{"product_id":"my-friends","title":"My Friends","description":"\n\u003ctable align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"2\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"100%\"\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd class=\"productDetailSmallElements\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBiographical Note\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFredrik Backman is the #1 \n\u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \n\u003ci\u003eA Man Called Ove\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eMy Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eBritt-Marie Was Here\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eBeartown\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eUs Against You\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eAnxious People\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eThe Winners, \u003c\/i\u003eand \n\u003ci\u003eMy Friends\u003c\/i\u003e, as well as two novellas and one work of nonfiction. His books are published in more than forty countries. He lives in Stockholm, Sweden, with his wife and two children. Connect with him on Facebook and X @BackmanLand and on Instagram @Backmansk.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"This is Fredrik Backman at the height of his empathy and resonance. . . I frequently paused to marvel at the way Backman captured the rebellion of joy, the ferocity of devotion, and the cruelty of indifference. Every Backman book should come with the warning that your heart will be split in two, but also, more importantly, with the assurance that it will be repaired with restored faith in the small miracles of being human.\" --NPR, Favorite Fiction Reads of 2025\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Humorous, poignant, and always life-affirming.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003eKirkus \u003c\/i\u003e(starred review)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"[A] moving ode to friendship and creativity, in Backman's signature striking style.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003ePeople\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"Backman captures the guffaws of adolescent humor and the challenges for talented souls who fall outside society's norms, while he underscores not only the powerful sublimity of art but also how art can change lives. Backman's signature quirky characters never fail to amuse, while also illuminating profound truths.\" \n\u003ci\u003e--The Denver Post\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"Masterfully crafted. . . . A devastatingly beautiful love letter to teen friendship and the way they shape who you are and who you want to be, \n\u003ci\u003eMy Friends\u003c\/i\u003e is Backman's best story yet.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e -- \n\u003ci\u003eThe Nerd Daily\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"A heart-warming, heart-breaking gem that shines with wisdom, compassion, and humor.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e -- \n\u003ci\u003eBookTrib\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"A sweeping saga about young people, art and the way creativity connects friends and strangers across generations. . . . If you've read \n\u003ci\u003eA Man Called Ove\u003c\/i\u003e, you know Backman can be depended on to show how small the world is, and how fragile. He does it again here, this time with \n\u003ci\u003eStand by Me\u003c\/i\u003e vibes.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Backman delivers a wistful story about the power of friendships. . . . The author is at the top of his game.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003ePublisher\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003ci\u003es Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003ePraise for Fredrik Backman\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"Backman captures the messy essence of being human. . . clever and affecting, as likely to make you laugh out loud as it is to make you cry.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003eWashington Post \u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"The perfect balance of heartwarming and heart-wrenching. . . Fredrik Backman has a way of simply yet elegantly describing relationships. We can all be idiots, but we're still all human beings worthy of connection and love.\" - \n\u003ci\u003eNPR\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"Everything Backman's pen touches oozes with insight and heart.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003eAmazon Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"Backman is a masterful writer, his characters familiar yet distinct, flawed yet heroic.\"-- \n\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"As popular Swedish exports go, Backman is up there with Abba and Stieg Larssson.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times Book Review \u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"Backman is the Dickens of our age, and though you'll cry, your heart is safe in his hands.\"-- \n\u003ci\u003eGreen Valley News \u003c\/i\u003e(Arizona)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Irrepressible humor, boundless grief, and eternal loyalty coalesce in Backman's tribute to youthful imagination and unfettered faith in art's power to heal and nurture.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003eBooklist \u003c\/i\u003e(starred review)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"In \n\u003ci\u003eMy Friends\u003c\/i\u003e, Backman again pays tribute to the forces that make an ordinary life extraordinary. By focusing his tremendous empathy on the power of art and friendship, he has created a novel that celebrates the beauty of being alive.