Thank you to Atria books and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book!

Upon the death of her friend, Louisa runs away from her group home to see in person a painting that she has treasured for years. An artist herself, Louisa understands the beauty of art and how it can pull you out of the darkest of places. When she see the painting at auction and how the rich merely want to add to their investment portfolios Louisa finds herself in a state of rebellion. After fleeing the auction house she bumps into who she thinks is a homeless man, but who is, in fact, the artist, of the painting. This begins a tale of fated paths and the intersections of story and friendship across a span of 25 years. Friendship, love, the beauty and wonder of art, and its purpose in a world that can be cruel and heartless.

Fredrik Backman is at the top of his game as you will gasp and laugh out loud. This is heart aching, heart breaking, and heartwarming. Deeply touching and moving as you devour this book. If you have trigger warnings please read up on the subject matter as issues happen on and off page.
A definite 5 star read!

There was no question about whether I'd be reading this book. I'm a huge fan of Fredrik Backman's writing and I've read almost everything he's published. There were a lot of things I loved about this book and a few things that I think might turn some people away from it. It is a difficult book to read in that the kids have all had hard lives and some have been abused. But the power of friendship and connection is vividly shown and it would be difficult for readers to not get caught up in the characters.

Fredrik Backman did it again!
Louisa is a 17 year old, who wants to see her favorite painting in person. She grew up in foster care, bounced from house to house, and the only person who cared about her was her friend Fish, who passed away shortly after she turned 18. Louisa literally runs into The Artist of her favorite painting after she breaks in to see it and he notices that she is "one of them".
Louisa then goes on an adventure with The Artist's friend Ted. Throughout the adventure Louisa learns all about the painting and the summer that it was painted when Ted, Joar, Ali, and The Artist.

Wow this book. It was amazing, heartfelt, and made me reflect on my friends past and present. I was so excited when I learned that Fredrik Backman had a new book coming out and it exceeded my expectations!

Thank you Fredrik Backman, Atria Books, and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Reading Fredrik Backman always leaves me appreciating the smallest things around me. He is an excellent storyteller, using the simplest of languages to talk about miraculous things. His writing style, for lack of a better word, feels so accessible. I felt like “art” was the center of this story with people from different times finding it and passing it on to each other.
I would say that there were some times in the middle where I felt a little lost as to where the story was headed, but something in the plot kept me hooked to see what would happen next. There were tiny surprises in between with plot twists which I did not expect. Overall, I feel so warm inside - I just finished the book and I can't wait for the next one.

Tomorrow!

The Beartown books remain my favorite of all his work, but where those are about sports, this is about art, and it was immensely beautiful. Although I will say that Fredrik Backman's writing style is as familiar to me as an old friend, and I felt slight differences in this. I believe this is the first book he wrote originally in English, and it was interesting to see how his writing style changes when he's writing in his native Swedish versus translating himself.

Fredrik Backman has done it again! If you are already a fan you will find all the things you love about Backman books in his new one. The best characters, all the feelings (happy and sad), and a story that will stay with you long after you finish reading.

"𝒯𝒽𝑒𝓎 𝓌𝑒𝓇𝑒 𝒻𝑜𝓊𝓇𝓉𝑒𝑒𝓃 𝓎𝑒𝒶𝓇𝓈 𝑜𝓁𝒹 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓃. 𝐼𝓉 𝓌𝒶𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒻𝒾𝓇𝓈𝓉 𝓉𝒾𝓂𝑒 𝒯𝑒𝒹 𝒽𝒶𝒹 𝓁𝑜𝓈𝓉 𝓈𝑜𝓂𝑒𝑜𝓃𝑒 𝒽𝑒 𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒𝒹, 𝓌𝒽𝑒𝓃 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝑔𝓇𝑜𝓌 𝓊𝓅 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓇𝑒𝒶𝓁𝒾𝓏𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝒻𝑜𝓊𝓇𝓉𝑒𝑒𝓃 𝒾𝓈 𝒶𝒸𝓉𝓊𝒶𝓁𝓁𝓎 𝓆𝓊𝒾𝓉𝑒 𝓁𝒶𝓉𝑒, 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓃𝑜𝓉 𝓁𝑜𝓈𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒶𝓃𝓎𝑜𝓃𝑒 𝒾𝓃 𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓎𝑒𝒶𝓇𝓈 𝒷𝑒𝒻𝑜𝓇𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓃 𝓌𝒶𝓈 𝓇𝑒𝒶𝓁𝓁𝓎 𝒿𝓊𝓈𝓉 𝓁𝓊𝒸𝓀."

