My Friends
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I still can’t believe I got a copy of this book on @netgalley! Fredrik Backman’s books are so popular for his unique writing style and full character development—and this book fits right in with the rest.

This book alternates between present tense as Louisa escapes an abusive foster home and past tense, where Ted tells her stories of growing up and the artist she has admired for her whole life.

This book read really slow for me, but the characters were so complex and wonderful. Definitely some tough topics with abuse, drugs, grief, but it made me admire the characters that much more.

While my overall feeling of this book was positive and I have already been recommending it, I did find myself losing interest in the story at times. I would leave and come back. Eventually I was able to read larger portions at a time. This story of friendship was a very unique story of teenagers living in some hopeless situations but I did like the storytelling style within the book. Thank you Net Galley for the advanced copy.

I absolutely adored My Friends, the latest book by master storyteller Fredrik Backman. And as much as I loved the book, I loved the character of Louisa even more. As with all of Backman’s stories, the characters come alive adding multitudes to the plot, theme and story. So few authors today can so beautifully pen humanity and give life their characters so thoroughly and naturally. Thank you for such a great book that I will recommend highly throughout the year.

3.75 stars

Overall, this book had some very moving and heartbreaking moments. I had mixed feelings stylistically but did appreciate the story and the characters. If you are a fan of Backman, you will likely find something to love here. At times, it seemed a bit goomy, Jonathan Livingston Seagull emotionally manipulative, but then a scene would come along to take my breath away.

The story centers around four teenagers, some from devastating family backgrounds, and their friendship over the years, interspersed with a current narrative, touching and funny, about one of the friends and a young protege. It's framed by lots of opinions about art - the meaning of, the making of and the appreciation of. There is also some real heartbreak in this story. I was braced for a brutally sad ending, but it didn't come. An emotional read, with both humor and sadness. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

If Fredrik Backman writes it, I’m going to read it. This book was a little more all over the place than his others have been, however I think that might have been the point. It was both heartwarming and heart wrenching at the same time!

A wonderfully written book full of humor and grief about the strength of friendship beyond loss and tragedy. The dying artist C. Jat sells everything he owns to buy back his first painting, and then gives it away to a teenager he just met, named Louisa, which leads her on a journey to understand what lead the artist to create the painting.

The beginning was a little slow, and I had a little trouble getting invested, but I was pulled into the story playing out in the present with Louisa, as well as the story that took place twenty-five years earlier.

My Friends is classic Fredrik Backman, full of humour, grit and deep connections to real life events and feelings. He always makes me think and forces me to look at situation and people in new ways. I look forward to listening to the audiobook as I know that I will pick up even more that I did with my first read. Add this to the top of your TBR!

Thank you Net Galley, Fredrik Backman and Atria Books for the opportunity to preview this title. The opinions shared are my own.
My Friends is expected to be released May 6, 2025.

ARC review
Publication date: 06 May 25

Fredrik Backman is one of my favorite authors.
I read all of his books and I was looking forward to reading "My Friends".

So I was very happy when I received an e-ARC from Atria Books (via Netgalley).
Opinions from this review are completely my own.

From the beginning, the story is emotional and the way that it is written keeps you engaged and makes you want to find out more.
Backman is a very good writer, his characters are real and so alive and he makes you fell like you are part of the story.
This book is about friendship, starting with the story of a painting from 25 years ago when a group of 4 teenagers spend an unforgettable summer together.
In the present, the painting brings together the artist and a young girl named Louisa.
It is hard to write more about the story without spoiling anything.
I have to say that I cried and laughed and suffered while finding out about the story of the characters.
Also, Backman's sarcasm is present in the book, but also his humour.

You will fall in love and empathize with the characters and you will be happy at the end.

Backman is a master. Truly no notes. I will read anything he writes, even if it is a menu. He captures humanity like no other author, and I could not love this story more.

Thank you to Netgalley& the Publisher for my earl e-arc.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for providing an ARC in exchange for a review. This review contains my honest thoughts and personal opinions on the book. Please note that any quotes included in this review are subject to change upon publication.

“Lousia is a teenager, the best kind of human. The evidence for this is very simple: little children think teenagers are the best humans, and teenagers think teenagers are the best humans, the only people who don’t think that teenagers are the best humans are adults. Which is obviously because adults are the worst kind of humans.”

From the very first page, Fredrik Backman made me laugh, which is a very good way to start a book. I know some people might be offended that besides this novel I’ve only ever read one of his books. So not only do I lack the knowledge to compare this book to previous ones, it also means I’m missing out on some of the best stories, which I hope to correct soon. Regardless I hope to shed some light on what readers can expect in reading this novel and do it justice.

