Beartown (Beartown, #1) in Around the Year in 52 Books

Apr 29, 2021 Blaine rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2021, favorite-books, to-buy, favorite-reviews, e-book

Late one evening towards the end of March, a teenager picked up a double-barrelled shotgun, walked into the forest, put the gun to someone else's forehead and pulled the trigger.

This is the story of how we got there.

The opening lines of Beartown establish the stakes of a mystery that will unfold by the novel’s end: a perpetrator, a victim, and a motive. But that mystery is often in the background. Beartown’s Junior Hockey team is in Sweden’s National semi-finals, and the entire town’s future ma

Late one evening towards the end of March, a teenager picked up a double-barrelled shotgun, walked into the forest, put the gun to someone else's forehead and pulled the trigger.

This is the story of how we got there.

The opening lines of Beartown establish the stakes of a mystery that will unfold by the novel’s end: a perpetrator, a victim, and a motive. But that mystery is often in the background. Beartown’s Junior Hockey team is in Sweden’s National semi-finals, and the entire town’s future may be at stake as two more wins could bring a new hockey academy and an economic revitalization to the town.

The stories here—of this town, its hockey team, and this mystery—are told through a wide cast of characters. Peter, the team’s GM and his wife Kira. Their daughter Maya and her best friend Ana. David and Sune, the Junior and Senior teams’ coaches, respectively. Kevin, the team’s star player, and his parents. His teammates Amat, William, Bobo, and most of all Benji. Each and every one of these characters is a well-developed, fully recognizable person, flaws and all. Even secondary characters like Tails, Ramona, and Benji’s sisters are given texture.

Beartown uses the relationships between the characters to explore a variety of issues that are apparently common to both Sweden and America. How to best handle a child with an exceptional talent. The trials and tribulations of parenting, and being a sports parent in particular. The corrosive effects of privilege and sexism. The novel is very well written, full of little truisms that set up or enrich the scenes, or foreshadow things to come. And the hockey scenes literally gave me goosebumps.

So, obviously, I loved Beartown, and would recommend it to almost everyone. Almost. I don’t have anything against trigger warnings in book reviews, I just rarely write them myself. But if ever a book needed a warning, it’s this one. Beartown is about a lot of things, but at the very heart of this novel is a rape. It’s not offscreen. It doesn’t happen to a minor character. It’s not gratuitous, or unnecessarily violent, but it is depicted in a brutally honest way. And because this book is so well written, because you have gotten to know all of the characters before it happens, the scene and its aftermath are simply devastating to read.* I honestly felt like I’d been punched in the stomach. And as much as it affected me, there will be some people for whom this book simply hits too close to home. So please know that going in.

But the very reason Beartown may be too much for some readers is why it should be a must-read for everyone else. It is a great story about many different people and ideas, that is also a searing and unforgettable one on the topic of sexual violence. I know I’m hardly the first person to recommend this book, but it’s stunningly good and an instant classic. 5 stars, because I can’t give it 6.

*A sample of the powerfully brilliant-yet-heartbreaking depiction of the rape’s aftermath:

Words are small things. No one means any harm by them, they keep saying that. Everyone is just doing their job. The police say it all the time. “I'm just doing my job here.” That's why no one asks what the boy did; as soon as the girl starts to talk they interrupt her instead with questions about what she did. Did she go up the stairs ahead of him or behind him? Did she lie down on the bed voluntarily or was she forced? Did she unbutton her own blouse? Did she kiss him? No? Did she kiss him back, then? Had she been drinking alcohol? Had she smoked marijuana? Did she say no? Was she clear about that? Did she scream loudly enough? Did she struggle hard enough? Why didn't she take photographs of her bruises right away? Why did she run from the party instead of saying anything to the other guests?

They have to gather all the information, they say, when they ask the same question ten times in different ways in order to see if she changes her answer. This is a serious allegation, they remind her, as if it's the allegation that's the problem. She is told all the things she shouldn't have done: She shouldn't have waited so long before going to the police. She shouldn't have gotten rid of the clothes she was wearing. Shouldn't have showered. Shouldn't have drunk alcohol. Shouldn't have put herself in that situation. Shouldn't have gone into the room, up the stairs, given him the impression. If only she hadn't existed, then none of this would have happened, why didn't she think of that?

She's fifteen, above the age of consent, and he's seventeen, but he's still “the boy” in every conversation. She's “the young woman.”

Words are not small things.

...more

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Aug 06, 2020 Francisca Viegas rated it really liked it

Shelves: read-in-english, contemporary, 2020

4.5 ⭐️
This book snuck up on me. I already knew I loved Backman’s writing after reading A Man Called Ove but this story wasn’t very engaging at first. I don’t really care for hockey - or any sport really - so I thought I’d soon be bored of the book. I was wrong. The characters were so incredibly layered that they pulled me in completely. I’m looking forward to reading more from this author.

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Feb 13, 2020 Serena.. Sery-ously? rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: cartacei, 2020, popsugar-reading-challenge-2020, aty-reading-challenge-2020, serie-in-forse

Ti lascia in bocca la sensazione di rancido, ti fa sentire sporco. E arrabbiato.

Björnstad mi ha messo addosso un senso di soffocamento e inquietudine, giuro.

Popsugar reading challenge A book with a great first line
Around the world in 52 books A book set in a rural or soarsely populated area

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Jul 17, 2018 Kathryn rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobooks, fiction, reading-list-2018, aty-2018

2.5★

Disappointing. Although, on reflection, the topic of the book (which isn’t ice hockey, despite the first half of the book and more appearing to be that way!) is probably an important conversation to have in any male-dominated culture. The ice hockey world is where this is set, and this culture of “entitled” men in the world of any sport and its ramifications is routinely seen in the news.

Perhaps I didn’t like this because I don't think I was the target audience - in which case I hope the men ...more

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Aug 01, 2018 Marie (UK) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2018-reading-challenge

Ok I have to admit i read this series out of order but i loved the second one so much i had to go back and read the first and it didn't disappoint. Backman has it all in my opinion literary style, a great narrative and excellent characterisation. Every page engenders a new emotion I know nothing about hockey but that doesn't matter at all. ...more

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May 05, 2020 Megan rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobooks, ebooks

This isn't a comfortable book to read. But good book don't have to be comfortable, and the subject makes it important. At sad the events are, it's all very real life and well written. ...more

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