Wednesday, September 22, 2021

Anxious People

Book: Anxious People
Basic Information : Synopsis : Characters : Evaluation : References

Basic Information:

Author: Fredrich Backman

Edition: audiobook on OverDrive from the Los Angeles Public Library

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

ISBN: 9781982121600

Start Date: Sept 9, 2021

Read Date: Sept 22, 2021

341 pages

Genre: Fiction, Audio

Language Warning: Low

Rated Overall: 2 out of 5



Fiction-Tells a good story: 3 out of 5

Fiction-Character development: 3 out of 5


Synopsis (Caution: Spoiler Alert):

A person is in the process of being divorced. She is kicked out of her apartment.She does not have enough money to pay rent, so she decides to rob a bank. The bank robbery does not take place-she is robbing a cashless bank. To escape she runs across the street and into an apartment which is having a real estate viewing, where the robber now turns this into a hostage situation.


The rest of the story is about the different relationship each character has to each other and to an incident about ten years previous where a man committed suicide and then a woman is prevented from committing suicide.


At the end, a policeman helps the bank robber to escape, along with the good sympathies of the hostages. The rest of the story tells the stories of the rest of the characters in brief.




Cast of Characters:
  • Bank Robber
  • Jim-Police, father to Jack
  • Jack-Police, son of Jim
  • Real Estate person
  • Roger-retired engineer, married to Analee, prospective buyer
  • Analese-retired senior analyst, married to Roger
  • Ro-lesbian, married to Julia
  • Julia-lesbian, married to Ro, pregnant
  • Zara-Bank president, hostage,
  • Leonard-actor, professional disruptor of viewings, hostage
  • Estelle-hostage 90+ year old female. APartment being sold is hers
  • Nadia-psychologist to Zara. Tried to jump off bridge

Evaluation:

I have a mixture of reactions to Anxious People. Backman has a good way of putting words together to make interesting sentences. Also the imagination is there to create a good story.Over a couple of weeks of listening to the story, while driving around several states, the characters started growing on me, even hoping that good things would happen to them.


But in Anxious People, Backman cheats the reader (or listener-I usually read, but I listened to this book). First, Backman changes the plot line throughout the story from what he has established originally in the story to a different set of facts. This is not even the author leading the reading in the wrong direction, like in a good mystery, rather Backman constantly changes the facts. Such as something as basic as stating the bank robber is a male with a wife who has left him, to a female whose husband has left her. The only explanation is that people usually assume bank robbers are male.


Next the story is non-linear, which is not too bad of a flaw in most stories. But in this one, Backman jumps around throughout the book between events past, events future and side events without any notice. This is done so frequently, by the end of the book, you have lost all track of when a character is doing something. All of this leaves this reader/listener confused about the story.


While Backman is a good writer, this is not his best book. This story has potential, but not how it was presented. By the end of the bank robber’s hostage situation, you are sympathetic to the characters. By the end of the book? I just wished it was over. Yes the characters grow on you, but then so does the feeling that this book could have been ever so much better.


So should you read it? My opinion is go ahead and start it. If you fit into Backman’s world, continue on. If frustrated, go to another one of his books.



References:

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