8.6 /10 1 Votes
Original title En man som heter Ove Publication date 2012 Sweden
2013 US Originally published 27 August 2012 Genre Novel ISBN 9781476738024 | 4.3/5 Goodreads Country Sweden Media type Print Adaptations A Man Called Ove (2015) Original languages Swedish, English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Publisher Washington Square Press (US) Pages 368 pp (US)
347 pp (SWE) Similar Fredrik Backman books, Novels | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A Man Called Ove (original title in Swedish: En man som heter Ove) is a 2012 novel by Fredrik Backman, a Swedish columnist, blogger and writer. It was published in English in 2013.
Contents
In January 2015 a stage version of the book, with Johan Rheborg in the leading role as Ove, had its premiere in Stockholm. In addition, it was adapted as a film of the same name, which was premiered on 25 December 2015, with Rolf Lassgård in the leading role.
Plot summary
Ove is a curmudgeon—the kind of man who points at people he dislikes as if they were burglars caught outside his bedroom window. He has staunch principles, strict routines, and a short fuse. People call him “the bitter neighbor from hell.” However, behind the cranky exterior there is a story and a sadness. So when one November morning a chatty young couple with two chatty young daughters move in next door and accidentally flatten Ove’s mailbox, it is the lead-in to a comical and heartwarming tale of unkempt cats, unexpected friendship, and the ancient art of backing up a U-Haul. All of which will change one cranky old man and a local residents’ association to their very foundations.
Characters
Film and TV adaptations
Audiobook
In July 2014, Dreamscape Media released an audiobook version of this book, read in English by American actor George Newbern.