Some warm relationships and a few deep enmities are responsible for situations where wry humor reigns sovereign. In fact, it’s the neighbors who drive much of the action. There’s not much of a plot, but plenty of subplots and a satisfying degree of character development in Ove and his neighbors. I challenge anyone with a tender heart to read this without shedding a tear or two. In fact, the tenor of the book is playful in spite of some rather dark factors and in the end is positively heartwarming. To be clear he never over the course of the story becomes any less invested in any of these attitudes, but there is a positive growth in his emotional consciousness and there are revelations of a caring and tolerant side to this grumpy old man.Įach chapter is titled mirroring the book “A Man Called Ove Drills a Hole for a Hook” (which is significant in a way I’ll not spoil for you), “A Man Called Ove and a Clown Named Beppo”, etc., and each is accompanied with a whimsical drawing of a carpenter’s tool that adds a lighthearted tone. As his story emerges, however, the reader begins to understand the sources of these apparent flaws and to regard them as more virtuous than otherwise. Profoundly opinionated, intolerant of fuzzy thinking and inflexible in every way, he seems, at first, to be an unsympathetic character. I am glad of both recommendations and am looking forward to the author’s next book. Cathy Langer of Tattered Cover recommended it to my wife, Judy who then passed it to me. This is a lovely, loving and lovable book.
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