Anxious People by Fredrik Backman

 July 23, 2020

Anxious People by Fredrik Backman

On the day before New Year's Eve, eight people attend a viewing of an apartment that is for sale.  Each person has their own reasons for being there, ranging from the mundane to the bizarre (including a guy wearing a rabbit head).  They are eight strangers, until a bank robber bursts into the apartment waving a gun, and suddenly they become eight hostages.  As they begin to talk to each other, they realize that they have more in common than it first appears.  But as the situation progresses and the police surround the building, the eight anxious people are forced to decide how they will move forward (in more ways than one).

Although not as good as Backman's A Man Called Ove (but seriously, what could be?), this is a novel filled with the author's signature wit and exploration of complex human relationships.  It's also a sort of "locked-room" mystery that keeps twisting and turning on itself, and just about when you think you have the story figured out, you find out that you're wrong.  The characters are ALL unreliable witnesses (except maybe the young policeman Jack) and probably the worst hostages ever.  Although there are themes of depression and suicide that run through the book, don't let that stop you from reading it, because Backman ultimately delivers a story that is heartwarming and life-affirming.  Probably one of the best books of 2020.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC in return for a review.