Book Review- Fredrik Backman's The Winners

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for a copy of Fredrik Backman’s The Winners.

The Winners is the third installment in Backman’s Beartown trilogy, taking us back to the small, hockey obsessed, rival towns in Northern Sweden. This time, a severe snow storm has hit Beartown and Hed, destroying one of the hockey arenas. The rivalry between the two towns in alternatively suspended as they help save lives, but also restored when old wounds and biases resurface.

I absolutely love Backman. He is one of my favorite authors and I will read anything he writes, but that said, I’m not sure if I needed this to be a trilogy. The Winners was little long and slow-paced, yet I held on because of Backman’s wonderful characters. He also teased the death of a major character throughout the entire story, saving the reveal for near the end and writing as though any number of beloved characters could have been on the chopping block. This made me anxious, yet it kept me turning pages.

Without giving a spoiler, the death made me cry, but other aspects of the story made me cry even more. Backman excels at sentimental situations. He always manages to have his tough-as-nails characters be hit with a tender moment: cue the tears. I think this works so well, because Backman also infuses his stories with a fair bit of dark humor, allowing his readers to experience a range of emotions. It’s always complex.

The Winners is the weakest in the trilogy, but it is still excellent and absolutely a must-read if you are a Backman fan. Only Backman could make a non-sports fan like me, love a trilogy centered around hockey fanatics!

Book Review- Tyler Feder's Dancing at the Pity Party: a Dead Mom Graphic Memoir

I work at a bookstore and a few weeks ago, I was shelving, when I came across Tyler Feder’s book, Dancing at the Pity Party: A Dead Mom Graphic Memoir. I opened it up and within a quick scan, I knew that I both needed to read it, and needed to immediately put it down until I was in the comfort of my own home.

I purchased the book and waited until my husband was away on business, knowing that it would be a heavy read. Nothing quite prepared me for Feder’s beautiful and raw memoir about the passing of her mother. Feder was nineteen when her mom passed from cancer and the memoir details the experience of her both her mother’s illness and her passing, along with intimate family memories.

I don’t think that I have had a literary experience quite like this, one that had me sobbing for the duration and one that I related to so intensely. I also lost my mom to cancer, although I was thirty, so a bit older than Feder. However, my dad died when I was four, so I can relate to losing a parent when still a child. The aspect that rang the most true was the awkwardness of the entire situation and having emotions bubble up at unexpected times. Also the sadness and strangeness of seeing your mom become physically and mentally transformed by illness. It’s just horrible. Feder offers some good advice to how one should behave around people experiencing loss and illness, things to say or avoid.

Beyond my personal relatability to Feder’s situation, I also enjoyed meeting her family through the pages. I’m an only child and I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy towards Feder’s relationship with her sisters. This entire book is such a lovely tribute to Feder’s mom and really, her entire family. I enjoyed Feder’s art work, but I was also happy that she included family photographs at the end. I truly felt an intimate connect to their family thought this graphic novel. It’s really beautiful.

Speaking of graphic novels. I had not read any prior to 2022, but this year I have made an effort to branch out with non-fiction graphic novels and I’ve really enjoyed them. The visual aspect makes me feel like I’m at an art exhibition and I like being able to experience the whole piece in a single sitting. I’ve been very impressed with this medium as a form of storytelling, especially for memoir. It’s impactful.

I think everyone should read Dancing at the Pity Party. Yes, it’s emotional and sad. The morning after I read it, I looked like I had been in a battle. My eyes were so swollen from crying. However, it is also funny, hopeful, and full of heart. It’s a great choice for those grieving or caretaking. My mom has been dead for nearly fifteen years and even after all of this time, I still found Feder’s book to be healing. I think this would be a great mother’s day present for someone who has lost their mother. That particular holiday can be so fraught for many. I would have loved to have received this and then, I would have promptly burst into tears!

Book Review- Zoe Whittall's The Spectacular

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for a copy of Zoe Whittall’s novel, The Spectacular.

Told in a non-linear fashion, The Spectacular, follows three generations of women in the same family who each make difficult decisions regarding motherhood, relationships, and careers. Ruth is in her eighties and she recounts her journey from Turkey to America, a difficult migration made worse by her husband bringing along his mistress to their new country. While Ruth has conservative leanings, her daughter, Carola, forges a different path, including setting up a commune. Carola struggles with her own aspirations versus being a wife and mother, ultimately distancing herself from her family. Her daughter, Missy, becomes a famous rock star who struggles with boundaries and relationships, harboring a deep resentment towards Carola.

The novel starts with Missy’s perspective and her dynamic, intense personality immediately grabbed my attention. I cannot think of a recent read where a character had such a strong personality as Missy. It is so strong that when the chapters shift to Carola or Ruth’s perspectives, it is hard to let go of Missy. She dominates, commanding a readers full attention. I was quite struck by her voice.

Whittall does not shy away from controversial topics. In the first chapter, Missy, in her early 20’s, is seeking a doctor who will perform a tubal ligation surgery. Missy is certain that she will never desire to be a mother, yet no doctor is willing to give her the procedure. Worse than the denial of the operation, is the way Missy is treated, her voice silenced. As a middle-aged reader, I can appreciate the perspective that people can change a lot throughout their lives. I’m certainly not the same person that I was in my early 20’s. We see Missy in middle-age and we can see how she has changed through time and experience. Missy changes and so do her thoughts on becoming a mother, however, I don’t believe that the reader is supposed to conclude that the doctor’s were right to deny Missy her wishes when she was younger. It’s more complex than that; Whittall is writing about societal expectations of women and how these might conflict with individual desires.

I’m forty-five and from my teen years, I knew that I never wanted to be a parent. However, life takes unexpected twists and I married a man with two children and have been a part-time stepmom ( they live in Europe most of the year), and it has been a great joy. I was also raised by a single-mom, having lost my father when I was four. The Spectacular is a story about the unexpected, the seasons of life, and learning to accept your life, including the impact of your decisions and those beyond your control. I related to the over-arching themes and to aspects of each character’s life choices.

I recommend The Spectacular and it would be a great book club pick for lively discussions.