mary over at Country Threads had read and liked it.  I heard that others liked it as well.  So when I got notification that the book was available I was pretty excited.  With books, that excitement can be good and bad.  Sometimes there is so much hype and then once I read it, I am disappointed.
I ended up liking it. Â I was really thinking I wouldn’t at first. Â I was about three chapters in and started thinking really, why does everyone love it? Â I kept going and ended up be really glad I did. Â The book was really well thought out on the author’s part. Â I love how background information was give on so many characters. Â It made it easy to see why they had motivating factors to do the things they did.
Here’s what Amazon had to say:“People say Beartown is finished. A tiny community nestled deep in the forest, it is slowly losing ground to the ever encroaching trees. But down by the lake stands an old ice rink, built generations ago by the working men who founded this town. And in that ice rink is the reason people in Beartown believe tomorrow will be better than today. Their junior ice hockey team is about to compete in the national semi-finals, and they actually have a shot at winning. All the hopes and dreams of this place now rest on the shoulders of a handful of teenage boys.
Being responsible for the hopes of an entire town is a heavy burden, and the semi-final match is the catalyst for a violent act that will leave a young girl traumatized and a town in turmoil. Accusations are made and, like ripples on a pond, they travel through all of Beartown, leaving no resident unaffected.
Beartown explores the hopes that bring a small community together, the secrets that tear it apart, and the courage it takes for an individual to go against the grain. In this story of a small forest town, Fredrik Backman has found the entire world.”
Amazon readers give the book 4.5 stars. Â I think I would agree. Â The pieces of this story are all very well thought out and put into place giving the reader a very complete story. Â I love the high school sport theme and as always, the under dog is my favorite character.
I truly enjoyed reading Beartown. I had the opportunity to read an advance copy, and have thought of the book often since that time. The author did a wonderful job of portraying the bleak feelings of the people, the bleakness of the town itself, and the boys that gave everything, past and present, for the hockey teams that kept the town’s hopes alive. Glad you liked the book!
Backman’s other book, A Man Called Ove, is also a great book if you haven’t already read it.