Fredrik Backman
Creating unforgettable curmudgeonly characters whose gruff exteriors hide enormous hearts.
Biography
Fredrik Backman is a Swedish author and columnist born in Helsingborg in 1981. His debut novel, A Man Called Ove, was published in 2012 and became a global phenomenon, selling over 4 million copies and inspiring both Swedish and American film adaptations. Backman has a remarkable ability to create grumpy, flawed characters who reveal profound tenderness, and his novels have been translated into over 40 languages. He is widely regarded as one of Sweden's most beloved contemporary authors.
Best Starting Book
A Man Called Ove
A warm, funny, and deeply moving novel that perfectly captures Backman's unique ability to find beauty in the most ordinary lives.
Reading Order
A Man Called Ove
The novel that conquered the world β a grumpy old man's story that will make you laugh and cry in equal measure.
Anxious People
A brilliantly constructed comedy about a failed bank robbery that becomes a meditation on human connection.
Beartown
A darker, more ambitious turn β a searing portrait of a small hockey town forced to confront an act of violence.
Us Against You
The powerful sequel to Beartown that deepens the community's story with even greater emotional stakes.
My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry
A whimsical, fairy-tale-infused novel about grief and imagination that shows Backman's magical side.