I Refuse by Per Petterson

[Kate]

I Refuse by Per Petterson ★★★★ is a look back at a fractured friendship as two middle-aged men in Norway reflect on their lives and the choices they made.

Tommy and Jim were inseparable as young teenagers though coming from different social backgrounds in their rural Norwegian town. Jim seemed the more privileged of the two, good student and only child of a devout Christian mother. Long-since abandoned by his mother, Tommy is from a more troubled home. Following a violent confrontation with his son, Tommy's father disappears leaving four children, thirteen-year old Tommy and three younger sisters to be split up and sent to different homes in the community. Tommy and Jim's friendship remained the most important relationship in either of their lives until one fateful night when moment of panic by Jim lead to devastating psychological consequences for him. When Jim seems to want nothing more to do with Tommy the relationship appears to be over.

Fast forward thirty-five years as wealthy financier Tommy notices a familiar face fishing off a bridge in the early morning light. Jobless and adrift, Jim would probably be homeless in a country with a less robust social safety net. How did these two best friends head off in such completely different directions? The story is told in flashbacks within the framework an eventful 24 hours following the chance meeting on the bridge. The ending is left up in the air, which I think worked well with this story. We get to imagine our own ending which could be anywhere from catastrophe to happily ever after depending on the mood of the reader.

[Anita]

Hmmm, as much as I am petrified by how tempting it is here to add new books to my TBR, I'm going for it with this one. I'm definitely intrigued. Love all the links we are using, but now it's so much easier to just click and add these books that I'm literally afraid of what my to-read shelf is going to end up like.

[punxsygal]

Years ago I read Out Stealing Horses by the same author. This description is a similar one of two boys going in different directions. I'll at this to my TBR as the other was good. Thanks for your review.

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

punxsygal wrote: "Years ago I read Out Stealing Horses by the same author. This description is a similar one of two boys going in different directions. I'll at this to my TBR as the other was good. Tha..."

That is the only one of his that I have read, but I did enjoy that and, based on this review, I think I would like this one too.