ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

I’m a little backlogged with my ARCs but working diligently to get caught up. I really loved every aspect of this book! It really defines friendship with moments of pure childhood bliss and also is so very heartbreaking. You will feel an entire range while reading this, but I wouldn’t take it back for anything. It’s very rare to find a book that you know will stick with you forever, and this story is one of those for me! I can’t recommend enough! 5+ stars!

5.0 Stars

Thank you NetGalley, Atria Books, and Fredrik Backman for the arc in exchange for an honest review!

Thoughts:
Once again I find my life changed forevermore by a Fredrik Backman read.

Simply incredible. He is truly one of the best writers for all generations. My heart was captured and broken over and over again with every chapter.

I will never not recommend a read by him, and especially this one. I have a new favorite!

Looking forward to seeing how he can outdo himself again in the future.

Paperback/Hardcover/Audiobook/E-book:
E-book

Pace:
Medium

Cover thoughts:
Absolutely love! Out of all his covers, this one is the best!

Triggers:
Death, Physical/Mental/Emotional Abuse, Grief, Violence, Addiction, Swearing, Homophobia, Suicidal Thoughts, Bullying, Cancer, Mental Illness, Drug Use, Mentions of Rape, etc.

While not my favorite Backman book, this is a very enjoyable story. It moved a little slowly at first, but once I really got into it it was easy to be engrossed. That said, I was both pleased with the turn the ending took, but also a little disappointed. I would recommend for Backman fans.

As a huge Fredrik Backman fan I was ecstatic to receive a copy of this novel and it did not disappoint! My Friends is a beautifully poignant story of a young girl, Louisa ,and a middle aged man, Ted, as they come together on a journey. The story was so touching and beautifully written, a classic Backman novel and I could not recommend more

This book is simultaneously a coming of age tale, a tale of grief, of love and of friendship. Be prepared to reflect on the point where your childhood ended and the importance of childhood friendships.

Fredrick Backman’s latest novel is a coming-of-age story of childhood best friends, but told through the lens of years of perspective to a troubled adolescent. The multiple points-of-view are easy to follow, as Blackman takes his time to deeply develop characters and relationships. Only Blackman can take unlikable characters and make you fall in love with them. This story is emotional as each person has significant challenges in their lives, and the reader is aware that it will all be over after summer. I enjoyed taking the literal train journey and trip down memory lane with these diverse characters as they find ways out of their troubled situations.

I read that Backman struggled with writing this book and that it might be his last work. If it is, it's a beautiful book about the power of art and friendship to leave readers. I have loved all of Backman's books, and while the Beartown trilogy will always be my favorite, I have a soft spot for Louisa.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me.

After reading My Friends, I’ve become a die-hard Fredrik Backman fan. Yes, the book was lengthy, but I felt like I had traveled with people I yearned to meet in real life. It was truly touching!

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

Backman’s books are either you love them or you hate them. I fall into the love them camp since reading Beartown. I thought this one was going to be my first book I’ve ever disliked by him because the beginning was a bit not my cup of tea. I mean how many times can I read about teenage boy farts before putting the book down and giving up? The answer to that question is probably more than I should admit as a high school teacher. Once I was hooked, I finished it in a day. It just took me a while to get there!

Backman is by far my favorite author. He writes stories that are so people-centric and it makes you feel like you know them. This was no different.

So good!! Backman's use of misdirection is top notch and his talent for story telling is obvious. Read if you like coming of age stories and can't help feeling nostalgic when you think of summer days.

This one really pains me, but I could not finish this book. I usually inhale Backman's books, but I could not get into this book for the life of me. Stopped at 35%.

This book seems more in line with Backman's work such as Anxious People and A Man Called Ove, not so much Beartown. It still has the same heavier topics in there, but the storytelling is a tad lighter in comparison to his most famous trilogy. Overall, many Backman's fans will surely love this book, as long as they don't expect a Beartown-like story.

Fredrik Backman continues to demonstrate his remarkable talent for exploring the complexities of human relationships and the emotional depth of everyday life. My Friends is both tender and thought-provoking, written with the kind of heart and insight that fans have come to expect from him. Backman's signature blend of warmth and poignancy is evident throughout the novel. He captures the nuances of friendship, love, and loss in a way that feels deeply personal and universally relatable. His characters are drawn with care and authenticity, and the story lingers long after the final page.

A bit harder to get into than his other books. Not my favorite, but still an interesting read! Going to recommend to my book club.

