*Please be forewarned of domestic violence in this novel* "A violent man is a sickness for all around him. Violence is a plague that spreads through everybody it comes in contact with..."

Fredrik Backman has written a beautiful coming of age novel about four close-knit friends in their teens, growing up in a seaside town. All are from families that are dysfunctional in various ways: a father who turns abusive when drunk, a father who is dying, an older brother who is a bully; a mother and father who wish for a 'normal' son; a father who uproots his family whenever his debt grows too heavy. One of the kids is an extremely talented artist and that last summer they are together, the kids push him to paint a picture to enter in a contest, convinced it is his ticket out of the life they are living.

Twenty-five years later, a young girl named Louisa runs away from her foster home with plans to sneak into an auction to see a painting of the sea that she has always loved. There she meets the artist who ends up giving her a great gift. She embarks on a wacky odyssey with his best friend and, during their trip, slowly learns the story of what happened that summer so many years ago.

The story is equal parts hilarious, sad and depressing but it always takes total command of ones heart. Backman really understands the human condition and all our glorious flaws. I really enjoyed these characters and their deep friendship. The author makes full use of misdirection so just when you think you know what's going to happen, the plot takes some surprising turns.

Many thanks to the author and publisher for providing me with an arc of this new novel. My review is voluntary and the opinions expressed are my own.

One of the best books I’ve read in some time. Backman takes us on a journey filled with friendship, laughter, heart break, and so much more that words can’t adequately describe. Thank you out so much for this ARC.

“My Friends” is a book of four friends that formed a bond of friendship twenty five years ago that will change the life of one teenager today.

Backman’s ability to capture the human condition is in full force in his latest heart wrenching yet heart felt and profound story. His storytelling shines as he slowly reveals the life and character of the four friends. He seamlessly weaves themes of addiction, abuse, loneliness, love, and grief together into a story that will make you both laugh and cry and truly root for these young kids. While I really enjoyed this book, I did find the pacing a little slow at times that prevented the binge reading I felt with his other books.

Say hello to my favorite read of 2025 and the latest inductee into my all time favorites hall of fame! I feel like I could easily write an essay on this book and still not do it justice.

If you love beautiful writing and mesmerizing storytelling, quirky characters and stories that feel like an emotional sucker punch then you don’t want to miss out on this one. I was telling someone about this book last week and mentioned that Fredrik Backman’s writing is so distinctive that I’d recognized it in a line up even if it wasn’t from something he published!!! And if you’ve never read his work and you enjoy contemporary fiction then you’re truly in for a treat!

This is a story of broken homes and broken hearts, of friendships and coming of age, of art and death but most of all of love and found family! I cried, oh how I cried! But I also laughed. Genuine unexpected belly laughs. There is so much joy and laughter in this story. These characters came alive for me as I was reading and no longer feel fictional, that’s how vivid they are in my mind.

And finally I love the social commentary Fredrik Backman weaves into his stories, probably because those values align so closely with mine. Most of all I wholeheartedly believe that most of us need just one person to see us and believe in us!

Atria Books I can’t thank you enough for gifting me the eARC! I can’t wait to reread and annotate because there are so many quotes I have to save.

Backman is in a class of his own. I loved everything about this one! No one can write characters like Backman can, and I will remember these characters for a long time to come! The way the relationships and friendships developed was perfect, and I especially loved the relationship between Ted and Louisa. I liked how Backman portrayed different walks of life through his different settings, and the setting really accented the development of the plot. I loved so many things, but one of my favorites was the sheer number of quotes that I underlined throughout the book. This book releases tomorrow, and you really need to get your hands on it ASAP!

This book gave me all the feels. It was so beautifully written that I’ve gone back and bought a few of his back list. I must read more of his stories.

I always say that if I'm ever abducted by aliens--or find myself in a discussion with a member of the animal kingdom--and they ask me what it's like to be a human - I would tell them to read a book by Fredrik Backman. His novels provide a real insight into the human experience and the array of emotions that comes with it - and his newest novel, My Friends, is no different.

My Friends is a story about friendship: how it can save you, how it perseveres despite all odds, and how it leaves a lasting impact on those involved. I won't spend your time introducing you to the characters, as Backman does that beautifully.

What I will share is that like his other works, Backman's latest novel makes you laugh, makes you cry, and maybe makes you understand other people on a more human level.

Fredrik Backman is an amazing storyteller! I never thought another book of his could live up to A Man Called Ove, but he seems to hit it out of the park with every single one! This one is just as good, if not better, than his previous works. I cannot recommend this one enough!

