Absolutely one of the top five favourite books I’ve read to date. Backman finds a way to make a gut wrenching story beautiful, intriguing and a work of art. My Friends hooks you from the first page and balances emotion with the best humorous quips the whole way through.

There truly is not a book Fredrik Backman writes that doesn't tear my heart apart, make me cry multiple times then most often puts it all back together with some good true laughs in between. So no doubt about when I see his name I am all for it. This book is about an endless sea, a profound friendship, and a true love story. It delves into grief, sacrifice, fart jokes, uproarious laughter, spontaneous adventures, learning to trust, and protecting loved ones at all costs. It’s about the serendipity of art. It’s about finding your own pearl in an oyster shell and learning to let go, even when it feels like shards of glass stabbing your heart. These four vagabonds met nearly a decade ago when they were just 15, united by their desire to help the artist attend a painting competition—even though he couldn’t afford supplies like paint, brushes, or canvas. Despite their own struggles and the harsh hands life had dealt them, they were resourceful and unstoppable as long as they had each other. Don't think twice about it and just dive in its so worth it.

A coming of age story that breaks your heart and puts it back together. If a story could teach love, it's this one.

Thank you, Atria Books, for the copy of My Friends by Fredrick Backman.This is the first book I have read by Backman and now I’m anxious to read more! From the start I was mesmerized by the main characters, and I loved their dialogue. I liked the surprising and quirky writing, and the unexpected things that occurred, but at some point, it was too much and I just wanted to get on with the story of Ted and Louise. The past narratives from Ted were too long, and while I appreciated the story of the friends, it really didn’t resonate with me. Maybe if I were an artist or art lover I would have enjoyed it more. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4 because I really enjoyed a lot of the book.

😭😭😭😭
Seriously, every book of Backman's is a masterpiece and gets me right in the feels.
The last 10% of this book had me in new tears every couple of paragraphs. The story telling is so lovely. The relationship between the four friends was so well crafted.
I think this book should have been called One of Us instead

5⭐️ To say I love this book would be an understatement! I laughed, I cried, I felt anger and joy! Will be one of the best of 2025!

One summer, four outcast friends and a painting that will change them all! The artist, Ted, Joar, and Ali
come to life on the most beautifully written pages. Backman’s prose is gorgeous and I became lost in their adventures and heartbreaks.

Told in flashbacks from Ted, about that one pivotal summer when the friends were 14, to Louisa,an aged out foster child. Alternating chapters between Ted and Louisa, both strong character voices. Love, friendship, death, grief, alcoholism all feature in the emotional ride that is MY FRIENDS.


Thank you Atria books and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

My Friends is a powerful story about the lasting strength of friendship. There’s a group of teenagers who find solace and strength in their friendship. The way Backman portrays their bond, their struggles, and their joy is incredibly authentic. He’s done it again, thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this ARC, appreciate you.

I will devour any book that Fredrik Backman writes, and Backman’s “My Friends” is no exception with its colorful cast of characters, heartfelt story, and Backman-esque humor.

Four teenage friends living in a coastal village face abuse, grief, and poverty. Where their homes are unstable, their friendship is a solid foundation. From this friendship, an incredible painting is created and launches the career of “the artist” among them.

Two decades later, the artist meets Louisa, an artist and orphan, the day before her eighteenth birthday as she runs from the police. The artist and Louisa form a quick friendship that, once again, changes the course of everything for the artwork and the people who care about it.

I laughed at Backman’s mix of dark comedy and silly humor (so many farts!). I became invested in the plight of the teenagers as they navigated the space between childhood and adulthood. I was moved by a friendship and a work of art that changed lives and transcended time.

My new favorite Fredrik Backman book!!
My Friends is so deeply moving and absolute perfection. This is one I will be continually thinking of and won’t stop recommending, especially for my book friends looking for a great cry. (I cried multiple times! Don’t worry, In true Backman style I also laughed out loud.)

This is a beautifully written novel that captures the complexities of friendship, love, and human connection in a way only Backman can. His characters are flawed, funny, heartbreaking, and hopeful all at once.

My Friends is an absolute must-read. Highly recommend!

Ugh yes.

Fredrik Backman is incredible. And so was this.

The further the story went along the more and more I fell in love with it. It definitely started off slow but Backman is a master at getting you to truly fall in love with his characters and that I did. Honestly this gave me a lot of A Little Life vibes, just without the torture on page.

This was emotional and heartfelt and funny and heartbreaking. You will feel all your feels and want to cry by the end. There was even some shocking turns along the way.