This book felt like a true story. The kind someone sits down to tell you and not one that feels like an action movie. This isn’t a bad thing, rather there are just different kinds of stories and different kinds of readers. It's the one that makes you laugh, cry, hope, and want to throw across the room, which is ridiculous because it's supposed to be just a story about some kids and one summer before the turn fifteen, a painting, and how it changes a stranger’s life 25 years later. Except it’s not; it’s so much more than just a story, which may be the most ironic thing because most people would never tell it.

“The world is full of miracles, but none greater than how far a young person can be carried by someone else’s belief in them.”

The truth is Lousia, Ted, Ali, Joar, and the artist are nobodies, the people we usually forget. Lousia is an awkward kid who feels too big and ran away from the foster care system after her best friend died. The artist is a kid who has been told over and over that he’s so strange he believes he’s worthless. Ali is a kid who constantly moves from place to place and is full of fire. Joar is a kid who carries the dreams of the people he loves and fights the world to keep them from getting hurt. Ted is a quiet kid who loves to read but gets mocked for the way he speaks. They don’t have very much and their days are often filled with violence, suffering, grief, and broken families, but they have each other. They have a summer of Danish pastries, farts, shopping carts down steep hills, stolen bikes, and fireworks in mailboxes. The only moments that matter. It reminds me of my own summers where I felt invincible and like everything would last forever.
It’s weird that I’ve only just read this book because it feels like I’ve known these characters forever.

“Art is coincidence, love is chaos.”

This book is very much about people, in very broken families, who try their best to say I love you but fail most of the time. It’s about the people who’d do anything for you even if that means letting them go. It’s about grieving together, even sometimes hurting people. It’s about living courageously despite the fact that we do not always have tomorrow, and about finding your people. Most of all, this book is about art.

“Because art is a fragile music, just like love, and that’s humanity’s only defense against death. That we create and paint and dance and fall in love, that’s our rebellion against eternity.”

This book reminds you of the way art can make you feel so much that it’s almost unbearable. It stops us in our tracks and makes you feel alive. Art is an attempt to defy the world which is almost impossible because “the world is undefeated.” Yet we still persist because we hope someday we will win. Until then, I recommend reading this book because it's pretty cool.

"Adults always think they can protect children by stopping them from going to dangerous places, but every teenager knows that's pointless, because the most dangerous place on earth is inside us."

If there anyone else on the planet who can write like Fredrik Backman? Who can get inside a character and expose everything they are thinking and feeling in a way that makes you laugh, cry, scream, and think. My Friends is yet another masterpiece by this incredible human being. His writing style is so different and unique - I am constantly in awe. I absolutely love the way he cracks characters open and exposes them to the reader - he is so intuitive and reflective of the human experience. This is such a quirky, heartbreaking, unexpected, and delightful story about friendship; how it molds us, how it impacts us, and, ultimately, how it changes us. When I sat down to think about how I could say everything I was feeling about Louisa, Ted, Joar, Ali, and "The Artist" - these "friends" will linger in my heart forever.

My goodness, the way Fredrik Bachmann understands humanity. I underlined nearly half of this book, because it was just so true, yet so simple. I love the straightforward, spare way he does it.

Despite the fact that I love looking at art and going to museums, when people say quite seriously things like “art will save us all,” I nod while thinking huh? This book helped me understand a little more. It’s mostly about how relationships will save us all, but also art. (And Backman’s writing is a great example of said art.)

There was a point about halfway through when the tangent-style storytelling started to get to me. I felt unmoored. Then I got to the ending and there were just so many feelings, constantly leaking out of my eyeballs; it was a bit overwhelming and I wondered why I wanted to rush to it. Plus, now it’s over and I’d love an extra tangent or two to spend more time with the characters!

For reference: I'm the type of Backman fan who loved Anxious People and didn't love Beartown. This book could be easily compared to Beartown, and it probably will be, but it also has a lot of humor and a tiny air of mystery, like Anxious People.

I will be thinking about this book for some time. My Friends has Backman's signature humor, wit, and heart. It is a story of love, loyalty, and unyielding friendship. Of grief, life, and hardships that make children grow up too fast. Backman masterfully weaves the past and present together, and in a way that keeps you gripped and coming back for more after each chapter. There are many side characters that are explored, some more than others, but all in a way to remind you just how hard it is to be human. This is a relatable and profound look at the best and worst aspects of human nature, but leaves on a note of joy and hopefulness. You will laugh, you may cry, and you will have a little bit of faith in humanity restored. For all of that, I definitely recommend it.

Thank you Atria and NetGalley for an ARC to read and review.