I love Backman. He just has such a wonderful way of writing. It’s always deeply insightful and poignant, and perfectly captures the moment. The characters he creates have great nuance and they feel so real that I get very invested in their stories. And he crafts lines that fully stop me in my tracks when reading. This story has so much going on in it and I loved the rich world I got to explore while reading it.

The only reason I didn’t give this book 5 stars is because I didn’t like what happened as much as I think I would have liked what I thought was going to happen (confusing, I know, but I’m trying to avoid spoiling anything). Backman is usually rather rough on his readers and he was gentler this time, and apparently I’m a monster because I would have preferred he hadn’t been because I think the emotional impact would have been stronger. But it was still a lovely and moving story, and you should definitely check it out!

Thanks to Atria Books and Netgalley for this ARC. My Friends is out tomorrow!

4.5/5

Fredrik Backman’s latest novel is one of my favourite books this year. It is a story of art, humanity, and finding joy and beauty in the most challenging situations. A chance meeting at an art auction between Louisa, a teenager running from a foster home, and a famous artist, leads to a connection that reveals the story behind his first painting. Twenty-five years earlier in a small port town, a group of friends navigate adversity brought on by poverty, mental and physical illnesses, and addiction. During this time that changed their lives forever, the artist painted a seascape that captured their vitality, loyalty and affection. This novel is a slow-paced and beautiful read with a strong sense of place and a nostalgic mood that invests the reader in the characters’ resiliency and love for one another. Highly recommend to those looking for a new book club read, and those seeking out a literary gem to enjoy for an immersive and uplifting experience. Thank you to Atria Books for providing this book via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC copy of My Friends. Fredrik Backman is an auto-read author for me so I held onto it a little longer not wanting his new book to be over and done so soon. Backman brings subtle humor and quick, enlightening advice throughout all his books and My Friends was certainly filled with his writing flare.

This book was enjoyable, but not my favorite by him. I enjoyed getting to know each character and they were developed well as individuals, but the book overall just didn't hit me the same as some of his previous books.

Publishing tomorrow so add it to your TBR!

Overall, 3.75 stars!

Thank you sooo much to Atria books and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
I've loved Fredrick Backman ever since Anxious People came out. His writting scratches a very specific itch in my brain.
I was soooooooo giddy when I got this ARC. And then I fell in a reading slump. I tried picking it up, and I read until 30% and my brain just couldn't.
When I was feeling better, I picked it back up an finished it in a day.
Perfection, as always.
Thank you for writing, Fredrik Backman, thank you.

5.0

I have only ever read one other Backman novel, Beartown, but was so excited when I received this #gifted copy from @netgalley and @simonandschuster. This was one of my most anticipated reads of the year, and it did not disappoint!

This is the story of four teenage friends whose bond is so deep and lifelong. This bond is so special that it totally changes a complete strangers life over twenty five years later. It is also a story about art, and one particular painting by one of the teenage boys. It's a painting about the sea, but so much more about the kids on the pier depicted in the corner of the picture. This part is overlooked most times by everyone. But Louisa, an artist too, discovers them and vows to find out the story behind them.

This is just one of those books that grabbed ahold of me right from the start and I knew I was reading something really special. The four kids, Joar, Ali, Ted and the Artist all come from somewhat troubled backgrounds and when they all come together they become a found family. Their relationship is so beautiful and moving. I found my self laughing out loud and then brought to tears more than once also. I love a book and writing that can pull strong emotions from you. I was so deeply invested in all of the characters and could not read fast enough. The whole way through you are just hoping for the best for them, but also knowing that life doesn't always have a happy ending. I was just so emotionally invested and deeply moved by his beautiful words. I will forever be a Backman fan and need to go back and read many more of his other works. His writing is brilliant and I can't recommend this one enough!.

Releases on May 6, be sure to get it on your list! I would give it 10 stars if I could! It will definitely be a top read of the year for me.

The language of teenagers is typically full of feelings without the understanding of those feelings.

My Friends is a translation of the language misunderstood.

Four fourteen-year-olds, by all definitions, kids on the fringe, live at home barely hanging by a thread, connect for one summer that changes the trajectory of their lives.

Readers immediately meet Louisa. Almost 18 years old, not lost, just gone from her current (and final) foster home, we meet her in an art museum as she desperately seeks to put her eyes on, in person, a painting that has given her an emotional refuge for years—a painting she has only seen in a postcard.

As she flees the museum, she runs into a stranger in the alley who will change her life.

Throughout the book, as Louisa’s life changes course, she will hear the story of the friends in the painting—the story of the four friends and the one summer that changed their lives.

Oh, my heart and emotions were wrecked by this book. This is a book for all the big feelers. Frederik Backman is an emotional genius, and My Friends gives language to all the sensitive kids who aren’t sure how to express all they feel.

