Anxious People: A Novel, by Fredrik Backman

This is our third Backman book (first two, A Man Named Ove and My Grandmother Asked Me To Tell You She's Sorry). 

Backman's characters are somewhat quirky, and even when they're not quite likeable people (eg, Zara in this story), we eventually see a redeeming quality that shows their good side. Other characters in this book: Jim (the dad) and Jack (Jim's son). Nadia the psychologist. And a room full of prospective buyers are viewing an "apartment" (in the US, we say condo if it's for sale), when suddenly an armed intruder bursts through the open door. 

Backman's writing style is unique. He uses humor - sometimes outlandishly ridiculous ideas (no spoilers...but I'm just going to say "rabbit") -- that make us smile or even laugh at times. We think he does this to keep his books from getting too dark. As with "A Man Named Ove," this book deals with the topic of suicide. In the "Author's Thanks," Backman addresses his friend "J" from 20 years ago who "couldn't bear it any longer." And so, now we know why Backman gravitates to this topic. Again, with ample humor and mostly endearing characters, he is able to keep the book light enough so that it's not depressing. And it (suicide) is just one of several main topics in this book; it's hard to explain without giving spoilers.

As is my habit, when I see a word that is used in the book's title, I pay closer attention. Here is the excerpt that uses the word anxiety; an excerpt that seems to point to the overarching theme of this book:  "He was just one person out of several billion, and most people never become individuals to us. They're just people. We're just strangers passing each other, your anxieties briefly brushing against mine as the fibers of our coats touch momentarily on a crowded sidewalk somewhere. We never really know what we do to each other, with each other, for each other...."

Backman used this overarching theme in the other two books we read -- that of a community of people interacting and showing the ways in which those interactions influence each other. This is true in real life -- even if we don't ever know we've done so, what we say and do each day impacts someone else. We ("L" and I) agree that we are all called to be a little bit more compassionate to our fellow humans. Be kind when you shop, drive, with your coworkers, etc.   

We agreed that this book dragged the ending out a bit. We thought Backman went a bit too far in tying up all the loose threads of the story. But other than that, it kept us turning pages, kept us entertained, and made us think about life and love and community and preconceived notions and other things that are fairly common to the human experience. For this reason, we give thumbs up to this book.