Instant #1 New York Times Bestseller A People Book of the Week, Book of the Month Club selection, and Best of Fall in Good Housekeeping, PopSugar, The Washington Post, New York Post, Shondaland, CNN, and more! “[A] quirky, big-hearted novel…Wry, wise, and often laugh-out-loud funny, it’s a wholly original story that delivers pure pleasure.” –People From the #1 New York Times bestselling … wholly original story that delivers pure pleasure.” —People
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove comes a charming, poignant novel about a crime that never took place, a would-be bank robber who disappears into thin air, and eight extremely anxious strangers who find they have more in common than they ever imagined.
Looking at real estate isn’t usually a life-or-death situation, but an apartment open house becomes just that when a failed bank robber bursts in and takes a group of strangers hostage. The captives include a recently retired couple who relentlessly hunt down fixer-uppers to avoid the painful truth that they can’t fix their own marriage. There’s a wealthy bank director who has been too busy to care about anyone else and a young couple who are about to have their first child but can’t seem to agree on anything, from where they want to live to how they met in the first place. Add to the mix an eighty-seven-year-old woman who has lived long enough not to be afraid of someone waving a gun in her face, a flustered but still-ready-to-make-a-deal real estate agent, and a mystery man who has locked himself in the apartment’s only bathroom, and you’ve got the worst group of hostages in the world.
Each of them carries a lifetime of grievances, hurts, secrets, and passions that are ready to boil over. None of them is entirely who they appear to be. And all of them–the bank robber included–desperately crave some sort of rescue. As the authorities and the media surround the premises these reluctant allies will reveal surprising truths about themselves and set in motion a chain of events so unexpected that even they can hardly explain what happens next.
Rich with Fredrik Backman’s “pitch-perfect dialogue and an unparalleled understanding of human nature” (Shelf Awareness), Anxious People is an ingeniously constructed story about the enduring power of friendship, forgiveness, and hope–the things that save us, even in the most anxious times.
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enjoyed this book but nearly as much as his first novel. It took much longer to engage the reader unlike Ove.
I don’t recommend this book it was a boring disappointment.
“Anxious People” is the newest novel by author Fredrik Backman, of “A Man Called Ove” and “Beartown”.
A seemingly normal open house, on the day before New Year’s Eve, is anything but ordinary when a bank robber (who had failed to rob a cash-less bank across the street) ends up holding the participants hostage. The hostages include two married couples who are vying for the apartment, an eighty-year-old woman, a man in a bunny suit and a seemingly uptight bank manager. As the police descend the bank robber must decide how far the hostage situation will go, and who, if only, of the hostages will be released.
“People” is character driven, emotionally charged and poignant (like all of Backman’s other novels) while still managing to be downright hilarious and heartbreaking all at once. There is not an unlikable character in the bunch, and as they bond over their circumstances, each and every one reveals their vulnerabilities, and shows their human side. “People” has something for everyone, and there is at least one character that each and every reader will align with.
Backman shines on a light on readers’ expectations and inner prejudices, as the bank robber is revealed to be someone completely unexpected. As only Backman can do, “People” also portrays the positive and caring side of humanity, even in dire circumstances.
The short chapters make this novel easy to read and it is narrated almost completely in the third person. I was invested in each of the characters’ plot lines, and appreciated Backman’s unrealistic but completely cheerful ending.
I am a huge fan of Backman’s work, and have been waiting on this one for a long time. A page-turning, hilarious plot with a big, fat dose of humanity is absolutely everything I wanted, and more.
I needed an audio book to listen to while driving and this was available. I knew nothing about it, but decided if I didn’t like it I could always return it to the library.
I never even considered it — this book hooked me from the beginning and even when it felt like it might be start rambling or get ridiculous, the author brought the story back around to keep it on track and moving forward. Though it was heartbreaking — the book includes references to suicide and depression — but it also made me laugh out loud numerous times (it reminds me of the TV show Mom, dealing with serious issues but reminding us that there can still be humor in life.
I really had no idea where this story was going to go. Backman introduced several unique characters, but nothing is really what you expect. The twists happen completely naturally and instead of feeling lost or confused, I found myself anxiously waiting to see which direction the story would go next.
My favorite kind of book — one that makes you laugh and cry (and includes several suicide support group names and numbers at the end).
PG-13 for mature themes (I don’t believe there was any/very much swearing).
Anxious People is a heartwarming and heartrending story of people empathizing and looking out for each other despite (or because of) their own hang-ups and circumstances. I loved each and every characters and found myself rooting for a few oddballs that could have been grating in other books and in less masterful hands than Backman’s. I also enjoyed the shifting perspectives from character to character as well as the insertion of suspect interview transcripts to break up some of the narrator interludes which could get a bit heavy, even though I found them extremely insightful. I definitely want to re-read this book, a feat in and of itself. If I could give it six stars I would!
First half was hard to push through but it all came together in a quirky and inspirational ending.