"𝓐𝓷𝓭 𝓗𝓮𝓪𝓿𝓮𝓷 𝓵𝓪𝓾𝓰𝓱𝓼. 𝓞𝓱, 𝓱𝓸𝔀 𝓲𝓽 𝓵𝓪𝓾𝓰𝓱𝓼."

˗ˏˋ ★ ˎˊ˗ 𝔸𝕃𝕃. 𝕋ℍ𝔼. 𝕊𝕋𝔸ℝ𝕊. ˗ˏˋ★‿︵‧ ˚ ₊⊹

Truthfully, I have no idea how to even give a quick summary of this book. It feels almost impossible because this book is SO much. I sat here and sobbed and laughed my ass off through each chapter of this book. It was such a damn journey and I loved it so freaking much. An instant forever favorite. I'll carry this book in my heart.

This is a story within a story- about 4 epic amazing friends and the summer when they were 14 years old and an art competition.

It's a story about love, loss, friendship, found family, heartbreak, self-identity, and so so much more. It is not for the weak of heart and may be triggering for some. Please check the trigger warnings if needed.

There is SO much packed in these pages and I took my time and just savored each page - Backman's prose is so poetic and beautiful, you have no choice but to take your time with them. Roll them around a little bit, sit and think on them.

You simply can't read his words and be done. You have to sit with them, break them down, say "wow" to yourself when you figure out what it means to you, and then repeat the process. How this man can weave humor, hijinks, laughter, sadness, depression, and utterly gut-wrenching scenarios and ideas, sometimes all of the latter in one paragraph, is truly beyond me.

The story is so multifaceted - just layers upon layers of goodness, of sadness, of truly scary revelations and realities. There were times when you could feel the darkness billowing from the pages... I was so anxious about flipping the pages because I had no idea what was going to happen. I feared for these characters, I mourned for these characters, I laughed with them, related to them.

I just want to squeeze them and tell them all I love them. I honestly don't have the words to express just how beautiful and amazing this book was. THIS is one of those books that will have you staring at the wall for a while after you finished it. Because did you finish the book, or did the book finish you?

Don't worry, Backman will give you your heart back in one piece.

Future generations will read Backman's books and discuss them in class, and really talk about what his words mean, just as we do with Bronte, Austen and many other classic author's. I have no doubt.

This story will beat you up, tickle you, crush you, warm your heart and change you. I can't recommend it enough!

╰┈➤ˎˊ˗ Expected Release Date - 05/06/25

"𝒯𝒽𝑒 𝓂𝑜𝓈𝓉 𝒹𝒶𝓃𝑔𝑒𝓇𝑜𝓊𝓈 𝓅𝓁𝒶𝒸𝑒 𝑜𝓃 𝑒𝒶𝓇𝓉𝒽 𝒾𝓈 𝒾𝓃𝓈𝒾𝒹𝑒 𝓊𝓈."

"𝐹𝓇𝒶𝑔𝒾𝓁𝑒 𝒽𝑒𝒶𝓇𝓉𝓈 𝒷𝓇𝑒𝒶𝓀 𝒾𝓃 𝓅𝒶𝓁𝒶𝒸𝑒𝓈 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒹𝒶𝓇𝓀 𝒶𝓁𝓁𝑒𝓎𝓈 𝒶𝓁𝒾𝓀𝑒.."

"𝒢𝓇𝒾𝑒𝒻 𝒾𝓈 𝒶 𝓈𝑒𝓁𝒻𝒾𝓈𝒽 𝒷𝒶𝒸𝓉𝑒𝓇𝒾𝒶, 𝒾𝓉 𝒹𝑒𝓂𝒶𝓃𝒹𝓈 𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝒶𝓉𝓉𝑒𝓃𝓉𝒾𝑜𝓃."

⋆✴︎˚｡⋆ Connect with me on Instagram ˗ˏˋ★‿︵‧ ˚ ₊⊹

Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the complementary advanced digital copy. All thoughts are my own.

Be sure to have a box of tissues next to you before you open this book. And I mean BEFORE YOU OPEN IT. Because this isn’t a let’s build up to the tears kinda book, it’s a you’re going to be crying throughout the whole thing kinda book.

This book is about love, loss, friendship, found family, heartbreak, self-identity, and so so much more. It is not for the weak of heart and may be triggering for some. So feel free to ask if you want my help with some trigger warnings.

