Fredrik Backman does it again, folks — somehow reaching inside the human condition and pulling out all its messy, beautiful contradictions like he’s been doing this his entire career.

My Friends is, on the surface, a mashup of a coming-of-age story and a mystery. But underneath, it’s really a meditation — on art, on grief, on love, and on the weird, tangled machinery that makes up a human being. What makes someone an artist? Is it talent, or heart? What makes someone lovable — or worthy of love — especially when they’ve been told their whole life they aren’t?

This is also a story of found family. Of the rare beauty of recognizing yourself in someone else’s oddness. Of little moments becoming lifelines. Of bravery, not in grand gestures, but in standing still when you want to run, or admitting you were wrong when everything in you screams not to.

There’s youth and innocence, yes, but also violence and trauma, including themes of domestic abuse, prejudice, and the heartbreak of untimely death. It’s a story that holds both warmth and deep sorrow in the same breath.

And the autistic coding of the main characters — subtle but unmistakable. “Act normal. Not normal for you. Normal for other people.” I felt that one in my bones.

I have to hand it to Backman — writing from the POV of an 18-year-old foster kid, a world far from his own, is a bold move. And while there were a few small anachronisms (would she really have a passport? Hmm), overall, he inhabits her voice with care.

Plot-wise, it zigged and zagged in ways I didn’t expect. I did see the big twist coming, but honestly? I’m not convinced Backman was going for shock so much as inevitability. This isn’t a thriller; it’s a quiet unraveling.

In the end, My Friends is about facing your fears — and sometimes, more importantly, facing yourself. It’s not flawless, but it’s genuine.

One of my favorite Fredrik Backman’s books. Such an amazing friendship story. I laughed, I cried and instantly bought a physically copy when I finished.

My Friends is a story centered around friendship and found family. It starts with a group of 4 teenagers who are close friends, each dealing with heavy challenges at home. In the present day, the story involves a famous painting and an 18 year old girl, Louisa, who’s just run away from her foster home.

In classic Backman fashion, My Friends weaves back and forth, revealing how “then” became “now.” I really enjoyed the close bonds and friendships among the group, it was definitely a high point of this book. The story felt long though and I found myself reaching for other books often while reading this one. It reminded me of the reading experience I had with Anxious People — enjoying it enough but hoping to get to “more” soon, too. I did like how My Friends ended, it felt like a fitting conclusion — 3.5 stars

I really enjoyed this story and how it wove all the characters together. I do think I will also try to get it in audio to hear the different characters voices. Great story of family, friends, love found and loss.

Backman is one of my favorite authors and he does not disapoint here. He perfectly balances funny and poignant and keeps the reader on their toes.

This book is a MUST read. I literally loved everything about it!

The storyline, the characters, the setting-everything is great. This book will make you laugh and cry. I truly did not want it to end.

Fredrick Backman has a way of writing characters that you fall in love with. He did that with the Beartown series, and My Friends is no different.

Absolutely wonderful! Sad, funny, heartwarming, and hopeful, It's all the hard parts of being human with a healtjy dose of hope that people still care about others!

Some strenghs that I obviously adored was Backman's unique ability to take marginal groups of people and bring them into the spotlight- from the homeless, the immigrant, and the young adult and make them actualized to the reader. I love the compassion and found family that are such common themes in his books.

I obviously recommend this one but this will come as a shock to many, but I genuinely didn't love this one. I felt the story lagged and in part due to the writing style of short chapters with a lot of breaks in the dialogue flipping to a backstory of the characters. It felt jarring and I had a hard time feeling immersed. It felt like a really long winded voicemail and I just wanted the story to get to the point.

This book has been so well received so maybe just ignore me haha.

5+ Stars!

“The world is full of miracles, but none greater than how far a young person can be carried by someone else’s belief in them.”

I love this author. I love everything he’s written, and this will be one of my favorite books of the year. The way he writes loneliness and the importance of connecting to other people is hard to put into words. I love that music and reading tastes can vary from person to person, but I genuinely feel so bad for people who don’t have the same connection to this author as I do. I wish I could share the feeling of what his books do for me with others. This book is a dual timeline story about a lost and homeless girl trying to find anyone or anything. She finds just what she was needing and hears a heartbreaking story about four friends in the process.