The plot as a whole is very simple but the way that is it done is just so perfect and gives the ability to really focus on this story that the characters are sharing.

A lot of good themes here and found family and just yes. Just YES. That is all.

What can I say about a Fredrik Backman novel that hasn’t already been said? I have loved every one of his that I have read.

I am not going to attempt to give a short synopsis of this book. You can read on online blurb about it in many places.

This beautifully written book is amusing, poignant, heartbreaking, heartwarming. It is about friendship, the joy and pain of friendships and growing up, found family, the nature of art, art as salvation. Backman’s character development is at his best here. There are so many memorable observations and compelling lines….if you are an underliner, you will be kept very busy noting outstanding parts.

Take your time reading and savoring this story and all it says about life. BTW, my husband also read this and said it was the best book he had ever read.

This book is another that just demonstrates why I love this author so much! His ability to describe people and pull you in emotionally is incredible. I loved this book and will forever be a fan.

My Friends is funny, moving and powerful. Fredrick Blackman certainly has a way with words. Great author.

Easily my favorite by Backman yet! It felt really like he perfected his signature mix of whimsy, tenderness, and wisdom with this one. The characters were so vivid with unique quirks of their own and I really loved them all. I laughed out loud and even got teary-eyed at one point. Highly recommend!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review!

Fredrik Backman is so adept at creating characters that the reader will fall in love with. I wanted to crawl inside the pages of this book and be a part of the story. Such a lovely novel about the power of friendship.

In true Fredrik Backman style, this book is full of heart and is the epitome of love in all forms. The way he weaves the story together is impressive, as the narrative of the four friends is slowly unraveled to Louisa through Ted.

There were so many profound insights made about friendship, love, and all of life's challenges. Each person has had their own particular brand of adversity, but the way they support and accept each other is a beautiful thing to witness.

The only thing about the book I didn't love were times in which the dialogue seemed overly dramatized, with capitals and exclamation marks when it wasn't necessarily warranted. It may have been a way the author chose to show the difficulties certain characters had in expressing their emotions, but it came off as a bit heavy-handed and juvenile, and it gave the book a less mature voice.

I read most of Backman's other books so I knew going into 'My Friends' that I would love it - and I wasn't wrong! This book made me feel everything - anger on behalf of the friends & Louisa, joy when I laughed out loud along with them, sadness when they had tough situations and even harder decisions. This book made me both relive childhood friendships and reminded me to be a better adult whenever possible.
Thank you so much for the early copy!

4.5 stars
I really struggled to pick this up during the first 60%, even though I was enjoying it as I was reading it. I think it was a case of right book, wrong time. But I flew through the last 40% in about three days. It’s such a beautiful testament to friendship and the bonds we create.
Backman is the master at dropping in quotes and creating such tension leading up to character tragedies because even though you know that something bad is going to happen to a specific character, the way he delivers the blows leading up to the tragedy makes your stomach drop. He writes about the smallest facets of grief so beautifully. The way that he develops his characters is, in my opinion, unmatched by any other author I’ve ever read.
I adored the dynamic between Ted and Louisa, and Joar later, and it was so heartwarming to watch them come out of their shells and become comfortable with each other in such a short amount of time.
He does the found family trope so so well. Of course I cried at the end.

Favorite quotes:
- “Friendship is special when you’re a teenager, you can feel it in your skin when there’s something wrong.”
- “Stories are complicated, memories are merciless, our brains only store a few moments from the best days of our lives, but we remember every second of the worst.”
- “He laughs so hard that summer arrives on the roof, even though it isn’t even May yet.”
- “‘He said that thing you always said, the thing that painter said. That you should paint like the birds sing. But Kimkim said it was never like that for him. He said he painted the way we laugh.”’

Thank you Atria and NetGalley for the e-ARC!

4.75 ⭐️ thank you Netgallery for this wonderful ARC! As always, Fredrik Backman did it again and I will forever continue to read anything he writes. This one was so good. It did take me a while to get through with school or life in general, but I really loved the unique storyline and how it focused more on friendships and found family. It was cool to see it was also generational as it started with C. Jat and the friend group but Louisa got passed the baton. Overall, highly recommend this one once it’s published!!!

2 1/2 stars, rounded down

I did not care for this… it had a “Beartown” vibe to it, and I was not a fan of that series either. I’ve never cared for stories that revolve around teenage angst, and this novel had it in spades.

It had some excellent writing, but not enough to make up for the frequently boring (to me) plot.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. My thanks to the author, the publisher and NetGalley