I must admit I had trouble getting into this book – and I tried several times. I love the Man Named Ove, but somehow this one didn’t measure up, or even come close. My opinion.
“It’s always very easy to declare that other people are idiots, but only if you forget how idiotically difficult being human is.”
This was my first book of 2021. I was devastated when it was over. It was nominated for Book of the Month’s book of the year, and I could tell why. How could you possibly fall in love with the character who holds people hostage? Well, I can say it’s possible. My heart felt full and broken all at the same time with each turn of a page. I would give it 5 out of 5 Xanax.
Eccentric Story Laced With Good Sentiments
This was my first time reading a book by Fredrik Backman, and although I can’t quite say I liked it, I think it had more to do with adjusting to the execution than the content. This story is tense, mysterious, emotionally charged, and humorous. Timelines shift often, and the better you can keep track of them, the more you may enjoy it.
Anxious People is one of those books where if someone asks you what it’s about, you fumble around for an apt description. “There’s a bank robbery,” you might say, “but it’s not a thriller.” Then you’re stumped about what to say next so you simply add, “but you have to read it.”
Fredrik’s talent is in telling us the small stories of people you hate and love all at the same time. Then you realize you hate and love them for same reasons you do your own loved ones—because they’re real and vulnerable and annoying and loving and oh so precious.
This book is about messed-up people living in a messed-up world but somehow making that world one you long to create yourself.
Fredrik Backman continues his writing streak of getting his readers into the hearts and souls of the characters. We not only know what they are thinking and feeling but we feel along with them. Backman caught my attention years ago with A Man Called Ove and has held my attention ever since.
Anxious People is sort of about a bank robbery that isn’t, a hostage drama that isn’t, suicides that do and don’t happen, about forgiving others and forgiving ourselves. It is about loneliness and connection, and finding the love in the everyday. This makes it sound as if the book is profound and philosophical, which it isn’t, but it is. Backman tells us at the very beginning that the story is about idiots. He says that ” it is always very easy to declare that the other people are idiots, but only if you forget how idiotically difficult being human is. Especially if you have other people you’re trying to be a reasonably good human being for. …because it’s so horribly, desperately easy to fail at being grown-up.”
It is about people so anxious about being themselves, pleasing other people – our spouse, children, bosses, parents – that we are all just doing the best we can. That “we are more than the mistakes we made yesterday. That we are all of our next choices too…”
Which is why a bank robber tried to rob a bank, took hostages, and forced the police to make choices.
The characters are annoying and lovable and desperate. They are more than their immediate surroundings and they unfold before our eyes to be complete and imperfectly wonderful.
The book is laugh out loud funny at times and quick witted and sad. There were hint of things to come, but they turned out to be not what I expected and kept me turning pages to see what would happen next. (less)
This was a quirky book that made me laugh and think. Many of the people in the story were idiots, but could be any of us in our messy lives. This was well written with a variety of characters that you grew to love where people’s stories and experiences intertwined in interesting ways. I loved the flow of the story and would recommend reading.
I love Fredrik Backman as an author, but, unfortunately, I hated this novel. I found the characters utterly annoying and the novel to be plotless.
For my full review, please visit: https://www.krwardbookreview.com/2021/04/anxious-people-by-fredrik-backman.html
It is memorable ! I never read a book twice, but I am tempted with this one. I did laugh out loud. Unusual characters.
Beautiful. A reminder that we are all in this together, and as Plato said “ Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.
Page one- bring your highlighter to capture the fabulous life nuggets and perspecitives
The author has killed it again!!! He is one of my favorite authors and this book proves why! You fall in love with getting to know each character!!!
3.5*
The story was extremely clever and well written. For a change of pace, I’ve been trying to break away from the genres I typically read. Once I was about halfway, for whatever reason, I struggled to pick up the book on a daily basis and never became invested in any of the characters. So I think this one will go down as taking me the longest to read even though it was only 350 pages.
I can see why others enjoyed this book but it just wasn’t one of my favorites.
3.5
If I was someone who didn’t finish books on a regular basis, this one would’ve been added to that list. Most of it was annoying to read and I was ready to just be done with it.
I did love the overall message and am glad that I was *sort of* able to appreciate the parts that annoyed me after finishing, I just dislike that I didn’t start enjoying it until around 72%.
To sum it all up, I didn’t love it but I still feel like it’s worth reading. I also think it was a good choice to end the year with. #NoRagrets
This book was something different for me, a book club choice. I had never read anything by Fredrik Backman, even though I had heard good things and I have several of his books on my TBR list. This book was very difficult for me to get into. I didn’t much like the characters initially and I just struggled with the police interviews and the “clueless” and somewhat antagonizing victims of the hostage situation.
As I continued on (I’m not going to leave a book club book unread) I began to develop a greater sense of who all the characters were and I saw transformations in them. Throughout the book there were meaningful passages to me, but it was a lot of starting and stopping when I first sat down to read. I am really glad I finished this book. It was a very satisfying ending.