One would say this book is about Louisa and her journey to sell a painting. But it’s so much more than that. It’s about how the author writes about human emotions. His ability to make you care about the characters is so well done. This book is about art, friendship, and loss. But most importantly it’s about how important people are in this world and how important connection is between humans.

I will always recommend Fredrick Beckman’s books to people.

“The world is full of miracles, but none greater than how far a young person can be carried by someone else’s belief in them.”

This is written by the same author as Beartown and Man Called Ove which are some of my favorite books of all time!! Fredrick Backman- If you ever read reviews, please know that "I love you and I believe in you.”

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an e-arc of this book. These opinions are my own. This book was magic.

Louisa, a foster kid, now homeless, is about to turn 18. Since the tragic death of her only friend, Fish, Louisa has nothing dear to her heart other than a postcard picture of a painting called 'The One of the Sea' by artist CJat (later we learn the artist's real name is KimKim). This painting, a symbol of hope and beauty, becomes a central motif in the novel. Breaking into the gallery where the real painting is to be sold, Louisa is found out and attempts to run away from the guards. She unexpectedly and literally runs into a homeless man who coincidentally happens to be the artist himself. Now, it all sounds too coincidental to be true. Still, Backman writes in such a way that turns coincidence into serendipity. Flashback 25 years, and we learn the genesis of the painting. We are enmeshed in the lives of the author and the three friends who all needed to rely on each other to survive the trauma and heartaches of their childhoods. Joar is the protector. A Child of an incredibly abusive father yet a gentle, loving mother, Joar. And, of course, Ted, who endures the death of his father after a prolonged sickness. Ali is a young girl with a single father with a nomadic lifestyle. Each of these young people was lucky enough to have found each other at a time when they were suffering from traumatic childhoods.
The novel is structured, alternating between two time periods. In the present day, we follow Louisa as she meets Ted, now an adult, and begins to unravel the story behind her beloved painting. The second timeline, set decades earlier, immerses us in the lives of 'the friends.' 
I loved several elements of this book; I especially loved the idea of people who, when they find someone who is "one of us" (an artistic, sensitive soul), will do anything to protect and encourage them to flourish not only in their craft but in life itself. I also love that even though this novel is rife with trigger warnings (suicide, abuse, neglect), the characters are portrayed as pure-hearted, loyal and warriors against their specific demons.
This novel's primary theme is friendship and how true friendship survives trauma, conflict, and time.

Most of the time, when I read a book, I’m reading to get lost in a new world, to be entertained, to enjoy a nice romance, etc. And there are certain authors you only read when you want something more - something deeper. Fredrik Backman is one of those authors. I started reading this book digitally via NetGalley, but then realized it was so freaking good, I needed a hard copy. I had to be able to hold it in my hand - to write in it - to highlight the parts that are so beautiful, they need to be in color. This is a book about friendships, art, life, beauty, grief, joy, sadness, and everything in between. Backman always just knows how to pour cold water over your sobbing head and then wrap you in a warmed blanket. If you’re reading this, then you know what the book is about. Well, you think you do, anyway. It’s so much more. You just want to know if you should read it. Does it live up to the hype? Abso-freaking-lately you should! I just wanted to hug this book when I finished. I will recommend this book to everyone who asks!

Wow! I had to wait a few days before writing this review. This may end up being my favorite read of 2025. I did not read any reviews or spoilers and I’m so glad I went in blind. If you love character driven stories about found family this will not disappoint. I felt every emotion and savored each moment. I didn’t want to let the characters go. Backman does it again.

Thank you, Atria Books, for the copy of this book.
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Read if you like: character driven stories, stories about friendships and complex relationships
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The book follows Louisa as she meets Ted, one of the friends in her favourite painting. She learns from Ted about the friends and about their lives, their struggles and hardships, and how they persevered.
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This was a classic Backman story, beautifully written and well crafted with complex characters. I loved reading about the friends and how they interacted and supported one another. It was quite heartwarming at the end. Backman really knows how to tug on your heart, and this will not disappoint!

First and foremost, thank you to NetGalley, Atria books, and Backman for this early copy of "My Friends" in exchange for an honest review.

For a long time "Ove" has been my favorite book of all time. I reread it at least once a year. I never thought Backman could surpass it and, yet, he has. I loved "My Friends." So very much.

