Book review of ‘A Man called Ove’ by Fredrik Backman

Gen Z feels that the 80's generation (the Millenials) is out dated and always complaining and 80's generation felt the same about the Gen X. The striking reality is that this cycle repeats itself. While lot has been discussed about parenting techniques and lessons on coping with children, not much public engagement happens in understanding the mentality of aged men/women who have crossed their prime age, the loneliness they deal with and the inner struggles they go through in adapting themselves to the dynamically changing world.  A man called Ove by Frederick Blackmann is an attempt at journaling the life of a sexagenerian named Ove and how he sees today's world. 

Ove becomes orphan for the first time at the age of 16 and for the second time at the age of 59, when his beloved wife Sonja dies. The plot begins here and the author takes us through the journey of a man called Ove. He is a typical perfectionist and a self-made man who ardently follows a routine and diligently adheres to defined set of principles. The taciturn man turns quieter and grumpier when his wife dies. Unable to bear her loss, he decides to die.

But, as always, God had other plans for him and every attempt of his is defied by his new neighbour family. How the new family brings life and laughter back to Ove is what the book is all about.  The book is interspersed with the flashback of Ove’s childhood and youth. He largely drew inspiration from his father, from whom he learned that right has to be right. In fact, ‘..he thought that there should be some order in things. There should be routines and one should be able to feel secure about them. He could not see how it could be a bad attribute. ‘

At one point, he gets ripped off his home and he settle for some menial job, and that’s when a turning point happens in Ove’s life. He meets Sonja and the author describes that moment as, ‘He had never been spontaneous before in his own life. But when he saw her it was as if something malfunctioned.. And Ove realised that he wanted to hear her talking about the things she loved for the rest of his life..He had never heard anything quite as amazing as that voice’. The subtle and implicit romance and affection between Sonja and Ove sounded so profound to me. Though Ove is not too romantic and they had varied interests, they understood and listened to each other. Each other’s happiness meant something to them and the efforts they take to do that, without imposing one’s desires on others is something today’s generation should learn.

Ove’s wife, Sonja is quite a practical woman. The couple met with an accident while Sonja was pregnant, resulting in the child getting aborted and crippling Sonja. Both become devastated and it was Sonja who encourages Ove with her words, ‘We can busy ourselves with living or dying, Ove. We have to move on.’ Quite an inspiring character she is. When Ove loses her, he becomes so devastated; even then, he doesn’t miss out on his routine to survey the society in the early morning, as that’s what sticking to a routine means to him!!

Parvenah, an Irish pregnant woman, along with her husband and 2 kids enters into the Ove’s society as new neighbours. Right from day 1 of their entry, Ove and Parvenah’s family gets into some sort of tiff, which reading in author’s words is quite a delight. The other thing that stood out in the book was the vivid descriptions about the neighbours is so relatable that it makes the reader feel that he/she is also part of the society.

So, enter Parvenah and her family, there is some change in Ove which all other neighbours witnesses. Ove even patches up with Rune, his old friend from the same society; the reason why both dissolves their friendship can be felt only by those who have deeper sentiments for car brands! The author’s words are so powerful and thought-provoking capturing the thought process of Ove in deciding to do whatever it takes to save Rune from being sent to external care home- “…but all people at root are time optimists. We always think there’s enough time to do things with other people. Time to say things to them. And then something happens and then we stand there holding on to words like ‘if’.”

I also liked this character who Ove calls the ‘Cat Annoyance’, which as evident from the name is a cat that keeps annoying Ove from time to time. The mind voice of the cat is so aptly captured to suit the situation and at one point, Ove is forced to provide a shelter for the same cat by Parvenah, much to his dismay. Slowly, everyone of his neighbour starts to engage with Ove, which he himself feels strange. His dislike for kids also changes as he starts to babysit Parvenah’s kids (forcefully, of course! :P).

The end of Ove is quite moving and the author makes sure that the readers fall in love with the grandpa-ish character. The length and pace of the book are reasonable that even someone who is not so great at finishing a book couldn’t resist completing it. The sarcastic and contemptuous outlook of Ove will  be appreciated better by readers who have had exposure with their earlier generations. I had many such acquaintances and hence, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. The language is simple and the navigation between present and past periods of Ove’s life is also seamless. On the whole, it is a great book that will transcend generations and will be liked by your parents, you and your children. And you will no longer look at their grumpiness and frugal nature in the same way. In an age, where today’s generation relies heavily on the external assistance to get even a screw fixed onto a wall, this book reminds that people such as Ove are a treasure to be cherished and protected. 😊

P.S: This novel is also made into a movie in 2015 and is available on Netflix.