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003eBookPage \u003c\/i\u003e(starred review)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBrief Description\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Most people don't even notice them-three tiny figures sitting at the end of a long pier in the corner of one of the most famous paintings in the world. Most people think it's just a depiction of the sea. But Louisa, an artist herself, knows otherwise and she is determined to find out the story of these three enigmatic figures. Twenty-five years earlier, in a distant town, a group of teenagers find refuge from their difficult home lives by spending their days laughing and telling stories out on a pier. There's Joar, who never backs down from a fight; quiet and bookish Ted who is mourning his father; Ali, the daughter of a man who never stays in one place for long; and finally, there's the artist, a boy who hoards sleeping pills and shuns attention, but who possesses an extraordinary gift that might be his ticket to a better life. These four lost souls find in each other a reason to get up each morning, a reason to dream. Out of that summer emerges a transcendent work of art, a painting that will unexpectedly be put into eighteen-year-old Louisa's care. As she struggles to decide what to do with this bequest, she embarks on a surprise-filled cross-country journey to learn the story of how the painting came to be. The closer she gets to the painting's birthplace, the more she feels compelled to unleash her own artistic spirit, but happy endings don't always take the form we expect in this fresh testament to the transformative power of friendship and art\"--\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher Marketing\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e#1 \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestseller, more than 1 million copies sold!\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eWinner of the 2025 Goodreads Choice Award for Best Fiction * A Fallon Book Club Pick * \u003ci\u003eUSA TODAY\u003c\/i\u003e Best Books of the Year * NPR Best Books of the Year * \u003ci\u003eMarie Claire\u003c\/i\u003e 25 Best Novels of the Year * \u003ci\u003eBookPage\u003c\/i\u003e Best Fiction of the Year * \u003ci\u003eReal Simple \u003c\/i\u003eBest Books of the Year * Libby Audiobook of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe #1 \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eAnxious People\u003c\/i\u003e returns with an unforgettably funny, deeply moving tale of four teenagers whose friendship creates a bond so powerful that it changes a complete stranger's life twenty-five years later.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eMost people don't even notice them--three tiny figures sitting at the end of a long pier in the corner of one of the most famous paintings in the world. Most people think it's just a depiction of the sea. But Louisa, an aspiring artist herself, knows otherwise, and she is determined to find out the story of these three enigmatic figures. \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eTwenty-five years earlier, in a distant seaside town, a group of teenagers find refuge from their bruising home lives by spending long summer days on an abandoned pier, telling silly jokes, sharing secrets, and committing small acts of rebellion. These lost souls find in each other a reason to get up each morning, a reason to dream, a reason to love. \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eOut 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 how the painting came to be and to decide what to do with it. The closer she gets to the painting's birthplace, the more nervous she becomes about what she'll find. Louisa is proof that happy endings don't always take the form we expect in this stunning testament to the transformative, timeless power of friendship and art.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations:\u003c\/strong\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/span\u003e 01\/01\/2025 pg. 1 (EAN 9781982112820, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eBooklist\u003c\/span\u003e 05\/01\/2025 pg. 28 (EAN 9781982112820, Hardcover) - *Starred Review\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/span\u003e 05\/26\/2025 (EAN 9781982112820, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/span\u003e 08\/01\/2025 (EAN 9781982112820, Hardcover) - *Starred Review\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eContributor Bio:\u003c\/strong\u003eBackman, Fredrik\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFredrik Backman is the #1 \n\u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \n\u003ci\u003eA Man Called Ove\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eMy Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eBritt-Marie Was Here\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eBeartown\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eUs Against You\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eAnxious People\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eThe Winners, \u003c\/i\u003eand \n\u003ci\u003eMy Friends\u003c\/i\u003e, as well as two novellas and one work of nonfiction. His books are published in more than forty countries. He lives in Stockholm, Sweden, with his wife and two children. Connect with him on Facebook and X @BackmanLand and on Instagram @Backmansk.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e\n","brand":"Atria Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51496277967126,"sku":"9781982112820","price":35.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0857\/9910\/8886\/files\/9781982112820.jpg?v=1783058887","url":"https:\/\/lusper.myshopify.com\/products\/my-friends","provider":"Lusperbooks","version":"1.0","type":"link"}