I’m still new to the world of Mr. Backman, I’ve only read one other book by him (even if every book he’s written is on my TBR). I knew he writes tear jerkers, but his writing still surprised me with just how beautiful it is. I was highlighting something in almost every single paragraph while sniffling and wiping away tears. I will definitely be buying myself a copy when it’s released!

Fredrik Blackman is always an amazing writer. This book definitely showcased his talent. However, the story wasn’t much of a page-Turner for me. It took a long while for me to get through it. It wasn’t a bad story, but it was kind of long and boring. The ending was really great and this makes it worth reading. I really appreciated the opportunity to read My Friends, and I look forward to Backman’s next book!

Backman has done it yet again. Not that I expected this book to disappoint. They never do. Somehow it makes you laugh and cry at the same time. Your jaw will drop. But best of all, your heart will feel like it’s getting a big, warm hug. It’s almost like a form of therapy, showing the other side of tragedy and sadness, the hope, the light at the end of the tunnel that always appears, the love. The characters are perfect and easy to cheer for. And the way with words. So many quotes I wanted to rip off the pages and hang on my walls so I could read them over and over again. I’m so glad this book exists. I’m so glad a read it and highly recommend you do the same.

Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books, and of course, Fredrik Backman.

Both hopeful and heartbreaking at the same time. Bacman is a master storyteller who excels at making readers feel the emotional experience of his characters and this book is no exception. I became absorbed in the world he built and didn’t want the story to end.

I love Fredrik Backman’s books and have read everything he’s written. I enjoyed this book so much. I felt all the feels and fell in love with each character! I enjoy Backman's quicky writing style too.Thanks to NetGalley, and the publisher for an arc!

How can I rate a Backman book anything less than 5 stars?

One thing I have noticed about Backman and his writing style is that you simply can't read his words and be done. You have to sit with them, break them down, say "wow" to yourself when you figure out what it means to you, and then repeat the process. How this man can weave humor, hijinks, laughter, sadness, depression, and utterly gut wrenching scenarios and ideas, sometimes all of the latter in one paragraph, is truly beyond me. My Friends tells the story of 4 idiots, the kind of idiots you can only be when you're fourteen, fifteen, sixteen. It is about the sea, about art, about teaching, about brothers, about parents, about grief, about love, about loneliness, about violence, about simplicity, about fart jokes, about trains, about planes, and honestly, it's about life. You think you know where the story is going to go 20% in, 45% in, and even 80% of the way in, but Backman still surprises you. He creates full fleshed out characters that have flaws and are messy and are just trying to figure it out, just like we all are.

A few of my favorite lines/thoughts/ideas presented within My Friends, with little to no explanation:

1. "And Heaven laughs. Oh, how it laughs." - A damn good line.

2. "They were fourteen years old then. It was the first time Ted had lost someone he loved, when you grow up you realize that fourteen is actually quite late, that not losing anyone in all the years before then was really just luck." - Yes, it is.

3. "Rich people love tiny food." Classic Backman.

4. "Stop saying I was in prison!" "I'm telling you, it makes you seem dangerous and attractive."

5. "Not everyone can be as lucky with their friends as you." (:

6. "In the evening Christian's mother comes and helps the minister pick up the flowers and put them on the graves that no one visits."

Words are not small things, Fredrik write in another book of his, Beartown (and if you know me at all, you know this series is one of the reasons I am who I am today). That is the invisible string connecting us to one another. The power of words. The ideas presented within will carry on. Put this one on your TBR, immediately.

The biggest of thanks to NetGalley for early access, this meant the world to me.

My Friends was my first experience with a Fredrik Backman story, and immediately I knew that I reading the words of a master storyteller. It was also apparent Backman was adept at making his readers feel the emotional experience of his characters- which usually makes me wary (is he about to break my heart to bits??), but somehow, he also earned my trust. All this within the first 10% of the book. I don’t know how it’s possible, but this book is art. This book is a beautiful act of rebellion in a hard and harsh world. I could not put it down.

This book explores the ripple effect of the friendships of a group of rough and rugged teenagers rebelliously choosing love and beauty while growing up in a hard world of domestic violence, substance abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, loss… etc. There are tough themes explored, but Backman does not go into grotesque and descriptive details of maltreatment. He just gives enough for the reader to hold the characters, their experiences, and their choices with empathy and compassion. He holds the tension of recognizing beauty and love against a backdrop of relentless hardship. This book will change you, but it won’t break you.

