" We fear it, yet most of us fear more than anything that it may take someone other than ourselves. For the greatest fear of death is always that it will pass us by. And leave us there alone.."
Recently I finished reading this book which falls in the genre of fiction.
This is the kind of book that grows on you as its chapters unfolds, much like its character, the old grumpy Ove. He has lost his beloved wife Sonja and is reeling under the weight of its grief, in the course of which he tries various ways to end his own life. His grief and loneliness find company when one day his new neighbors, Parvaneh, her husband and 2 kids, come knocking at his door.
The book makes you realize how your past experiences transform you as a person and how they form the building blocks of what you are. Ove is a man of staunch principles, he is not a people's person and is someone who is strictly brand loyal, uncompromising and abides by his own set of rules. We experience through the book how the tides of misfortune sweep Ove off his feet, how the grief of losing his beloved father and then his wife, eats him from inside and changes him.
The book beautifully describes the relation between Ove and Sonja and how even after her death she is always there like a shining star in the corner of their house. The years Ove had spent with her were the benchmark against which the rest of his life is measured and no matter how hard he tried, the rest of his life they never lived up to it.
The book describes the beautiful relation that blooms between Ove and his neighbors and how he is not able to hold himself from from loving them, though, in his own way.
It is a book which will make you smile as you turn the pages and at the same time make your heart, break into a sob. You experience the generous transformation of Ove's neighbors and a cat which unexpectedly becomes Ove's partner, into his most cherished beings and his new family and Ove, their most loved grand-dad.
A ray of hope lingers throughout the book, rising slowly: the moments of connection, the re-awakening of a man frozen by grief and the ability of people to brighten up each other's lives. This book makes you believe in the kind of unconditional love, even more.
I would give this book a 4 on 5 rating. Hope you found it useful and enjoyed reading!
