Beartown (novel)

*This article is about the novel, Beartown. You may be looking for the location, the book series, or the television series.*

### **Published**

SE: 15 September 2016 (Piratförlaget)
US: 25 April 2017 (Simon & Schuster)

### **ISBN**

9781501160769

***Beartown*** (Swedish: ***Björnstad***) is the first novel in the *Beartown* series by Fredrik Backman. It was first published by Piratförlaget in September 2016, then released internationally in April 2017 by Simon & Schuster. The book is described as "dark contemporary," and told in an omniscient point of view. It was well received, critically praised for its dark humor and universal observations.

The story is about a small remote town, where hockey is the main hope to drive its economy, tourism, and glory. Through the lens of various characters, it begins with the junior ice hockey team about to compete in the national semi-finals. After a traumatizing event that affects the entire town, it delves into the secrets and the courage of every individual.

## Dedication

*For my grandmother, Saga Backman, who taught me to love sports. What a quiet life I would have lived without her. I hope that the big bar in heaven serves proper dry martinis, and that they always show Wimbledon on the big screen. I miss you.*

*And for Neda Shafti-Backman, my funniest, smartest, most argumentative best friend, who picks me up when I need it, and keeps my feet on the ground when I deserve it. Asheghetam.*

## Official synopsis

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of *A Man Called Ove* returns with a dazzling, profound novel about a small town with a big dream—and the price required to make it come true.

People say Beartown is finished. A tiny community nestled deep in the forest, it is slowly losing ground to the ever encroaching trees. But down by the lake stands an old ice rink, built generations ago by the working men who founded this town. And in that ice rink is the reason people in Beartown believe tomorrow will be better than today. Their junior ice hockey team is about to compete in the national semi-finals, and they actually have a shot at winning. All the hopes and dreams of this place now rest on the shoulders of a handful of teenage boys.

Being responsible for the hopes of an entire town is a heavy burden, and the semi-final match is the catalyst for a violent act that will leave a young girl traumatized and a town in turmoil. Accusations are made and, like ripples on a pond, they travel through all of Beartown, leaving no resident unaffected.

Beartown explores the hopes that bring a small community together, the secrets that tear it apart, and the courage it takes for an individual to go against the grain. In this story of a small forest town, Fredrik Backman has found the entire world.

## Background

It is mentioned that Backman wrote a letter to the NHL. Regarding Backman's choice of sport, he mentioned, "I grew up obsessed with this sport, not as a player (because I was a fragile and strange little kid and could never learn how to skate properly) but as a fan. [...] I had a hard time making friends, and there were two things that I fell in love with early enough to save me from complete loneliness: books and sports. I’m not at all exaggerating when I tell you that the NHL was as magical a place to me as Narnia was. When I wrote *Beartown* I wanted to translate that magic into the young men and women the novel is about." In the closing letter, he continued, "I tried to write all this about sports, the very best and the very worst parts of it, as honestly as I possibly could. Sports saved my life. But this time, writing these books, it also made me look myself in the mirror, as a fan, as a man, as a dad. It broke me, to be honest. But it also reminded me of all the things I love about the ice, the locker rooms, the community and why kids need a Narnia. An NHL. Something to escape to and aspire to. And what is a community? It’s the sum of our choices. Sports are too. By everyone, for everyone."

## Plot

### Chapter One

The beginning foreshadows events that will occur near the end of the book in Chapter Forty-Nine.

### Chapter Two

It is Friday in early March, the day before Beartown Ice Hockey Club's junior team plays in the semifinals. Maya Andersson, a 15-year old girl, wakes up and plays her guitar. Although she hates hockey, her father loves it.

Amat, the same age as Maya, is a boy who lives in the Hollows, the place dubbed because it is lower than the rest of the town.

### Chapter Three

Kevin Erdahl is the star player of the hockey team, practicing nearly all of his life. Despite having offers to move to bigger teams, he refuses, staying in Beartown.

### Chapter Forty-Nine

Flashes between the present and the future, Maya takes control of the moment between her and Kevin. Putting a shotgun to his forehead, she spares his life and says, "Now you'll be scared of the dark, too, Kevin. For the rest of your life."

### Chapter Fifty

Ana sees Kevin and her best friend, and wordlessly, she and Maya both go home together. Amat, Zacharias, Bobo, and Benjamin are instructors for skating classes. The story ends with the foretelling of a little girl who will become the most talented hockey player in the club.

## Critical reception

*Kirkus Reviews* gave a positive review, praising Backman's characters that are "familiar yet distinct, flawed yet heroic," and that it gave "a thoroughly empathetic examination of the fragile human spirit." Similarly in a review for *The Washington Times*, Fred J. Eckert remarked upon the depth of which Backman put into it, with "characters so well developed" and the inclusion of "wise insights into the human experience."

## Trivia

* It was titled *The Scandal* in the UK. The description also read, "Beartown is a small town in a large Swedish forest," though the author had mentioned over Twitter that the novel had never actually specified the place of Beartown, as he liked "readers to build their own environments."

## Editions

Swedish editionSwedish editionDutch editionUK edition
## References

1. ↑ Mann, Penny (1 September 2017). ""Are We Prepared To Let Some People Live Above the Law?": Fredrik Backman on "Beartown"". *Amazon Book Review*. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
2. ↑ "Beartown | Super Summary"
3. ↑ Burnside, Scott (21 April 2020). "Author Fredrik Backman: ‘Beartown’ about the very best and very worst in sports". *The Athletic*. 21 April 2020
4. ↑ "Beartown: Editor Review". *Kirkus Reviews*. Retrieved 16 August 2022.
5. ↑ Eckert, Fred J. (1 June 2017). "Book Review: 'Beartown'. *The Washington Times*.
6. ↑ @Backmanland (13 October 2020). "The TV show takes place in the most northern part of Sweden but it's actually never stated in the novel exactly where Beartown is located. (It's actually never even stated that the story takes place in Sweden.) I write fairytales, I like readers to build their own environments.". *Twitter*.