More impressive than giving language to teenagers is that he also gives it to us as hurting adults. Life has been simultaneously long and short for these friends, filled with loss, hurt, and grief. But their lives were also filled with love, passion, art, and friendship- the type of friendships that become our tether to all that is good.

In proper Backman form, while this is a deeply affecting story, it's filled with wit and sarcasm in the way we expect from his characters. It’s painful and hopeful. The way life often really is. I will sing the praises of this book forever.

Love Backman's writing style. I thought Anxious People, Beartown and The Answer is No are all brilliant. I liked the style of this one too but I just couldn't really get into it. It felt long and a little slow.

Fredrik Backman will ALWAYS be an auto-read author for me, and this was one of my most anticipated reads for 2025.

In true Backman form, this was a gorgeous story about friendship, the human spirit, kindness, and so much more.

The synopsis gives you the gist of the story, but not an ounce of the feeling it will elicit. I fell in love with the artist and his group of friends, reveled in the good times and mourned with them in the bad. Each character was beautiful, layered, flawed, lovable and unlikeable, and everything in between.

I know Backman isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. I personally know someone who will not read his books (I’m still aghast). So if you don’t love his unique form of writing, you may not like it. I happen to adore him and everything he writes, and loved this book as well.

Thank you Atria Books and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Atria Books and Simon & Schuster for the ARC of My Friends!

Fredrik Backman has done it again! Is there anything he writes that I won’t give 5 stars too?

“A book about four teenagers who form a friendship that changes their lives and a painting that connects them to a stranger.” Nothing more needs to be said on the description.

This book was beautiful, heartbreaking and soul warming. I wanted to devour it, but I have been in a pretty low mental state the last two weeks so it took me longer to read than I thought. I am glad I took the time to read it slow and absorb the story. These characters were so well written, I wanted to be friends with them as a kid. To find friendships like these are rare and to be able to get readers to feel that love through words is even more rare. This might be my favorite Backman novel to date.

Nobody can tap into human emotions quite like Fredrik Backman. He has this ability to make me laugh and then shatter me to a million pieces.

When I was thinking about what I wanted to say in this review, the only thing that I kept thinking is that I don’t want to say too much about the story and spoil any part of it, I just want to yell at everyone to read it. To say that I loved this novel would be such an understatement. As soon as I began reading it, I knew that it was not only going to be just what I wanted, but also just what I needed.

The characters in My Friends were everything. I could picture every scene, interaction, every glorious summer day that they spent together, and every hardship that they had to endure. I adored the way that their story was told. It was perfect. It hit me straight in the heart. As I read, I wanted to just keep reading one more chapter, and one more chapter, but the problem with that is that I also didn’t want the novel to end. I didn’t think that I was ever going to be completely ready to say goodbye to these characters. Even days later, I wished I still had a couple hundred pages left to spend with them.

With each turn of the page, it seemed as though I was either laughing or wiping the tears that were falling down my cheeks. I have read my share of tearjerkers before, but I have never felt so emotionally invested in a story or felt it so intensely.

I have been telling everyone that I know that they need to read this novel. This book is not only going to be making my list of favorite books of 2025, but this book is one of the best books that I have ever read. Mr. Backman, I don’t know how you do it, but please don’t ever stop, your writing is a thing of beauty.

*5+ Stars

Louissa is a young runaway from a foster home who not only loves art but is an artist herself but doesn't know it yet. Her path takes her to her idol of a famous artist which also leads her to many stories to 25 years ago of friends of his and the close bond they had. How their relationship with each other helped shape each other's lives and later on shapes other's lives as well.

I have read all of Backmans books and loved them all including this one. The character development in this book is just wonderful and you fall in love with each character. You find yourself laughing, crying, and rooting them all on. This is a wonderful book.

I read the ARC of My Friends by Fredrik Backman and I absolutely loved it. I laughed, I cried, I laughed, I cried. rinse & repeat. This story is largely told by a 39 year old man to an 18 year old girl about his group of friends the summer they were 14. And, it is told in the way stories are often told with detours and tangents and questions. As if it was an actual conversation. I highlighted so much of this e-arc on my kindle because I think the writing is brilliant. The story is about broken people and the lives they forge out of the darkness, the brokenness. "Art is a fragile magic, just like love, and that is humanity's only defense against death. That we create and paint and dance and fall in love, that's our rebellion against eternity. Everything beautiful is a shield." It is a book about friends, and found family, and living not the life you've been given but the life you dream about. I love this book. Thank you so much Net Galley and Atria Books for my arc. This book is releasing Tuesday, May 6, 2025.