Review: Beartown (#1) by Fredrik Backman, Neil Smith (Translator)

Summary from Goodreads:

People say Beartown is finished. A tiny community nestled deep in the forest, it is slowly losing ground to the ever encroaching trees. But down by the lake stands an old ice rink, built generations ago by the working men who founded this town. And in that ice rink is the reason people in Beartown believe tomorrow will be better than today. Their junior ice hockey team is about to compete in the national semi-finals, and they actually have a shot at winning. All the dreams of this place now rest on the shoulders of a handful of teenage boys.

Being responsible for the hopes of an entire town is a heavy burden, and the semi-final match is the catalyst for a violent act that will leave a young girl traumatized and a town in turmoil. Accusations are made and, like ripples on a pond, they travel through all of Beartown, leaving no resident unaffected.

Review:


What I Liked:

Plot. The best aspect of the novel was an interesting plot. It was a mixture of contemporary fiction with a hint of mystery. I found myself binge reading it because of the opening prologue. I needed to know what happened at the end. It shows that Backman is skilled at creating an intriguing plot. 

Characters. The novel is full of various characters. It was hard to connect with them because of the format they were still well-written and interesting. My favorite parts were from the point of views of Benji, Maya, and Ana, and I would have loved to just have the novel from them. Backman did a great job of writing every single character and making them three-dimensional. 

Ending/Twist. I'm still up in the air about the ending. I'm not sure if I liked it or not because it was not what I was expecting at all. It did leave me thinking and stuck in my mind for days after, which shows that it was a strong conclusion. 

What I Disliked:

Writing Style/Format. Backman is a good writer but I think his style is just not for me. I had trouble connecting with any of the characters because of distant narration and the multiple POVS. Plus, how the chapters switched from character to character made it hard for me to focus. 

Pacing. I really struggled with the pacing and it almost made me put down the novel multiple times. I felt like the reason it dragged for me was the format and how I had a hard time connecting with the novel. 


I recommend checking out this intense novel if you like Backman's writing style.

Rating:

3.5 Stars out of 5 Stars.