One of the best things that I loved about this book is the celebration of art. I am an art fan. I love how artists convey specific messages and how these messages are individually interpreted by the world. Art is beautiful and I marvel at the sheer talent of production. So, I love that so much of this story centers around a simple, yet stunning, piece of artwork.

What's even more important is the story behind the art and that is one of the greatest gifts in life: friendship. Now that I'm entering middle age, it made me even more nostalgic for my childhood years and all those simple, good times I shared with friends.

I want to cry at how much I love this book. As soon as I finished it, I started re-reading it!

My Friends by Backman is another great story by a master author. I was immediately engaged and stayed invested in the characters from beginning to end of this lovely novel. Five stars.

My Friends was one of my most anticipated reads of 2025. I read the first two Beartown novels by Fredrik Backman and immediately fell in love with his storytelling. I'm still too chicken to read book three because of the foreshadowing in previous books, but I will get to it this year.

Just like its predecessors, the writing in My Friends is exquisite. If there is one thing I can assuredly say about Fredrik Backman's writing, is that it's apparent he has a deep understanding of people. Sometimes, I'll come across a passage and feel as if he was somehow able to read my mind because he vividly describes how I would feel in certain situations and I've heard the same sentiment from a few people. I felt that more so with Beartown, but it's also evident here.

This novel will make you feel the nostalgia of our long gone childhood and the innocence and simplicity of our early friendships. Especially during the period of our lives when the only thing we want to do is hang out with our friends all day, every day. The novel also explores themes of found family. After reaching its the end, I felt as if I had received a warm hug from an old friend.

The only critique I have is that there were a few lulls due to its slow pacing.

Well, file this under favourite books of 2025. I am in awe of Fredrik Backman's writing. He is unmatched in his ability to peel back the layers of his characters so tenderly that by the end, I genuinely grieve finishing the book. It feels like saying goodbye to people I've truly come to know.
My Friends starts off slow and steady, with Backman's signature style of dropping little breadcrumbs about who these characters are and what's shaped them. Then suddenly, you realize he's led you to something you didn't even know you needed to understand. My favourite part is the unlikely friendships. I'm always drawn to stories where people connect across differences, and this one delivered in the most surprising and moving way. Loved it!
Thank you Atria Books for the copy through NetGalley!

Master storyteller (favorite author) and #1 NYT bestselling author Fredrik Backman returns with another powerful and moving tale—MY FRIENDS —emotional, witty, and heartwarming—Backman's classic signature style and what keeps readers returning to his thoughtful and inspiring stories.

MY FRIENDS is a testament to the enduring, transformative power of friendship and art. It's a story that will inspire and fill you with hope.

Top books of 2025!

About...

Four teens whose friendship creates a bond that changes a stranger's life twenty-five years later.

Louisa, age eighteen, is an aspiring artist (a survivor) who is intrigued by three figures at the end of a long pier in the corner of one of the most famous paintings in the world. She is determined to find the story behind these three enigmatic figures.

In a nearby seaside town, twenty-five years earlier, a group of teens find refuge from their troubled home life by spending long summer days on an abandoned pier. They bond with one another as they share their secrets and dreams.

Out of that summer emerges a transcendent work of art, a painting that will unexpectedly be placed into eighteen-year-old Louisa’s care. She embarks on a surprise-filled cross-country journey to learn the origins of the painting and decide what to do with it.

My thoughts...

Find your tribe! More than just finding friends, it's about finding people who truly resonate with you on a deeper level and share your dreams. An ode to friendship, art, creativity, and literature for hope and healing.

A masterpiece! Beautifully rendered, MY FRIENDS is a dazzling coming of age; of friendship, hope, and humor— told in two alternating timelines with the four childhood friends one transformative summer. Their close bond inspires a painting that decades later becomes famous.

Backman's skill lies in creating characters that are not only relatable but also feel like friends. He explores universal themes of friendship, loss, and resilience, infusing his stories with humor and life lessons that resonate deeply with readers.

In the present timeline, Louisa, age eighteen, is grieving the loss of her best friend. She finds her only comfort in the form of a picture postcard with a painting printed on it, a postcard she took from one of the many foster homes where she lived. This painting, which she later discovers is the work of the four childhood friends, becomes a symbol of hope and connection for her.

Then, the original painting and a cross-country journey to solve the mystery, and how the artwork will connect to her life and the teens in the painting.

