This was a beautifully written book. It was definitely true to his unique writing style. His writing is filled with words of wisdom that I like to ponder. He expresses feelings so well. This book is a story of childhood friends, growing up in a hard life. From the beginning of the book you know that "something" bad has happened, "somebody" has died. As Ted recounts the story of the friends it is not until the end that you find out the what or who. Maybe my favorite book of the author's yet. I believe this book will be one of the 10 best of 2025. Thank you SO VERY MUCH to Atria Books and NetGalley for the gift of a digital ARC. This review/rating has not been coerced in any way. I just happened to love this book.

As soon as I finished this book I decided that I need to read Backman's whole back log. I'm not usually a plain fiction fan but this book kept me on the edge of my seat. The beginning can be a little confusing as you start to figure out the timeline as well has trying to recall everyones names. This felt like it could of been a whole series on and then this book could of been like a novella. There was just something about the was the words flowed through the chapters and made the transitions through the timeline seamless which is usually something I struggle with in books. This was just such a wholesome down to earth book. The ending when you essentially are getting everyones resolution ], it just made my chest warm and fuzzy.

I wish I could give this more than 5 stars. I never thought Backman could top A Man Called Ove. That is one of my all time favorite books. But I am delighted to say that My Friends has definitely knocked Ove into second place. It is a rare author that can make you sob and belly laugh at the same time. I'm a sucker for books set in the art world, and thus was drawn into this book immediately with Backmn's signature quirky, but lovable and very real characters, with much wisdom to impart to the world.. Nobody does quirky Like Fredrik Backman. This author makes a whole world and a whole life out of one painting and one summer for a group of friends who only have each other for a short time. This book has my vote for best book of the year - and it's only March! Thanks to Net Galley for this ARC opportunity. It was truly a delight and a privilege to be an early reader of this wonderful book!

I have yet to read a Fredrik Backman novel I haven't loved! His newest addition "My Friends" is a beautiful rollercoaster of emotions. "I love you, I trust you." Those simple words says it all. Thank you NetGalley for the pleasure of reading this ARC.

“ At the end of his life, he only wished for what almost all of us wish for, to have our childhood summers back”

These four friends, the summer between the ages of 14 and 15 stretched out between them (25 years ago)would change everything for each one of them.

I think we all need, or hopefully have had friends like that time and time again in our life.

Friends with who you can be yourself, who can see you for you, who can see the potential in you even at the age of 14 when you couldn’t see the potential in you.

To call this a book is an understatement, it was a lifetime, it was a journey, it was love, and the cruelty of life all wrapped in in one and written as only this author can write.

Thank you so much, NetGalley, for the arc. I definitely think it's the best book Backman has ever written! A story of friendship, grief, art, and love where all the characters find a great sense of closure! I love his writing style and the depth of the stories he presents. How he gradually unravels the story and makes it addictive to read.

Truth be told, I was in a bit of a reading slump, so I picked up the book I wanted to read most from my TBR shelf, My Friends by Backman. I am so glad I did! If you're a fan of Backman's writing, this book will not disappoint. His signature character development pulls you right into the lives of the main characters, and by the end, they feel like ‘your people’.

The book beautifully explores the complexities of friendships and relationships, in that very Backman way. He truly excels at making these connections feel real and raw and the connections show up in unexpected places. It’s a study of all that friendships mean, with a backdrop of personal tragedies that ultimately show the hope and strength that come from human connection.

The writing is absolutely amazing—lyrical yet straightforward, making you feel every emotion the characters experience. So much of it I wanted to highlight and quote. The book is a powerful reminder to live intentionally, and it’s a message we could all use in today’s world.

Would I recommend this book? Emphatically Yes!!! I can already tell this will be one of my top reads of 2025. It's going to be my go-to book gift for friends and family this year!

I was so excited when @simonschusterca and sent me a copy of this book for an honest read and review! @netgalley also approved my request before I receive the hard copy!

Thank you @backmansk for writing such enjoyable and immersive books. I know you have a hard time with all the other stuff that goes along with publishing a book, but please don’t stop writing them! Just stop doing all the other stuff that goes along with it! I’ll always be reading your works!

Fredrik Backman is one of my favorite authors because of the character depth he creates when building his universe of brilliancy. In his latest novel, My Friends, four life-long friends have life paths that weave together and separate depending on various circumstances. But the main character, a teenage girl who is escaping her own problems, is the mechanism through which we learn about their history. She's charming, another quirk of life where we all question how we see things so differently when the honest truth she brings to every conversation is eye-opening. Literal. Strange. Remarkably on-point in many ways. While I loved the individual scenes, in particular the shenanigans on their train ride, I felt like something was missing to bring together the larger story. It moved me many times but nothing like some his other books. Worth reading. Intense in a psychological way. Slower moving in a plot way this time. Still, another example of why Backman is a top author in my lifetime.

Fredrik Backman has written another fantastic book filled with interesting and unusual characters. He is a master at developing characters and plot lines that draw the reader into the story and dare them to NOT read "...just one more chapter", and My Friends certainly does that! I could not put this book down and hated when it ended. But loved the ending!

I felt drawn to C. Jat, Ted, Joer, Ali and Louisa and the others as they struggle to survive a childhood of poverty and often cruel and abusive treatment and situations. Mr. Backman somehow makes even the saddest events seem hopeful with humor, limitless friendship, and true love.