This novel addresses themes of friendship (obvious from the title), art, humanity, anxiety, dysfunction in both families and communities, and more. It's kind of intense. There are some funny parts, but it's mostly pretty moody. The tone of desperation overpowers hope, even with the intentionally hopeful ending. I liked being surprised by some of the twists and turns. Backman did a good job leading me one way and surprising me with something unexpected. That's always fun.

I absolutely loved My Friends by Fredrik Backman. The characters are messy, flawed, and so incredibly human—and that’s exactly what makes them unforgettable. Backman has such a great way of writing people who feel real, like they could walk right off the page. This one made me laugh, tear up, and think a lot about the people in my own life. A beautiful, heartfelt read about connection, forgiveness, and the complicated nature of friendship. Highly recommend.

This book was sad to me. It just seems like the back story of the boys was very drawn out and pieced together. The girl had a sad story also. Although, it was justified the way she grew up and the loss of her friend. I found it rather slow until the lets say 20% of the book. The story follows the best friend of a very famous artist who is telling the story of the relationship of 4 friends growing up. These friends all had very sad stories and home lives. A 17 year old foster girl meets the artist before he dies, she is an artist also who has grown up fascinated with the famous painting of the lake with the friends in it. The artist decides to leave this famous painting to the girl, but she doesn't feel worthy to take it. She tags along with the artist's friend who is returning to their hometown. Along the way, the friend tells the story of the friends growing up. It is a sad story, but the ending I did enjoy.

this was a bittersweet story about friendship, love, and art. the author’s writing style is unique and definitely takes some getting used to, but i knew that from “the answer is no.” “my friends” starts out slow and honestly kind of confusing, but i got invested into the characters during ted’s storytelling. thank you to the author and NetGalley for this ARC!

If there is one thing Fredrik Backman knows how to do, it is pull heartstrings. As in his other books, My Friends sets up a quirky cast of characters, takes them on a roller-coaster of events that excavate emotions, and still manage to end with a hopeful outlook on life. Also as in his other books, it is all about the importance of our relationships with other people. But perhaps you can tell, My Friends goes even deeper into just how vital friendships are to life.

My Friends gives us a dual timeline of events. In our first, we have Louisa, who has run away from her foster home the day before her eighteenth birthday. Having recently lost her best friend Fish to an overdose, Louisa is on a quest to see a famous painting they had promised to see together. Finally getting to see, in person, the piece of art that means so much to her, is life changing. But perhaps more life-changing is the homeless man she meets in the alley after getting thrown out of the art auction. Together, they are going to create a piece of art that will change the trajectory of their lives and others.

In the second timeline, we are introduced to the artist who created the painting Louisa has gone to see. It was created at the end of the summer the artist was fifteen. But in order to understand how the painting came to be, and how it came to be world-famous, Backman takes us to the beginning of that summer, which is a summer of friendship and of danger. Which means it also turns out to be a summer of miracles small and large.

What struck me right away is how Backman absolutely nails what it is like to be a teenager. In the artists timeline he is writing fifteen-year-olds, and in Louisa we have a barely eighteen-year-old, both experience the depth and breadth of emotions that come with being a teenager. There is a constant emotional whiplash, and everything is strong because it is being felt for the first time. In many ways, life is emotional whiplash for a teenager. Backman captures the extremes of anger, silliness, grief, and joy. And he invites the reader the experience those emotions right alongside his characters.

Later in the book, the story of the artist begins to be told to Louisa, and in that way she is able to serve as a stand-in for the readers. When she is reminded that everything happened a long time ago, she points out that she is experiencing it for the first time. Through her, Backman validates the feelings of the reader, who although they may understand it is fictional, still feel for these characters.

In addition to being about friendship, My Friends is largely about art. It is about what art means to us (everything), who is capable of creating it (anyone), and who deserves to enjoy it (everyone). In My Friends, art has the expansive power to connect people across generations, time, and space. It is a bit of meta-narration as a piece of art discusses what art means in our lives.

There was some foreshadowing in the narration that turned out to be a red herring rather than foreshadowing. And on the one hand, I really loved being surprised by that reveal. On the other hand, I feel like I had been tricked as a reader. Being a reader involves trusting the author, and in a book like this you hand over emotional control. To be immersed in the story is to have your emotions manipulated by the words on the page. But to have something set up, only for it to be knocked down at the end, I think weakened the trust I had for the author.

My Friends offers not a perfect world for you to get lost in, but an opportunity to see the world in a new way. If you are looking for a cathartic book, which will make you cry but ultimately leave you feeling hopeful, then I can think of no better option than Backman.