~Beartown by Fredrik Backman~
Fredrik Backman can always hook me with the characters he creates, plunging me into a story. Beartown is no exception.
A small town is slowly dying. The one thing they have going for them is their hockey team. With little else to hold on to, the pride of the townspeople is tied up in the performance of their young men.
Beartown is fiction that portrays a realistic picture of what a sports town looks like and goes into the reasons why people get so involved and invested in sports. The characters in this book are complex. This book makes you think. Watching the story unfold, one can understand how something like the incidents and crimes that take place could happen.
There is violence. A lot of language in this book, but it feels natural. This is how it is. This is what can happen.
I did start to get worried towards the end, and while there’s no unringing the bell, there is a certain level of satisfaction with the way the story wraps up. An well done portrayal of a sports crazed town and of human behavior.
This one is a serious read that will stay with you for a while. It’s not an easy read due to some of the subject matter, but definitely one on my must read list. Gritty. Thought provoking. There are issues that may be of concern for some. There is a sequel, Us Against You.