I am lucky enough to have livelong friends who have helped me navigate and survive over 50 years of life. We would have loved being friends with all the wonderful people in this novel.

Fredrik Backman has done it again, I laughed, I cried, and I told my people I trust you and I love you. One of the best books I've read in a long time.

What is there to say that hasn't already been said about Fredrik Backman's work? He's a brilliant writer who has done it again! My Friends is another gorgeous novel that demonstrates the beauty and tragedy of the human experience, told in a way that will have you laughing but also wanting to give the characters a comforting hug. There are no other writers like Fredrik Backman and all his fans will love this one.

Wow! When I was 45% through this book, I forced myself to slow down to make it last longer. Backman's beautiful storytelling is back in this novel with Louisa and Ted in the present and Ted and his friends 25 years in the past. The weeping and laughter didn't just exist in the characters but also physically in me as I read. I marked several beautiful lines as I read, and I'm looking forward to going back and exploring them again. This just might be my favorite Backman book, and that is saying a lot since he's written so many masterpieces. 🩷

"Sometimes you don’t appreciate your own blessings until you see the envy in someone else's eyes."
I love Fredrik Backman books! I love his new book, My Friends! It is a beautiful story about friendships. A famous work of art unites a teenager, who has left her foster home, and Ted, a friend of the artist, who meet in an alleyway after the artist's death there. Their stories merge in this story of friendship, love, and trust. "..the most dangerous place on earth inside us. Fragile hearts break in palaces and dark alleys alike."
Thank you, NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book! It is my new favorite!

Fabulous! Loved this book. Kept my attention through the entire book. Character development was on par. Great story with in-depth storyline. Loved it.

4.25 ⭐️

Backman does it again with a unique and interesting narrative that provides excellent insights into human nature!

Ted and his friends were the subject of a painting by a boy who became a famous artist. Twenty-five years later, the artist bequeathed this famous and sought-after painting to a girl named Louisa he just met because she reminded him of someone he used to know. Ted was in charge of getting the painting to her after the artist’s death, and then Ted (almost 40 years old) and Louisa end up traveling together. Louisa learns about the story of the friends that served as inspiration for the painting.

➕ Backman’s insights on human nature are extraordinary, as usual. You smile when he says something true that applies to yourself and your friends. You laugh. And he can put you in a sentimental mood as well.
➕ Both Ted and Louisa are actively grieving, and I thought it was both heartbreaking and heart-mending to read their interactions with one another.

➖ There seemed to be a lot of bonding among the adolescents due to their life circumstances (i.e., they are alienated from others, parent-less or have abusive parents, etc.). I wonder if they would have come together otherwise. Still, I did enjoy seeing these relationships and how they endured.
➖ The reader might need to bring some patience. Toward the end of the novel (about 85% in), I was starting to lose some patience with the story and wanted it to wrap up. I think Backman’s human insights shined in the first and middle parts. The last part seemed to wrap up the story of Ted’s friends, but felt strung out too long.

I really enjoyed this most recent novel from Backman! A Man Called Ove remains my favorite of his, with this now in second place. I enjoyed this one more than the Beartown series (which I really liked!).

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for an Advance Reader Copy in exchange for an unbiased review.

It publishes May 6, 2025.

Wow. As a faithful reader of Backman, this book does not disappoint. This story of love, loss, and friendship is hard to describe. The way Backman builds the characters personalities, quirks, relationships, and the back and forth of the story is so incredibly fulfilling as a reader. I very much enjoyed this book and look forward to recommending it to fellow reading friends.

Backman has done it again! In this thoughtful and emotional story about the importance of friendship and art, Backman has again managed to write human emotions in the most authentic way possible. I was bawling my eyes out during the first and last 10% of this book!

Fredrik Backman never fails to write humanity in a way that makes me want to smile more at strangers and never let an “I love you” go unsaid. My Friends is a beautiful portrayal of friendship and manages to put all the awkward, anxiety-ridden thoughts of a teenager into writing. It made me feel like I was 15 again in the best way possible.

Thank you to Atria Books for the eARC!

I was thrilled to receive an advanced version of this book since Backman is one of my all-time favorite writers. I've read all of his books and was so excited to jump back into his brain for this one and I was not disappointed. My Friends tells the story of a small group of friends who loved each other as teens and never stopped, told through the lens of a new friendship between 18-year-old artist Louisa and Ted, whose friends are those in the story. The writing was beautiful, poignant, and funny, as his books always are. The story hit me in right in the chest over and over again but I just wanted to keep reading. It was so sad at times and so hopeful at others, and I just wanted to give everyone in it a hug. You've done it again, Fredrik. Thank you for reminding us what it is to feel.

It was so nice to be back with Backman's writing.

This book gave a good mix of the humorous vibes of Anxious People and the drama/trauma/emo vibes of the Beartown series. All with the typical Backman writing of evoking emotional connections and one liners a PLENTY.

If I'm being honest, the one liners (Idk what else to call them) got to be a bit much as the book got longer. And it felt LONG at a couple points. I think this could have been edited down. I suspect Backman is given a lot of leeway given his success. As a Backman stan, I wasn't mad about it but as I was trying to critique, that's what I can honestly say.

BUT, overall, I really liked, perhaps even loved it. I was in the perfect headspace for it and it filled my cup.