Grumpy old man with a big heart

Reading Fredrik Backman's "A man called Ove" makes you feel good. It is a moving story, it will make you laugh and maybe shed a tear now and then. Sometimes you might fear that it is getting close to become a little bit corny, but Fredrik Backman skillfully stays clear of that. Joan Walker is the perfect voice for this narrative and it is a pure pleasure to listen to her.

The heart and soul of the story is the grumpy old man, called Ove. When he lost his wife, his world fell apart and he became a broken man. He spends his days, inspecting the neighbourhood for misdemeanors or he is visiting the grave of his wife to talk to her. He became bitter and lonesome and since there is nothing left to do for him, he decides to end his life. Easier that than done, each and everytime he is prepared to do it, somebody needs his help. It might be a small freezing kitten, a helplesss neighbor, who cannot backup his trailer, a neighbor with a handicapped husband and so on. Ove's prickly appearance might fool you, he has a big heart and he will solve the problem.

All the characters in this story are drawn with so much love and detail, you will be tempted to look for them in your neighborhood. In a way they are stereotypes, but regardless of that, they form an enchanting kaleidoscope of todays urban society.

It is beautiful story, nicely told and the prose is more than adequate. It is simply a good book.

5 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

schönstes Buch seit langem

dieses Hörbuch ist das schönste, das ich seit langem - wenn nicht sogar überhaupt - gehört habe. Im Vergleich zur deutschen Version fand ich die englische Sprecherin mitreißender. Für mich ist die Geschichte des schrulligen Ove eine tolle Kombination aus berührend, lustig und herzergreifend. Teilweise erinnert sie mich an den Film Gran Torino und ich würde mich freuen, auch Ove irgendwann im Kino zu sehen ; -)

2 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

Worst speaker/narrator/readet ever

lovely story, terrible speaker, totally overarticulates everything. The BBC did a "Book at Bedtime" version of this (abbreviated unfortunately) that was a million times better.

Asolutely fantastic!!!

Joan did an exceptional job as narrator.
Unique, beautiful sorry in an outstanding English translation.
A must read/listen to ;)

wundervoll!!

Das Buch ist einfach wundervoll! Herzerwärmend, lustig und einfach schön. Die Sprecherin ist erste klasse!

einzigartig

tolle Sprecherin und wirklich berührende Geschichte. Humorvoll erzählt. Kann es wirklich nur empfehlen. Viel Spaß!

Humor und Traurigkeit

Die Story ist sehr bewegend
Die Charaktere so verschieden und einmalig
Die Sprecherin imitiert alle hervorragend

Lovely!

I really love the narrators voice! Beautiful story of Ove and his neighbours. Not the last time that I heard it!

Amazing

I've never "read" a book so touching. I couldn't stop myself from smiling and crying even if I wanted to. What a lovely story!

Just lovely!

This story made me laugh and cry numerous times - and I just loved the characters! Furthermore the reader has a pleasant voice and perfectly 'acts out' the different scenes. What a great listening experience!