"A bank robbery. A hostage drama. A stairwell full of police officers on their way to storm an apartment. It was easy to get to this point, much easier than you might think. All it took was one single really bad idea.// This story is about a lot of things, but mostly about idiots. So it needs saying from the outset that it's always very easy to declare that other people are idiots, but only if you forget how idiotically difficult being human is."
To be fair, much of it is hilarious and insightful. Many sentences hit me square between the eyes (especially as he described the chasm between old people and young people when it comes to technology - ha). In the end, I would even say it is a touching tale. It is just that the whole convoluted thing took on epic proportions that stretched credulity and strained my interest in the story.
A bank robber is having a dreadful day. The cashless bank, carelessly selected, cannot grant even the small requested amount. When the teller alerts the police, the bank robber flees to a building across the street that only has a stairwell leading up to two apartments. Since one apartment door is open, the criminal flees into it and finds an apartment showing in progress. The story unfolds, petal by petal, revealing the anxieties of the bank robber and every individual in the hostage situation (including a nearly naked man wearing a giant rabbit head - ludicrous).
Thus, what began as funny and unexpected, ended as preposterous. It brought to mind the story about the 100-year-old man who climbs out of his nursing home window and into a gigantic adventure he never anticipated. So, while I didn't dislike the book, it didn't live up to my expectations after Ove. If you're going to delve into a Fredrik Backman tale, I would recommend that one over this one. Then again, perhaps you enjoy tales of absurdity with hidden gems of insight. The book was a funny frolic.
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