You can trust Backman to give back your heart in one piece with My Friends. This will absolutely be an instant best seller, and it’s one not to miss. What a treasure.

I would like to thank Atria Books and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

There is a reason why Fredrik Backman is my favorite author ! He writes with DEEP emotion. His characters are flawed, as we all are. His storylines are non-linear, as life can be. And it is ALL perfection. He manages to grasp my heart from the first page and holds tight until I am sure I don't want him to let go.

Core friend group from the past, youngster, and art. Contains the signature Backman insightful way of explaining universal truths, but trigger warning it contains a lot of loss. 3.5 stars

Story: 3 Characters: 4 Engagement: 3
Recco: sure--as long as you're emotionally prepared

"Our teenage years have to simultaneously be the brightest light and the darkest depths, because that's how we learn to figure out our horizons."

Highlights:
- Love the beautifully written descriptions of life learnings and character observations Quotes of a few below.
- Ode to friendship and finding your people is excellent
- The main girl is a trip: spunky, endearing, and lonely. I really felt for her.
- Main man is an island in himself which is nice to see disrupted
- Some scenes are so emotionally poignant you can't help but be affected by them
- The importance of authentic from the heart art us central

Midlights:
- Storytelling of the past isn't sequential so bit harder to follow

Lowlights:
- So many people die: it seems constant and imminent and quite depressing
- Some kids' lives are so gut wrenching

Quotes I highlighted::
"The most dangerous place on earth is inside us."

"Fragile hearts break in palaces and dark alleys alike.."

"He has an impressive scream, somewhere between a five-year-old who's fallen off a swing and an opera singer who's found a snake in her car."

"his joy never lasted very long, his skin was too thin to keep reality out."

"He was good at seeing the beauty in everything, that happens if you're no good at seeing it in yourself."

"Ted and Ted's brain are not friends, they're classmates, forced to do a group assignment called "life" together."

"She's bad at pretty much everything, but good at being angry."

"Art is empathy."

"You're an artist if you don't see the world the way it is, if you hate white walls!"

"What happens next is both stupid and logical, much like most of life, really."

"it's impossible to come home now, he realizes, because home was the people."

"Grief is a selfish bacteria, it demands all our attention."

"The woman pretty much has the emotional range of a lampshade."

I'm going to start this by saying, I go into 99% of the books i read blind. Backman is my favorite, and when I got the arc I did an actual happy dance and called like 5 people jumping up and down. And then i sat down and bawled through the first chapter, because i am an adoptive mom of an older child that we adopted through the foster system. My heart was cracking for Louisa and fish so much after the first chapter that I had to put the book down for a week before I could continue.
My favorite thing about backman's books is always the same. He sees, actually sees, people. He will mention a character... it might be a main character's brother, or a random teacher, or a janitor, or just a passerby. But instead of dismissing them (they're a bully, they're always afraid, they haven't amounted to anything) he explains their WHY. I think it's so easy for us in life to forget that everyone has a why for why they act and respond the way they do. Backman acknowledges the why, and it's beautiful and important. He reminds us that being kind can change a person's entire life, and that being different is still worthy.

Thank you atria books for this digital arc! :)

I looooove Fredrik backman & his work. I’ve read Beartown (just the first) and so many of his stand alones. I’m going to get some backlash probably for this one, & I know his writing style is usually a slow burn, but this one was a real slow burn for me. I loved all the characters, their friendship, & various timelines, but maybe I just needed a little more action / events. This will be a four or five star read for many who love him, but this just wasn’t my favorite. 🤍

I really enjoyed this book. It kept me engaged and it only took a few days to read. I think this is going to be a good book club option for several clubs. I plan recommending to my book friends and I look forward to reading more by this author.

Wow, really wow! I struggled with this book on the first two chapters, not that it wasn't interesting but you know when you finish a really good book, sometimes it is hard to get into another one. I persevered though because if any of you have ever read any other novels written by Frederik Backman, you know that it is worth reading.
I would like to thank #netgalley for giving me this ARC to give an honest review. To those of you that actually read my reviews, you will know that I do not like to give anything away about the book. There are other reviewers out there that will give you a deep dive into the book, I only look at how many stars reviewers give. I also follow another reviewer who reads similar subjects that I do and I usually do enjoy the books Chelsey reviews.
This story involves 4 young friends, one who becomes famous and the story is told how their friendship has stood the test of time, all the way into their adult lives. They meet more characters along the way, they help people even though they all have encountered hard home lives.
I enjoyed this book immensely and I highly recommend it.