The story of My Friends is the story of a foursome of friends that all are from troubled homes. Their friendship provides them each comfort, companionship and love. Narrated in dual time line, one of the friends, an artist has a brief encounter with a orphaned teen, Louisa that will impact her life. Ted, one of the friends seeks Louisa and together they embark on a journey. As they travel, Ted will retell their story for the four friends. I adored the banter and humor between all the characters, as well as their loyalty and faith in one another portrayed in Backman's gift of story telling. You can actually "feel" the characters' emotions in his words. I laughed and cried. Thank you #Netgalley and #Atriabooks for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

"His laughter carried all the way to his home, to the open window and into the apartment, His mother stood there with dirt on her hands, smiling from ear to ear. Being a parent is so strange, all our children's pain belongs to us, but so does their joy."

"It's art that helps me cope. Because art is a fragile magic, just like love, and that's humanity's only defense against death. That we create and paint and dance and fall in love, that's our rebellion against eternity. Everything beautiful is a shield. Vincent van Gogh wrote: 'I always think that the best way to know God is to love many things.'"

The latest by Fredrick Backman is a deep dive into lifelong friendship. He takes us on a journey from young adulthood to adulthood through the eyes of 4 friends and the summer that changed everything for them.

As usual Backman tells an intricately woven and character driven story. His writing makes it easy to binge his books, but then you just don't want them to be over. He's got a great way of telling stories in a memorable way with wise words of wisdom deposited within.

This story was difficult to read at times as it portray child abuse and neglect deeply. Joar's story broke my heart. However, the portrayal contributes to these characters and their journey and solidifies their friendship and shows why they were so desperate to hold on to it for their own survival. I loved this whole story.

I also enjoyed the present day story with Louisa and Ted and unraveling the mystery of how the art changed everyone's lives. I loved the underlying theme of art being healing and life changing and also encouraging young children to put their art out into the world.

A beautiful story and one that I will be highly recommending!

Thank you NetGalley and Atria for my ARC of this story.

Fredrik Backman does it again! I have never met a Backman book that I did not LOVE and this one is no exception. His writing is fantastically raw and emotional, and the plot compelling from the first page.

Louisa unexpectedly is bestowed with a painting. One of the most well known paintings in the world. The painting depicts a pier and in the corner are three small figures. These small figures represent three people who spent all summer at the end of the pier, escaping their circumstances and forging a friendship. Louisa decides she must know more about the three figures and sets off to discover their story. An emotional and humorous novel.

Thank you to Atria for a free Netgalley.

I love everything Backman writes. I just cannot imagine not reading his books. They always fill me with emotion and I had to gear myself up for this one.

Overall, I enjoyed this one. But it was not my fav by him. It was def slow and sometimes a bit too slow. I needed Louisa to be a tad more fleshed out because I felt very disconnected to her compared to everyone else.

However, I will recommend this one to everyone who loved Backman. If this is your first Backman, start with a different one as this one is for those who know his style. The patience it takes sometimes with his characters.

I am so pleased to have gotten a copy of this one.

I almost dnfed this book, which is something I never expected from an Fredrik Backman book. I struggled to get through this story. It opened very strong, with a chaotic introduction to Louisa that instantly captivated me. Louisa was such a compelling character with her grief and love of art. I loved her from the very first page. However, I felt like I never got to know her as much as I wanted to. The story quickly turned towards the past and the summer the painting was made. Which was such a deeply emotional story, and I loved the group of friends so much. But I struggled with the story being a bit too sad for me, with only a few moments of humor. I also struggled with how chopping the writing was, feeling disjointed at times with how much it bounced around. Lastly, I thought it was very busy with everything happening in the present and in the past. All that said, the ending made this book completely worth it to me. It was phenomenal and hopeful and beautiful. So overall I think this could have been a novella, but I did enjoy it.

4.75 stars

Fredrik Backman is just so wonderful! I will eagerly read everything he writes because I know I am guaranteed to love it. The way he can take the ordinary everyday parts of life and turn them into the most beautiful observations of humanity will never cease to amaze me. And his writing style is so unique! Definitely one of my most favorite authors.

This is one of the best, most authentic stories of friendship I have ever read. Told through the context of one single piece of artwork made it brilliant and allowed it to have so much more depth. We have the story of four friends growing up together and sharing in some of life's highest and lowest points. The story of their evolving friendship is woven together with a present-day story of one of the friends, Ted, and a struggling artist, Louisa, who are thrown together in the craziest of circumstances. As Ted and Louisa journey back to his hometown and he recounts to her the story of his friends, this book unfolds in such a beautiful way that I was laughing and crying and falling in love with these characters.

The only reason I did not give it a full 5 stars is because I had some trouble getting into the story at first. I was not as immediately invested as I have been in other Backman stories and, while I was fully immersed by the end, I found the slower start of this one a little distracting to the overall pace of the story.