The past is a story of a young artist, age fourteen, from a rundown town with divorced parents and a gang of friends that a teacher once described as 'a pack of wild animals.' The painting known as 'The One of the Sea,' is a significant piece of art created by the four childhood friends. Despite their troubled backgrounds, they find solace and inspiration in each other's company, and this painting becomes a symbol of their bond and shared experiences.

Joar, Ted, Ali, and the artist (who painted the famous painting).

Despite the challenges they face, the friends' journey is a testament to the human spirit's resilience. Their struggles and triumphs will resonate deeply with you, the reader, leaving you feeling uplifted and inspired.

To them, “Tomorrow” is a promise, a strength they offer each other to get through the evenings—because though their days are filled with sunshine and hanging out and laughing together at a pier in their seaside hometown, their evenings are filled with abuse, anger, frustration, and pain.

I love this part: "Children have two worlds, they have been given and the one they can dream about, but not even the artist had enough imagination to believe it was possible to paint his way out of there."

For Joar, art was love. Grief. A story. A context.

'The One of the Sea.' The art he created one day when he called himself a different name. He was shy and broken, and the buyers loved that. He was a loner, and the less he had to give, the more everyone wanted. It was about where it all began.

As with all of Backman's novels, which I adore, they are thought-provoking, insightful, full of wisdom, life lessons, and a bit of hope, dreams, friendship, acceptance, and redemption with unforgettable characters you care about.

Witty, heartfelt, and wise. (I think I have read them all) There is often sadness, loss, grief, the messiness and complexities of life, but there is also hope, joy, friendship, love, and second chances. The novel beautifully explores these themes.

Fredrik Backman and Catherine Ryan Hyde are two of my favorites when it comes to the human spirit, with multi-generational characters and timelines who learn from one another. Backman eloquently captures the young and old. Full of compassionate characters and vivid descriptions. He writes from the heart, and it is reflected in his work.

I also just finished Wally Lamb's The River Is Waiting (also on my top books of 2025 list), and in this book, like MY FRIENDS, there is art that comes from pain (expressed). Still, something beautiful in this book is the characters (with water tubes floating down a river) that he added in a mural, which only certain people noticed and were able to see and remember their loss, creating a beautiful story through art, as seen in this book.

I enjoyed the characters' meeting for a poignant journey of trust and unexpected hope. Their journey is a testament to the power of friendship and the resilience of the human spirit, leaving you feeling hopeful.

I adored the interview and dedication: “To anyone who is young and wants to create something. Do it.” The entire story came out of that.

Deeply philosophical and thought-provoking, this is an ideal book club pick for further discussions. Highly recommend.

Recs...

MY FRIENDS is for all the dreamers out there, as well as super fans of the author, and those who enjoy works by Catherine Ryan Hyde, Elizabeth Berg, Mitch Albom, Kevin Wilson, Richard Paul Evans, and Matt Haig, who are drawn to their humor, emotion, and quirky characters.

Thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for providing an advanced review copy in exchange for my honest thoughts. Always an honor to read one of Fredrik Backman's books. This is one for the bookshelf to pull out and reread time and time again.

Audiobook...

I am currently listening to the audiobook I purchased and will add to my review once I have finished, narrated by the talented Marin Ireland!

blog review posted @
JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
My Rating: 5 Stars +
Pub Date: May 6, 2025
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In Backman’s latest novel, My Friends, we meet Louisa. She is spiraling in her shattering grief. She runs away from her foster home on the eve of her eighteenth birthday and finds herself at an art gallery to see her favorite painting. Chaos ensues and through a chance encounter with a stranger she begins to find herself and acknowledge her grief.

It’s about art, humanity, the friendships of youth, and grief. It’s tender and full of heart and humor like all his books, Also, I never thought a book that takes place on a train for most of the story would be as engrossing as it was.

I finished this book over the past weekend and couldn’t seem to write anything down considering everything going on recently. I will say that it did provide slight mental reprieve to read about human connections when the world seems to be seriously lacking empathy and humanity.

I don’t know. Either you love his books or you’re not into them, but for me it was an automatic 5 stars for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for a gifted e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was my first book by Fredrick Backman and now I understand the hype. He writes these incredibly rounded and well formed characters and has set this highly engaging story. Absolutely a five star read.